(A) Issuance of notice.
(1) If during a single inspection, the Zoning Administrator shall find one or more violations of this chapter (as set forth in § 152.315), the following monetary fines shall be imposed:
(a) Single Violation $75
(b) Second Violation $30
(c) Each Additional Violation $25 each
(2) The Zoning Administrator shall issue a notice of violation and order to abate to the responsible party as determined by § 152.313. The notice shall contain the following information:
(a) The date and time of issuance of the notice;
(b) The specific violation(s) for which the notice is issued;
(c) The date and location of the violation(s);
(d) The amount of the penalty that is imposed;
(f) Notice that the responsible party must respond to the notice in writing within 15 days either admitting or denying the violation;
(g) Instructions that the responsible party may pay the penalties and provide proof that the violations have been corrected in lieu of admission or denial;
(h) Notice that further penalties and legal action may ensue if the responding party does not respond to the notice within 15 days;
(i) Notice of the right to appeal the notice of violation as set forth in § 152.316 which shall include a statement that the appealing party has the right to be represented by an attorney, and the right to produce evidence before the BZA; and
(j) The signature of the Zoning Administrator, which may be affixed manually or electronically.
(B) Failure to respond to initial notice / second and third notices.
(1) If a responsible party fails to respond to an initial notice of violation within 15 days, the Zoning Administrator shall issue a second notice of violation. If a responsible party fails to respond to the second notice of violation, the Zoning Administrator shall issue a third notice of violation. Upon the issuance of the third notice of violation, additional penalties shall be imposed as follows:
(a) Second notice + $25;
(b) Third notice + $50.
(2) All subsequent notices shall contain the information contained in the original notice but shall state that they are a second or third notice and shall identify the additional penalty.
(3) Failure to respond within 15 days of a third notice shall be deemed an admission of the violation and shall constitute a waiver of the right to appeal the violations(s) to the BZA. Following 15 days after a third notice of violation, the Zoning Administrator shall refer the matter to the Town Attorney for civil enforcement action.
(C) Response to notice by admission.
(1) Payment of a penalty shall be deemed an admission of a violation and shall constitute a waiver of the right to appeal a notice of violation.
(2) If a party admits a violation in writing within 15 days of any notice, such admission shall also be deemed a waiver of the right to appeal. In such circumstance, the party shall be given upon request an additional 30 days to pay the penalty (including any penalty for second and third notices) and to abate the violation(s) and no further penalties or enforcement actions shall be taken during this period (however, any pending stop work orders shall remain in effect, and violations of such orders shall warrant immediate legal actions). The Zoning Administrator may accept a late payment of a penalty (i.e. after the expiration of 30 days) along with an additional $10 penalty, if the violations have been abated within the 30-day time period and provided that the violation has not yet been referred to the Town Attorney.
(3) If the responsible party fails to pay the penalty and to abate the violation(s) within that 30-day period, the Zoning Administrator shall refer the matter to the Town Attorney for civil enforcement action. However, the Zoning Administrator shall have the discretion to grant a responsible party and additional 30 days upon request to pay the penalties and/or abate the violation but only if the responsible party can show good cause for the extension. The Zoning Administrator may not grant additional extensions after the matter has been referred to the Town Attorney for enforcement.
(D) Response to notice by denial.
(1) If, within 15 days of any notice, the responsible party appears and denies in writing the violation(s) in the notice, the Zoning Administrator shall evaluate the reasons given by the person and if necessary perform and investigation to determine whether there is still cause to believe that a violation exists.
(2) The Zoning Administrator may at his or her discretion refer the issue to the full Plan Commission for consideration.
(3) If the Zoning Administrator or Plan Commission determines that there remains cause to believe that a violation exists, the responsible party will be informed in writing of this decision and his or her right to appeal the decision to the Board of Zoning Appeals. An appeal must be initiated in writing, signed by the appellant, and signed and dated when received by the Zoning Administrator. A written notice of appeal must be received by the Zoning Administrator within 15 days of issuance of the written decision of the Zoning Administrator or Plan Commission. If no written request for appeal is received, the responsible party shall have an additional 15 days (i.e. 30 days from the date of the written determination) to correct the violation and pay the penalty.
(E) Civil enforcement.
(1) If a person upon whom a notice of violation is served pursuant to this chapter:
(a) Appears and denies the violation, but does not initiate a timely appeal and otherwise fails to pay the penalty or correct the violation within 30 days of the final determination;
(b) Fails to appear and either admits or denies the violation within 15 days of issuance of the third notice of violation;
(c) Fails to pay the specified civil penalty or to abate all violations within 30 days after admitting the violation (along with any duly granted extensions); or
(d) Fails to pay the specified civil penalty or to abate all violations within 30 days of the final decision of the Board of Zoning Appeals, then the Zoning Administrator shall refer the violation to the Town Attorney for appropriate enforcement action. If civil action becomes necessary the Town Attorney shall seek injunctive relief and shall seek to recover the unpaid penalties with prejudgment interest running from the date of the issuance of the final notice, plus costs and attorneys fees.
(2) Once a matter has been referred to the Town Attorney for enforcement, the Town Council must approve any offers to compromise that involve a payment of less than the full amount of any penalty plus costs and attorneys fees.
(F) Any person violating any provision of § 152.132 shall be fined no less than $50 nor more than $250 for each offense. Each day that such violation continues shall be regarded as a separate offense.
(Ord. passed - - )