As authorized by Government Code Section 38771, the city council finds, determines and declares that the prohibited activities and unlawful conditions set forth in this section constitute a public nuisance and are subject to abatement in accordance with the provisions of this chapter or as may otherwise be authorized by law. The prohibited activities and unlawful conditions declared and constituting a public nuisance are as follows:
(a) Any condition or violation that is defined or identified in this code as constituting a public nuisance. In addition, any condition violating any provisions of Title 10 (Zoning) of this code or certain uniform codes adopted by the city, including but not limited to the building code, the electrical code, the fire code, the housing code, the plumbing code, and the mechanical code;
(b) Any condition that is determined by state statute to constitute a public nuisance;
(c) Any condition that is determined by the city's Health Officer or his/her designee to constitute a public nuisance because it is dangerous to human life or detrimental to public health;
(d) Objects or structures of any kind or character placed, or allowed to be placed, without the authority of law, either in, under, over or on a sidewalk, intersection, street, alley or other public right-of-way;
(e) Maintaining any property in the city by owner, occupant or responsible party in any of the following conditions:
(1) Inadequately maintained landscaping on the property, and/or the portions of property fronting on any portion of a sidewalk area between the property line of the lot and the street line, including landscape planting strips, that is visible from and/or encroaching on the public right-of-way or adjoining property. Inadequately maintained landscaping includes any of following conditions:
(A) Lawns with grass creating an unsightly appearance due to lack of water or inadequate spraying, trimming, treatment or similar maintenance;
(B) Overgrown vegetation:
(i) Causing detriment to neighboring properties or property values;
(ii) Causing a hazardous condition to pedestrian and/or vehicular traffic; and/or
(iii) Likely to harbor rats, vermin or other nuisances;
(C) Dead trees, hedges, shrubs, plants, weeds, debris or other vegetation:
(i) Constituting an unsightly appearance and/or causing offensive odors;
(ii) That are dangerous to public safety and welfare;
(iii) That are dead, decayed, diseased or may be infested with insects or vermin;
(iv) That interfere with or impede the flow of traffic, whether vehicular or pedestrian;
(v) That obstruct visibility on streets, intersection, sidewalks or other public rights-of-way;
(vi) That create unsightly appearance due to lack of water, inadequate spraying, trimming, pruning, treatment or similar maintenance;
(vii) That are detrimental to nearby property or property values; and/or
(viii) That create a ready source of fuel for combustion, create a fire hazard or condition that are otherwise dangerous to the public health, safety or welfare;
(2) Buildings or structures that are abandoned, boarded up, partially destroyed, substantially deteriorated, or left unreasonably in a state of partial construction without a valid unexpired building permit;
(3) Unpainted, unmaintained and otherwise unprotected buildings, causing deterioration in the form of dry rot, warping, buckling, twisting, bowing, and infestations of various kinds;
(4) Broken windows constituting hazardous conditions and inviting trespassers, illegal and unauthorized uses, or malicious mischief;
(5) Attractive nuisances dangerous or potentially dangerous to people in the form of:
(A) Abandoned and/or broken equipment;
(B) Pools, ponds or excavations, wells, shafts, pits, cellars or basements without adequate barriers;
(C) Neglected, unprotected and/or unsecured machinery;
(D) Unsecured and unoccupied abandoned buildings and structures; and/or
(E) Unused, abandoned and/or broken appliances, including but not limited to, refrigerators, freezers, and storage chests;
(6) Items such as, or similar to, the following, and that are stored in yards and visible from public streets or other rights-of-way and/or other properties:
(A) Trash, junk, garbage, rubbish, lumber, scrap metal, concrete, asphalt, tin cans, pile of earth or salvage materials and debris;
(B) Household goods including but not limited to furniture, sinks, stoves or toilets;
(C) Mattresses;
(D) Cans of stains, paints or solvents;
(E) Vehicle and/or bicycle tires, tire racks, rims, wheels, etc.;
(F) Inoperative vehicles, vehicles in various states of disrepair and vehicle parts;
(G) Cabinets and other furniture not intended for outdoor use;
(H) Clothing;
(I) Appliances;
(J) Construction materials and/or tools;
(K) Yard or garden equipment in excess of that which is reasonable and appropriate for maintaining the property at which it is located;
(L) Bicycles, scooters or like items in excess of that which is reasonable for use by the current occupants of a property;
(M) Items of any sort or of any quantity that are evidence of an illegal operation or business, or create the appearance thereof;
(N) Any other refuse or waste that is not stored in a closed receptacle issued by the city's current trash hauling contractor;
(O) Trash, garbage or refuse cans, bins, boxes or other such containers in front or side yards, except when placed for collection pursuant to the provisions of this code; and/or
(P) Automobiles, motor homes, trailers, house trailers, boats, dismounted campers, or other vehicles or equipment which are parked or stored on property used or zoned for residential purposes, unless parked or located on a paved driveway or off-street parking space installed pursuant to this code or in an area lawfully screened from view from all adjacent public rights of way; abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative vehicles, as prohibited in Chapter 6.44 of this code;
(f) Maintenance of property in such condition as to be detrimental to the public health, safety or general welfare or in such manner as to constitute a public nuisance as defined by California Civil Code Section 3480 or California Penal Code Section 370, as amended from time to time;
(g) Any building, structure or portion thereof or areas of access that have any of the following conditions or defects to a significant degree or as otherwise noted:
(A) Any door, aisle, passageway, stairway, window or other means of exit not of sufficient dimensions, or not arranged so as to provide safe and adequate means of egress, in case of fire or panic, for all persons housed or assembled therein who would be required to, or might use such door, aisle, passageway, stairway, window or other means of exit;
(B) Any portion of any building or structure that has been damaged by earthquake, wind, flood, rain, or any other cause, such that the structural strength, stability or integrity of such building or structure is appreciably less than is suitable for occupancy and is less than the minimum requirements of building code regulations enforced by the city;
(C) Any portion of a building or any member, appurtenance or ornamentation on the exterior thereof that is likely to fall or to become detached or dislodged or to collapse and thereby injure persons or damage property,
(D) Any building, portion of a building or any member, appurtenance or ornamentation on the exterior thereof not of sufficient strength or stability or not so anchored, attached, or fastened in place so as to be capable of resisting wind pressure, earthquake forces, live-loads or dead-loads as specified in the building code regulations enforced by the city without exceeding the working stresses permitted therein;
(E) Any portion of any building or structure that has settled or otherwise been repositioned or reconfigured so that structural portions of the building or structure have less resistance to winds, earthquakes and/or other forces than is adequate for safe occupancy and/or have less resistance to such forces than is otherwise required by building code regulations enforced by the city;
(F) Buildings or structures, or any portion thereof, that are likely to partially or completely collapse or otherwise fall or give way, or in which some portion of the foundation or underpinning is likely to fail, because of dilapidation, deterioration, decay, faulty construction, infestations, the removal, loss, or movement of a portion of the soil necessary to adequately support such buildings or structures or portion thereof, or some other cause;
(G) A building or structure, or any portion thereof, that, for any reason whatsoever, is manifestly unsafe for the purpose for which it is used or intended to be used;
(H) A building or structure that has been so damaged by fire, wind, earthquake, or flood, or has become so dilapidated or deteriorated mat it becomes an attractive nuisance to children who might play therein to their danger, or affords a harbor for vagrants, criminals or immoral persons, or enables persons to resort thereto for the purpose of committing nuisances or unlawful or immoral acts;
(I) A building or structure that has been constructed, now exists or is maintained in violation of any requirements or prohibitions applicable to such building or structure, or in violation of the building and housing code regulations enforced by the city;
(J) A building or structure, used or intended to be used for dwelling purposes, that, because of dilapidation, decay, damage, or faulty construction or arrangement, or otherwise, is unsanitary or unfit for human habitation or is in a condition that is likely to cause sickness or disease when so determined by the code enforcement officer or a health official, or is likely to contribute to injury to the health, safety or general welfare of those living within;
(K) A building or structure that, by reason of obsolescence, dilapidation, deterioration, damage, substandard electric wiring, gas connections, or heating apparatus, or similar conditions, is in such condition as to be a fire hazard and is so situated as to endanger life or other buildings or property in the vicinity, or provide a ready fuel supply to augment the spread and intensity of fire arising from any cause, and/or
(L) Any sidewalk or driveway that is debilitated, broken, damaged, or raised to such a degree as to be injurious to property or persons using the same;
(h) Buildings or structures or appurtenances thereto which are deemed to be “unsafe” as defined in Section 102 et seq. of Title 26 of Los Angeles County Building Code, or as that section may be amended from time to time and as adopted by Chapter 8.05 of this code;
(i) Buildings that are structurally unsafe or that constitute a fire, health, or safety hazard, as determined by the Building Official;
(j) Buildings or structures which are defaced with graffiti, as defined in Section 3.44.030 of this code or have broken windows, doors, attic vents or under-floor vents;
(k) A swimming pool, pond or other body of water which is abandoned, unattended, unfiltered, or otherwise unmaintained, wherein the water has become polluted by bacterial growth, algae, remains of insects or deceased animals or reptiles, rubbish, refuse, debris or other foreign matter;
(l) Signs or sign structures which:
(1) Relate to uses no longer conducted or products no longer sold at the property; or
(2) Are maintained in violation of or in nonconformity with the city's sign regulations, as set forth in Title 10 of this code;
(m) Land, the topography, geology or configuration of which, whether in a natural state or as a result of grading operations, excavation, or fill, causes erosion, subsidence or surface water drainage problems of such magnitude as to be injurious or potentially injurious to the public health, safety or welfare, or to adjacent properties;
(n) Violation of the city's animal control ordinance, as set forth in Chapter 3.36 of this code;
(o) Walls, fences or hedges that are in violation of this code with respect to obstruction of view, height, or location and are injurious or potentially injurious to the public health, safety or welfare, or to adjacent properties;
(p) The storage or parking of vehicles contrary to Section 10.30.080 of this code or as that section may be amended from time to time;
(q) Unmaintained parking lots, trash enclosures, loading areas, and grease traps;
(r) Any lot or parcel unlawfully used by persons riding motorized bicycles, motorcycles, scooters, or similar vehicles, where those activities generate noise, interfere with the use and enjoyment of adjacent property, or endanger the health or safety of the public;
(s) The accumulation of animal feces or animal- related wastes;
(t) The maintenance of clotheslines in front yard areas;
(u) Inadequate ventilation or illumination, as determined by the building official;
(v) Inadequate or unsanitary sewage or plumbing facilities;
(w) Broken or unmaintained irrigation systems;
(x) The violation of occupancy standards as established by the uniform housing code;
(y) Abandoned petroleum products service stations, including surface and subsurface structures;
(z) A public telephone (i.e., one that is available to the public to make telephone calls by depositing money or by entering a credit card or a telephone calling card number) which is located in an area in which there is no demonstrable shortage of public telephones for emergency purposes, and which is one of the following:
(1) Is reasonably believed to be used as an instrumentality for, or to contribute to, facilitate or further (i) the transportation, delivery, sale, consumption, or transfer of any controlled substance as defined by the California health and safety code; or (ii) the commission of an act of prostitution or any other illegal activity;
(2) Is in disrepair or in an inoperative condition for thirty days or more;
(3) Creates a condition which is hazardous to pedestrians or vehicular traffic; and/or
(4) Poses a danger to or otherwise adversely affects the public health, safety or welfare.
(aa) The storage or parking of any vehicle having an unladen weight of at least ten thousand pounds which is reasonably believed is being used as an instrumentality for, or is contributing to, facilitating or furthering:
(1) The transportation, delivery, sale, consumption, or transfer of any controlled substance as defined by the California health and safety code, and/or
(2) The commission of an act of prostitution or any other illegal activity.
(Ord. 887 § 1(part), 2009; Ord. 838 § 1, 2005: Ord. 815 § 1, 2003: Ord. 814 § 1, 2003: Ord. 790 §§ 7 (part), 8, 1999: Ord. 755 § 1, 1997: Ord. 718 § 1 (part), 1994)