951.03 OPEN WELLS PROHIBITED.

   All wells and cisterns in the City shall be covered with heavy reinforced concrete cement slabs or with boiler plate or flagstone no less than three-eighths inch thickness.

(1954 Code Sec. 36.60)

951.04 LEAKING GAS.

   (a)    Whenever a report is received by any department of the City that gas is escaping into any sewer, telephone conduit, store room, house, cellar or other place, the proper officer shall immediately notify the superintendent or other representatives of the gas companies furnishing gas to the City to stop such escaping gas.

   (b)    If any gas company so notified, fails or refuses to stop such condition, the City may correct such condition, and if it is found that the escaping gas is the product of the company refusing and failing to act, the cost shall be charged to the company responsible and collected according to law. (1954 Code Sec. 36.64, 36.66)

951.05 OPEN WELLS AND CISTERNS.

   (a)    Upon written information that an open well or cistern exists on lands in the City and poses a hazard, the Bureau of Buildings, Inspections, Licenses and Permits shall cause a written notice to be served upon the owner, lessee, agent, or tenant having charge of such land, notifying him that an open well or cistern exists on such land and that it must be covered with heavy reinforced concrete cement slabs, with boiler plate of no less than three-eighths inch thickness, or flagstone of no less than three-inch thickness or filled to the top with compacted soil or compacted granular material.

   (b)    Upon a determination by the Bureau that the well or cistern is not covered or filled and constitutes a hazard, the Bureau shall cause written notice to be served upon the owner and, if different upon the lessee, agent or tenant having charge of such land, notifying him that an open well or cistern is on the land, and that it must be properly covered or filled within five days after the service of the notice .

   (c)    If the owner or other person having charge of such land is a nonresident of the City whose address is known, the notice shall be sent to his address by certified mail. If the address of the owner or other person having charge of such land is unknown it is sufficient to publish the notice once in a newspaper of general circulation in the County.

   (d)    If the owner, lessee, agent or tenant having charge of such lands fails to comply with the notice required by this section, the City by the Bureau of Buildings, Inspections, Licenses and Permits may enter upon such lands and cause such open well or cistern to be properly covered or filled. The Bureau may employ the necessary labor to perform the task and all expenses including materials, shall be paid out of money in the City Treasury appropriated for such purpose.

   (e)    If the Bureau shall make a written return to the County Auditor of its actions hereunder with a statement of the charge for its services, the amount paid for performing of such labor, the fees of the officer who made the service of the notice and return, and a proper description of the premises, such amount, when entered upon the tax duplicate, shall be a lien upon such land from the date of the entry, and shall be collected as other taxes and returned to the City within the General Fund.

(Ord. 83-356. Passed 10-18-83.)

951.06 WATER SERVICE OUTSIDE CITY.

   (a)    It is hereby declared and adopted as the policy of Council, that, henceforth, connection to a City water line outside the corporation boundaries of the City or connection to an extension of a City water line outside the corporation boundaries of the City will be authorized only after a petition requesting annexation to the City by the owner(s) of property seeking City water service and such other real property as necessary to effect such annexation has been filed with the Commissioners of Richland County, Ohio, and such Commissioners, after conducting a public hearing on such petition to annex, have approved and granted same.

   (b)    All connections to City water lines outside the corporation boundaries of the City and connections to extensions of City water lines outside the corporation boundaries of the City approved by Council prior to the effective date of this section shall be exempt from this policy and such connections may be made in accordance with the terms and conditions imposed by Council for each such connection.

   (c)    If a property owner now located outside the corporation limits of the City demonstrates a hardship to Council, then a City water service connection may be permitted provided a three-quarters majority of Council authorizes by ordinance the issuance of the water service tap.

   (d)   Any property owner receiving authority to obtain a water service tap in accordance with subsection (c) hereof shall have one year from the date of the tap agreement to annex to the City or such water service tap shall be shut off and the water service terminated to such property in accordance with applicable procedures in the Water Division regulations.

(Ord. 89-269. Passed 11-7-89.)

951.99 PENALTY.

   Whoever violates or fails to comply with any provision of this chapter is guilty of a misdemeanor of the fourth degree.