(a) Permits and Orders; Hearing to Show Cause Why Order Should Not Become Final; Final Order. The Service Director shall grant or deny any permits applied for pursuant to this chapter and may grant a permit subject to such additional conditions as may be necessary to comply with the provisions of this chapter and any regulations promulgated pursuant thereto. The Service Director shall serve the applicant with notice of the action taken, which action shall become; final unless the applicant submits a written request to the Service Director for a hearing to show cause why the decision should not become final within ten days of the notice, whereupon the Service Director shall give notice of the hearing to show cause including the date, time and place of the hearing. If the applicant(s) so notified should fail or decline to appear at the date, time and place scheduled for the hearing, the decision of the Service Director shall become final. Otherwise, the proceedings at the hearing shall be conducted by the Service Director or other duly authorized representative who shall give the parties a fair opportunity to be heard and present evidence and thereupon shall enter such findings and orders with respect to the decision thereupon determined, which decision, findings, and orders shall be final. The Service Director shall serve a copy of any such findings and orders finally entered upon default of appearance or hearing by personal service or certified mail and such determinations shall become final upon service or date of mailing.
(b) Penalty. Whoever violates or fails to comply with any of the provisions of this chapter is guilty of a misdemeanor of the third degree and shall be fined not more than five hundred dollars ($500.00) per day or imprisoned not more than sixty days, or both, for each offense. A separate offense shall be deemed committed each day during or on which a violation or noncompliance occurs or continues.
(c) Injunctive Relief. Notwithstanding the criminal penalties set forth in this chapter or elsewhere in these Codified Ordinances, the City, in order to obtain compliance with the provisions of this chapter, may also apply to any court of competent jurisdiction for injunctive relief.
(d) Notice of Violation and Order; Compelling Abatement of Nuisances; Hearing to Show Cause Why Order Should Not Become Final; Abatement by City, Costs Charged and Assessed. In lieu of or in addition to all other enforcement or prosecution remedies provided by this chapter the following actions may be taken by the City Service Director:
(1) The Service Director may serve a written complaint or notice of violation upon the owner and any other responsible party found in violation of the provisions of this chapter, which notice shall include findings and particulars of the violations or cause of the complaint. Such complaint or notice shall also include such orders to cease and desist, abate nuisances, restore property to compliance as deemed necessary and appropriate in the opinion of the Service Director to remove the cause of the complaint, and to appear before the Service Director for a hearing at a specific date, time and place to show cause why the findings and orders should not become final and why the Service Director should not proceed and furnish the material and labor necessary and remove the cause of complaint.
(2) If the owner and/or any other responsible parties notified should fail or decline to appear at the date, time and place scheduled for the hearing, the findings and orders of the notice of violation shall thereupon become final. Otherwise, the proceedings at the hearing shall be conducted by the Service Director or other duly authorized representative who shall give the parties a fair opportunity to be heard and present evidence and thereupon enter such findings and orders with respect to the notice of violation thereupon determined, which findings and orders shall be final. The Service Director shall serve a copy of any such findings and orders finally entered upon default of appearance or hearing and such determinations shall become final upon service or date of mailing.
(3) If the owner and/or other responsible parties should fail to comply with any final order, the Service Director may use employees, materials, or equipment of the City, or contracts for labor, materials, or equipment as are necessary to abate the nuisance or nuisances cited in the complaint and final order and the costs thereof shall be billed to the owner and other responsible parties. If unpaid after sixty days from the date of billing, the Clerk of the Council of the City may certify the total costs, together with a proper description of the lands, to the County Auditor who shall place the costs upon the tax duplicate whereupon the costs are and shall be a lien upon such lands from and after the date of entry and the costs shall be collected as other taxes and returned to the City and/or the Law Director may commence a civil action to recover the total costs from the owner.
(Ord. 11-2001. Passed 1-16-01.)