(A) Owner responsible. It shall be the responsibility of the owner to see that persons occupying the rental dwelling conduct themselves in a manner as not to cause the premises to be disorderly. For purposes of this section, a rental dwelling is disorderly at which any of the following activities occur:
(1) Violation of M.S. §§ 609.755 through 609.76, as they may be amended from time to time, as may be amended from time to time, relating to gambling;
(2) Violation of laws relating to prostitution or acts relating to prostitution as defined in M.S. § 609.321, as it may be amended from time to time;
(3) Violation of M.S. §§ 152.01 through 152.027, as may be amended from time to time, relating to the unlawful sale or possession of controlled substances;
(4) Violation of M.S. §§ 340A.401 and 340A.503, as may be amended from time to time, relating to the unlawful commercial sale and underage consumption of alcoholic beverages;
(5) Violation of M.S. § 609.33, as may be amended from time to time, which prohibits owning, leasing, operating, managing, maintaining, or conducting a disorderly house, or inviting or attempting to invite others to visit or remain in a disorderly house;
(6) Violation of M.S. §§ 97B.021, 97B.045, 609.66 through 609.67, 624.712 through 624.716, 624.719, or 624.731 through 624.732, as may be amended from time to time, relating to the unlawful possession, transportation, sale, or use of weapons;
(7) Violation of city code or violation of M.S. § 609.72, as may be amended from time to time, relating to disorderly conduct;
(9) Violation of §§ 95.30 through 95.36 relating to recreational fires.
(B) First violation. Upon determination by the Chief Building Official that a licensed premises was used in a disorderly manner, as described in division (A) above, the Chief Building Official must give notice to the licensee of the violation and direct the licensee to take steps to prevent further violations.
(C) Second violation. If another instance of disorderly use of the licensed premises occurs within 12 months of an incident for which a notice in division (B) above was given, the Chief Building Official must notify the licensee of the violation and must also require the licensee to submit a written report of the actions taken, and proposed to be taken, by the licensee to prevent further disorderly use of the premises. This written report must be submitted to the Chief Building Official within five days of receipt of the notice of disorderly use of the premises and must detail all actions taken by the licensee in response to all notices of disorderly use of the premises within the preceding three months.
(D) Third violation.
(1) If another instance of disorderly use of the licensed premises occurs within 12 months after any two previous instances of disorderly use for which notices were given to the licensee pursuant to this section, the rental dwelling license for the premises may be denied, revoked, suspended, or not renewed. An action to deny, revoke, suspend, or not renew a license under this section must be initiated by the Chief Building Official who must give to the licensee written notice of a hearing before the City Council to consider such denial, revocation, suspension, or non-renewal. The written notice must specify all violations of this section, and must state the date, time, place, and purpose of the hearing. The hearing must be held no less than ten days and no more than 30 days after giving the notice.
(2) Following the hearing, the City Council may deny, revoke, suspend, or decline to renew the license for all or any part or parts of the licensed premises or may grant a license upon such terms and conditions as it deems necessary to accomplish the purposes of this section.
(E) No adverse action pending eviction. No adverse license action shall be imposed where the instance of disorderly use of the licensed premises occurred during the pendency of eviction proceedings (unlawful detainer) or within 30 days of notice given by the licensee to a tenant to vacate the premises where the disorderly use was related to conduct by that tenant or by other occupants or guests of the tenant’s unit. Eviction proceedings are not a bar to adverse license action, however, unless they are diligently pursued by the licensee. Further, an action to deny, revoke, suspend, or not renew a license based upon violations of this section may be postponed or discontinued at any time if it appears that the licensee has taken appropriate measures which will prevent further instances of disorderly use.
(F) Finding of disorderly conduct. A determination that the licensed premises have been used in a disorderly manner as described in division (A) above shall be made upon a fair preponderance of the evidence to support such a determination. It is not necessary that criminal charges be brought in order to support a determination of disorderly use, nor does the fact of dismissal or acquittal of a criminal charge operate as a bar to adverse license action under this section.
(G) Service of notices. All notices given by the city under this section, at the city’s option, may be either personally served on the licensee, sent by regular mail to the licensee at the address listed on the application, or by posting on a conspicuous place on the licensed premises.
(H) Enforcement actions. Enforcement actions provided in this section are not exclusive, and the City Council may take any action with respect to a licensee, a tenant, or the licensed premises as is authorized by the city code, state law, or federal law.
(Prior Code, § 3-16-8)