In the event charges for the water services and consumption are not paid within 60 days after the rendition of the bill, the charges shall be, and they are hereby declared to be delinquent, and thereafter the delinquent charges shall constitute liens upon the real estate upon or for which the water may have been supplied. The City Clerk is hereby directed to file sworn statements showing these delinquencies in the office of the Recorder of Deeds of the county, which shall be notice of the lien for payment of these delinquent water bills; provided, however, that the City Clerk may refrain from filing the statements if the city proposes to sue or shall have sued the occupant or user of the real estate in a civil action to recover the delinquent charges. The lien which is given to the city by the statutes of the state shall be enforced by foreclosure by suit in a court of competent jurisdiction.
(1983 Code, § 21-170)