As required by I.C. 36-7-10.l-3(c), the property owner of the property in violation shall be provided notice of the violation of § 93.25 as follows:
(A) The owner of record of the real property with a single owner, or at least one of the owners of the real property with multiple owners, shall be notified in writing by the Clerk-Treasurer, at the last known address of record as listed in the records of the Auditor and Treasurer of Ohio County, Indiana, that the property is in violation of § 93.25 due to the accumulation of weeds and/or other rank vegetation on the property. The notice shall identify the weeds and/or other rank vegetation that need to be removed and/or cut, and shall also set forth the area or portion of the property which requires remediation. The notice shall specifically describe the real estate by street address, property tax identification number, location, or other discernible identification.
(B) The Clerk-Treasurer shall send notice via First Class U.S. Mail postage prepaid with a certificate of mailing. In addition, the Clerk-Treasurer will have a copy of the notice delivered and/or posted at the property by an officer of the City of Rising Sun Police Department or the Ohio County Sheriffs Department. The failure on the part of a property owner to receive or collect their mail shall not serve as a defense to any abatement action or action to collect for the cost of abatement, administrative costs, or fines.
(C) The owner, agent, occupant, leaseholder, individual(s), manager or representative shall have ten days from the date the above referenced notice is sent to take the necessary corrective actions or measures to comply with § 93.25.
(D) The notice shall also inform the person receiving same that in the event the city is required to take whatever action is set forth in the notice (the “abatement action”), that the expense incurred by the city shall be billed to the property owner and, if necessary, recovered by appropriate legal action to obtain a lien against the real estate for the expenses incurred, that the person to whom the notice is given may be found to have committed a Class A infraction and, in addition to said expense, may be assessed a fine of up to $2,500 by a court of competent jurisdiction. The notice shall also include, pursuant to I.C. 36-7-10.1-3, that if the weeds and/or other rank vegetation are required to be removed by the city, any removal costs and administrative costs of $250 per abatement action, if not paid as hereinafter set forth, will be collected as delinquent taxes pursuant to I.C. 36-7-10.1-4. The notice shall also set forth that the bill is due and owing and must be paid within 30 days of the date it is mailed by the Clerk-Treasurer if there is a failure to act upon the notice within ten days.
(E) Pursuant to I.C. 36-7-10.1-3(d), if the initial notice of the violation was provided by First Class U.S. Mail postage prepaid with a certificate of mailing and delivered and/or posted at the property by an officer of the City of Rising Sun Police Department or the Ohio County Sheriffs Department, or equivalent service under I.C. 36-7-10.l-3(c), a continuous abatement notice may be posted at the property at the time of the abatement action instead of by registered mail, first class mail or equivalent service as required under I.C. 36-7-10.1-3(c). This shall be in the form of a notice posted on the residence or on a sign located on the property. 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 contractors.
(Ord. 2015-5, passed 5-7-15; Am. Ord. 2023-10, passed 9-7-23)