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The 2017 Public Works Construction Standards, North Central Texas, Fifth Edition published and updated by the North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG), are hereby adopted by reference and included in this chapter as fully as if set out at length herein. This adoption of the 2017 Public Works Construction Standards and its amendments is declared effective immediately upon receipt by the city and filing with the City Secretary of one copy of said standards.
(Ord. 11-06-2018PWCSADOPT, passed 11-6-2018)
RESIDENTIAL RENTAL PROPERTY
For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
ADMINISTRATOR. The City Administrator or his or her designee.
LOCAL CONTACT. An individual designated by an absent owner/landlord (one that lives outside of Godley), who is able to respond promptly (less than two hours) to an emergency at a rental property, subject to this chapter, on the owner/landlord's behalf and authorized to make decisions and act to remedy the emergency situation.
OWNER/LANDLORD. Any person or corporation/company that owns, leases or subleases residential rental property.
RENTAL PROPERTY. Any residential single-family, two-family, or multi-family dwelling unit, including manufactured homes, that is not owner occupied, and is rented or leased, whether or not rent is charged. RENTAL PROPERTY includes, but is not limited to: properties rented or leased to students, families, or any other persons; properties in which a family member of the owner resides in the home but the owner does not (regardless of whether additional persons also reside in the home); properties used as vacation rentals and hosted short-term rentals; properties owned by a company or corporation to house employees, whether rent is paid or not; and properties where a property caretaker lives in the home but the owner does not.
(Ord. 02032015-RENT, passed 2-3-2015; Ord. 11012016-BUILDING, passed 11-1-2016 )
(A) The owner/landlord or real estate manager of rental property (as defined by § 150.20), is required to register rental property with the city on a form provided by the Administrator by June 1 of each year or within 15 days of the property becoming rental property, if not previously registered with the city, and within 30 days if a rental property changes ownership. For purposes of this section, only one registration is required per property location, whether the property location consists of a two-family unit (duplex) or multi-family unit (triplex, quadplex, apartment building, and the like). The information required to register the rental property is as follows:
(1) Physical address of the rental property;
(2) Full name(s) of owner(s)/landlord(s);
(3) Name of the rental property, if not identified by the physical address (i.e. The Wilshire Apartments, Newport Condos, and the like);
(4) If the owner/landlord is a corporation or association, the name and address of the registered agent on file with the Texas Secretary of State;
(5) Full contact information of the owner/landlord (home phone, cell phone, business phone, fax number, email address, and mailing and physical address);
(6) Type of rental property (single-family, two-family, multi-family, and the like);
(7) The name and complete contact information for the local contact, if different than the owner/landlord, in the case of an absentee owner. The local contact cannot be someone who is listed on the lease;
(8) If a two-family or multi-family property, the number of individual rental units and buildings at the property;
(9) Telephone number that will be answered 24 hours a day (i.e. emergency phone number) by a responsible party (owner/landlord, local contact, and the like) as is required by Texas Property Code § 92.020, if applicable;
(10) Tenant names, the contact information for all persons listed on the current lease(s), and all current lease(s) shall be presented to the Administrator for review upon request; and
(11) Any other information, deemed necessary shall likewise be provided, as deemed necessary by the Administrator.
(B) An owner/landlord of rental property may not allow another person to occupy or lease rental property without a registration required by this section.
(Ord. 02032015-RENT, passed 2-3-2015; Ord. 11012016-BUILDING, passed 11-1-2016)
(A) The Administrator may order the inspection of the interior and/or exterior of a rental property if any of the following circumstances exist:
(1) The city receives a written or oral complaint from a tenant, neighbor, code officer, public works employee, police officer, or other interested party concerning a rental property indicating a current violation of the Godley Code of Ordinances, any of the standards and codes adopted by the city under this chapter,state law, or federal law or where the premises appear to be unsafe, dangerous, or hazardous to the public health or safety;
(2) Upon the first-time registration of a rental property with the city required by this subchapter;
(3) The failure of an owner to register rental property as required by this subchapter; or
(4) At any time the rental property is vacant, or without a tenant.
(B) When an inspection is ordered, a preliminary inspection shall be conducted by the Public Works Director or building inspector working at the direction of the city. This preliminary inspection is to identify issues of substantial concern that affect the habitability of the property involved, not merely aesthetic or surface level concerns. Dangerous electrical problems, water leaks, structural damage/insufficiencies, plumbing/sewer blockages, gas leaks, and other major problems will be the type of issues the city will be assessing.
(C) The preliminary inspection shall be conducted within ten days of the Administrator's order.
(D) A written report of the preliminary inspection shall be served on both the Administrator, the occupants of the home and owner/landlord or local contact within two days of the preliminary inspection. Actual notice must be achieved on the owner/landlord and/or local contact. This report shall contain a comprehensive list of any issues that require repair/remedy/correction with citation to the applicable law, regulation, and/or code offended. If no actionable issues are present, a written report detailing the preliminary inspection findings and passing performance shall be served on all parties as well, to close out the inspection.
(E) If actionable dangerous issues exist in the preliminary inspection report, the owner/landlord has five business days to remedy the issues and provide the Administrator proof of such compliance. The cost of any remedy is the responsibility of owner/landlord and not the tenant(s) or the city.
(F) Proof of compliance may be achieved by photos, receipts of materials/work, affidavits of compliance, and/or a second inspection by the Public Works Director or inspector working at the direction of the city.
(G) Failure to remedy a dangerous issue identified in the preliminary inspection within five business days, and/or the failure to provide proof of a remedy to all of the dangerous issues identified in the preliminary report, is a violation of this chapter and may result in the issuance of a criminal citation for the failure to comply. Additionally, a noncompliant owner/landlord, will also face a citation for each and every specific code, regulatory, and or state law violation present at the time. The preliminary inspection report shall serve as a warning to the owner/landowner.
(H) An owner/landlord of rental property, that wishes to contest the findings of a preliminary inspection report, may, at their own expense, seek an independent inspection of the rental property. A written report of this independent inspection shall be filed with the Administrator before the expiration of the five-day period for compliance. Such inspection must be conducted by a licensed building inspector, registered and licensed through the Texas Real Estate Commission. If this written independent inspection report conflicts in a substantial way with the preliminary inspection report, no citations may be issued for an offense under this subchapter, until the matter is heard before the governing body of the municipality - the City Council. The owner/landlord shall be notified of the date and time of the meeting and be allowed to present their position to the full Council. The Administrator shall be responsible fordetermining whether the independent inspection report and preliminary inspection report are substantially in conflict and invoke a hearing before the City Council. The decision before the City Council on such an issue is whether to authorize the issuance of citations, to designate a period for compliance, and/or to close out an ordered inspection file.
(I) The owner/landlord of the rental property shall permit the Public Works Director, Administrator, and/or building inspector working at the direction of the city, to enter the rental property (exterior and interior) when necessary to review compliance with this subchapter for the purposes of performing an inspection and/or to follow-up on a previous inspection. If the property to be inspected is occupied by a tenant or tenants, consent must be achieved of at least one occupant of legal age and authority to provide consent. If no consent of the occupants may be achieved, the city shall be responsible for seeking and obtaining a valid administrative search warrant issued by a court of competent jurisdiction to allow the designated building inspector, Public Works Director, and/or Administrator access to perform the inspection. The time period for inspection completion shall toll during any days where a warrant is being sought to allow entry, and shall not be held against the owner/landlord for purposes of this subchapter.
(Ord. 02032015-RENT, passed 2-3-2015; Ord. 11012016-BUILDING, passed 11-1-2016)
The Administrator shall have the authority to direct a citation be issued for a violation of the provisions of this subchapter. The Administrator shall also use due diligence in ascertaining the true owner/landowner or responsible party of the rental property subject to prosecution. The Administrator shall use all available public records (CAD, water, voting, and the like) to identify such person(s)/entities. And, in no case shall the Administrator direct a citation be issued to more than one owner for the same occurrence of offense. The Administrator shall instead choose one of the available identified owners, in their discretion, for purposes of issuance of a citation.
(Ord. 02032015-RENT, passed 2-3-2015; Ord. 11012016-BUILDING, passed 11-1-2016)
SUBSTANDARD BUILDINGS
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