(a) No person shall throw or deposit, or permit to be thrown or deposited, any dirt, paper or sweepings of any store, house, shop or office, or any ashes, shavings, filthy water, offal, straw, wood, manure, stones, earth, refuse matter, brush or rubbish of any kind whatever, into any street or other public way or ground.
(b) Upon the finding by Council or the City Health Commissioner that litter has been placed or accumulated upon any land within the city and has not been removed, and that it constitutes a detriment to the public health, Council or the City Health Commissioner shall cause written notice to be served upon the owner, and if different, upon the lessee, agent or tenant having charge of the littered land, notifying him or her that the litter is on the land and that it must be collected and removed within 48 hours after service of the notice.
(c) As used in this section, "litter" includes any garbage, waste, peelings of vegetables or fruits, rubbish, ashes, cans, bottles, wire, paper, cartons, boxes, parts of automobiles or other motor vehicles, wagons, furniture, glass, oil of an unsightly or unsanitary nature or anything else of an unsightly or unsanitary nature.
(d) If the owner or other person having charge of the land is a nonresident of the city whose address is known, notice shall be sent to him or her by certified mail. If the address of the owner or other person having charge of the land is unknown, then it is sufficient to publish the notice once in a newspaper of general circulation in the city.
(e) This section does not apply to land being used under a municipal building or construction permit or license, a municipal permit or license or a conditional zoning permit or variance to operate a junk yard, scrap metal processing facility or similar businesses, or a permit or license issued pursuant to R.C. Chapter 3734 and §§ 4737.05 to 4737.12 or Chapter 6111.
(f) If the owner, lessee, tenant or agent having charge of the lands upon which the litter has been placed fails to comply with the notice of this section, Council or the City Health Commissioner shall cause the litter to be removed and may employ the necessary labor to perform the task. All expenses incurred therein shall, when approved by Council, be paid out of any money in the General Fund which is not otherwise appropriated.
(g) The expenses of the removal of litter shall be charged to the owner of the lot and if the same are not paid within 30 days from the receipt of the bill for the same from the city, the entire cost of the removal shall be assessed and certified by the County Auditor for collection as special taxes and assessment. This remedy shall be in addition to the penalty provided in division (h) of this section.
(h) Whoever violates any of the provisions of this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor for a first offense and a misdemeanor of the fourth degree for any subsequent offense.
(Ord. 15-84, passed 5-21-1984)