(a) The owner of any vacant structure shall file a registration statement for each such structure with the Code Official or his or her designee on forms provided for such purposes. Any such registration statement shall be deemed prima facie proof of the statements therein contained in any administrative enforcement proceeding or court proceeding instituted by the City against the owner or owners of the structure.
(b) The owner of any vacant structure who fails to file a registration statement for each such structure within the timeframes established by this Chapter or who fails to update a change in registration information within the timeframes established by this Chapter shall be subject to a fifty dollar ($50.00) per day administrative penalty with a maximum penalty of one thousand dollars ($1,000).
(c) Notwithstanding any other language in this Chapter and unless otherwise specified, any person who violates any provision of this section or of the rules and regulations issues hereunder and fails to maintain the property according to the Codes shall be guilty of a first degree misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be fined not less than two hundred dollars ($200.00) for each offense. Every day that a violation continues shall constitute a separate and distinct offense.
(d) Violations.
(1) Liability.
A. Unless otherwise specifically provided, the owner, the owner's agent for the purpose of managing, controlling or collecting rents, and any other person managing or controlling a structure or premises in any part of which there is a violation of the provisions of this code, shall be liable for any violation therein, existing or occurring, or which may have existed or occurred, at or during any time when such person is or was the person owning or managing, controlling, or acting as agent in regard to said structure or premises and is subject to injunctions, abatement orders or other remedial orders.
B. The liabilities and obligations hereunder imposed on an owner shall attach to a trustee under a land trust holding title to such building, structure or premises without the right of possession, management or control, unless said trustee in a proceeding under said provisions of this code discloses in a verified pleading or in an affidavit filed with the court, the name and last known address of each person who was a beneficiary of the trust at the time of the alleged violation and of each person, if any, who was then acting as agent for the purpose of managing, controlling or collecting rents, as the same may appear on the records of the trust.
C. The liabilities and obligations imposed on an owner shall attach to any financial institution, mortgage company, or any other person or entity with or without an interest in the structure or premises who knowingly takes any action in any judicial or administrative proceeding that is intended to delay issuance or enforcement of any remedy for any violation of the Codes, provided that with respect to fines such person shall be liable only for fines which accrue on or after the date of such action and fu rther provided that no liability shall be imposed under this section for any action taken in any proceeding, including a proceeding to foreclose on a lien, that does not delay or prevent the prosecution of any action brought by the City to enforce adopted Codes.
D. In the event the City of Girard, due to lack of response of an owner or agent, is required to take action, through its own efforts or via a contract for such services, to abate a nuisance at a vacant property the owner will be billed for the cost of the abatement to include all labor and materials needed to correct the violation. Nuisance abatements shall include, but are not be limited to, elimination of hazardous conditions, cutting of weeds and overgrowth, securing and/or boarding of a structure, trash cleanup and disposal and demolition.
(2) Assignment of registration fees, penalties, and fines. Registration fees, penalties, and fines associated with and collected on behalf of vacant property registration shall be deposited in a specific Finance Department code in the annual budget of the City of Girard and shall only be expended for the specific purposes set forth in this Chapter.
(3) Severability. If any section, subsection, clauses, phrase or portion of this Chapter is for any reason held invalid or unconstitutional by any court of competent jurisdiction, such portion shall be deemed a separate, distinct and independent provision, and such holding shall not affect the validity of the remaining portion thereof.
(4) Savings clause. The repeal or amendment herein shall not abrogate or affect any offense or act committed or done, or any penalty or forfeiture incurred, or any pending litigation or prosecution of any right established or occurring prior to the effective date of this Chapter, as amended.
(5) Publication. The Clerk for the City of Girard shall cause this chapter to be published in the manner required by law.
(6) Effective date. This chapter shall take full force and effect upon publication.
(7) Appropriation of fees collected. All fees collected shall be paid into the treasury of the City and shall in turn be certified by the City Auditor and appropriated by City Council for the enforcement of this Chapter.
(Ord. 7976-14. Passed 9-8-14.)