(1) Administration. The executive department responsible for administration of this Chapter shall be the Fire Department of the City of Linton. The Fire Chief may engage an agent or designee to inspect and report on the condition of the property and the action required to abate the unsafe conditions, to issue violation notices consistent with this Chapter, and to otherwise assist with the administration and enforcement of this Chapter.
(2) Notice. The violation notice shall be sent by certified mail to the landowner at the last address of the landowner as indicated in the records of the county auditor on the date of the notice. The notice also shall identify the location of the public nuisance, identify the public nuisance, and order the landowner to abate the public nuisance within ten days from the date upon which the violation notice was served on the landowner.
(3) Appeal. Any violation notice issued pursuant to this section may be appealed to the Board of Public Works and Safety. The appeal must be in writing and set forth with specificity the reason for the appeal. The appeal of the violation notice shall toll the abatement period pending the issuance of a decision by the Board. The written appeal shall be submitted to the Board at the Linton City Hall within seven days of the landowners being served with notice.
(4) City's Option to Abate. If the landowner fails to timely abate each violation set forth in the violation notice, the City shall have the option of exercising a right of entry onto the landowner's real property for the limited purpose of abating the public nuisance or causing, through its employees or through contractors or agents, the abatement of the public nuisance. If the City exercises its Option to Abate the public nuisance due to the landowner's failure to abate the public nuisance, the landowner shall be fined according to Section 94.16.030, which fine shall be in addition to any actual costs and administrative costs billed to the landowner.
(5) Continuous Abatement Notice. If an initial violation of this Chapter was due to rank weeds and vegetation exceeding six inches and was provided by certified mail or equivalent service permitted under Indiana Code 1-1-7-1, a continuous abatement notice may be posted at the real property at the time of abatement instead of by certified mail. A continuous abatement notice serves as notice to the real property owner that each subsequent violation during the same year for which the initial notice of the violation was provided may be abated by the City or its agents and the costs of abatement, which includes actual costs for materials, costs for labor (whether actually incurred or based upon employee or City personnel providing labor), and administrative costs, shall be billed to the landowner and collected in accordance with Indiana Code and Section 94.16.010(8).
(6) Invoice. If the City dispatches employees, agents, or contractors to abate the pubhc nuisance, the appropriate designee shall prepare an invoice as to the actual costs of abatement and administrative costs incurred by the City as a result of serving notice of a violation of this Chapter and abating the pubhc nuisance. A copy of the invoice shall be served upon the landowner, which details the total amount owed to the City for the abatement. Payment of all fines and costs of abatement are due within 30 days of the date of invoice, and are considered dehnquent if not paid in full on or before the 30th day after the date of the invoice.
(7) Appeal Costs. Any invoice issued pursuant to this Chapter may be appealed to the Board of Pubhc Works and Safety by filing a written appeal with the Board at the Linton City Hall within seven days of the date of notice.
(8) Failure to Pay. If the landowner fails to pay an invoice issued pursuant to this Chapter and the invoice becomes dehnquent, the Clerk-Treasurer of the City or any designee of the Clerk-Treasurer shall certify to the County Auditor the amount of the fine, the invoice, and any additional administrative costs incurred. The Auditor shaU place the total amount so certified on the tax duphcate as a lien against the property at issue, and the total amount shall be collected as dehnquent taxes are collected and shall be disbursed to the General Fund of the City.
(9) Appeal Hearings. The Board shall hear any timely requested appeal of a violation notice or invoice within 30 calendar days following receipt of the appeal, and shall thereafter promptly issue a written decision granting or denying, in whole or in part, the relief sought through the appeal. The landowner appealing must be present at the hearing or the appeal will be denied, unless the landowner can demonstrate that his or her absence was for good cause and the person is represented at the hearing by legal counsel or by another person having the authority to act on behalf of the landowner.