§ 92.05 ADMINISTRATION AND ENFORCEMENT.
   (A)   Authority to enforce.
      (1)   The code official shall enforce the provisions of this chapter.
      (2)   No person shall obstruct, impede or interfere with any officer, employee, contractor or authorized representative of the town who is lawfully engaged in the enforcement or execution of the provisions of this chapter.
   (B)   Authority and inspections; re-inspection fees; appeal.
      (1)   The code official is authorized to make inspections of property to determine compliance with this chapter. Interior inspections will be done with approval of the owner, occupant or responsible party, or by a court order or as otherwise authorized by law.
      (2)   No fee shall be charged for an initial inspection to determine the existence of a violation of this chapter. Any person who neglects, fails or refuses to correct the violations contained in a notice of violation issued pursuant to division (D) below may be assessed a re-inspection fee for inspections that occur after the compliance date set forth in the notice if the violation has not been corrected. The fee for re-inspections shall be adopted by resolution of the Council. Failure to pay re-inspection fees within 14 days of the re-inspection is a violation of this section.
   (C)   Enforcement independent of other provisions. The authority of the code official to enforce the provisions of this chapter is independent of and in addition to the authority of town officials to enforce the provisions of any other chapter of the town code or other laws, ordinances or statutes.
   (D)   Cooperation of other departments. The Police Department and any other department of the town has authority to assist and cooperate with the code official in the performance of duties under this chapter. This cooperation may include assistance in enforcement or abatement actions. This section is not intended to create or expand the authority of any department to perform acts that are otherwise prohibited bylaw.
   (E)   Notice of violation.
      (1)   If the code official finds a violation of §§ 94.02, 130.12, 130.16, 150.02, 150.20 and 150.21 of this code of ordinances, the code official may notify the owner or responsible party through the issuance of a notice of violation.
      (2)   A notice of violation shall include:
         (a)   The identification of the property in violation; a street address or legal description of the property is sufficient identification of the property;
         (b)   A statement of the violations in sufficient detail to allow an owner or responsible party to identify and correct the problem;
         (c)   An estimate of the cost of abatement if the town proceeds to abate the public nuisance due to the owner or responsible party’s failure to do so;
         (d)   A statement of the actions required to correct and abate the violations. The statement of required action shall direct the owner or responsible party to perform whatever action is reasonably necessary to correct the violations, including clean-up, extermination, repair, rehabilitation, vacation of the building or structure and/or demolition.
            1.   If the action required is a repair, any required permits shall be obtained prior to making the repair. The repair work shall be commenced and completed within such time as the code official determines is reasonable under the circumstances, not to exceed 60 days.
            2.   If the action required includes the vacation of a building or structure, the notice shall direct that the building or structure be vacated within a time certain as the code official determines is reasonable under the circumstances.
            3.   If the action required includes demolition and removal of a building or structure, the notice shall direct that the building or structure be vacated within a time certain as the code official determines is reasonable under the circumstances; that all permits required for the demolition be secured within 60 days from the date of the notice; and that the demolition and removal be completed within a time certain as the code official determines is reasonable under the circumstances.
            4.   If the action required is the abatement of a hazardous excavation, the notice shall direct any or all of the following actions be completed within a time certain as determined to be reasonable by the code official:
               a.   Securing the excavation by completely surrounding either the excavation or the properly with a fence or other enclosure that is at least five feet in height at all points;
               b.   Securing the excavation by completely covering the excavation in a manner that prevents any access to the excavation and eliminates any hazard or attractive nuisance; and
               c.   Completely filling the excavation with clean fill.
         (e)   The address and telephone number of a town representative to contact;
         (f)   A statement describing the town’s authority to abate should the owner or responsible party not correct the violation within the time specified in the notice, and to assess a lien against the property for the costs of abatement; and
         (g)   A statement advising that the owner or responsible party may file an appeal of the notice in the manner specified in this chapter, and that failure to appeal will constitute a waiver of all rights to an administrative determination and hearing of the matter.
      (3)   The notice shall be given not less than 30 days before the day set for compliance.
      (4)   The notice shall be served upon the owner of record and/or the responsible party in the manner described in division (E)(5) below. In addition, the notice shall be served on the holder of any legal interest in the property, if known to the code official, and in cases involving an order to vacate, upon any lawful tenant. Any failure to serve any person holding legal interest in the property shall not invalidate any proceedings as to any other person duly served and shall not relieve any such person from any obligation imposed by this chapter.
      (5)   Any notice given for any purpose under this chapter, except any notice that includes an order to vacate or an order to abate by demolition, shall be deemed effective on the date when written notice is hand-delivered; or on the date when written notice is mailed by first class mail, addressed to the property owner or responsible party. Any notice given under this chapter that includes an order to vacate or an order to abate by demolition shall be deemed effective on the date when written notice is hand delivered or mailed by certified mail return receipt requested, addressed to the property owner or responsible party. Any notice served by first class mail shall be mailed to the last known address of the owner, the owner’s authorized agent or the owner’s statutory agent and to the address to which the tax bill for the property was last mailed. For any notice given under this chapter, including any notice that includes an order to vacate or an order to abate by demolition, if personal service or mailed service is not practicable, service of notice shall also be deemed effective upon notification through one time public notice published in a newspaper of general circulation and by posting the property for a period of 30 days. Nothing herein shall preclude the town from giving additional verbal, written or posted notice at its discretion. If the town does elect to give any additional notice in any instance, it shall not thereby become obligated to give such additional notice thereafter in the same or other situations.
      (6)   Unless otherwise specifically provided, nothing in this section shall require the issuance of a notice of violation prior to the commencement of civil or criminal violation proceedings.
      (7)   Any person who fails to comply with a notice of violation issued pursuant to this section shall be subject to the penalties set forth in division (F) below.
   (F)   Transfer of property after notice.
      (1)   Responsibility upon transfer of property. The transfer of any and all property interests in any manner of any real property against which a notice of violation has been issued shall not relieve the party(s) served with a notice unless the legal entity assuming an ownership interest in such property, in writing, assumes responsibility for compliance with the notice of violation and a copy of such writing is presented to the code official.
      (2)   Fraudulent transfer as a misdemeanor. Any person who has been served with a notice of violation and who then transfers an ownership interest in the real property against which the notice has been served is guilty of a misdemeanor if the transfer is made without first obtaining a written acceptance of liability from the new owner for the items listed in the notice.
   (G)   Recording a violation. If there is not compliance with a notice of violation within the time specified in the notice, and no appeal has been properly and timely filed, the code official may record a notice of violation with the County Recorder. A recorded notice of violation shall describe the property and the violations and shall certify that the owner has been notified. Whenever the corrections ordered thereafter have been completed or the building demolished so that the violations described in the notice have been abated, the code official shall file a new certificate with the County Recorder certifying that all required corrections have been made and that the property is no longer in violation of this chapter. Failure to record a notice of violation shall not affect the validity of the notice as to persons who receive the notice.
   (H)   Jurisdiction of court.
      (1)   Jurisdiction of all proceedings to enforce the provisions of this chapter shall be in the Town Court.
      (2)   The Town Court shall have jurisdiction to issue orders pursuant to this chapter permitting the town to abate conditions that constitute a violation of the provisions of this chapter.
   (I)   Appeal of court decision. Any party may appeal the judgment of the Court to the Superior Court. Appeals from civil infraction proceedings shall be in accordance with the Superior Court Rules of Appellate Procedure-Civil. Appeals from criminal proceedings shall be in accordance with the Superior Court Rules of Appellate Procedure-Criminal.
(Ord. 20-05, passed 1-28-2020)