(A) Unsafe buildings shall be condemned by the inspector. If a building or structure shall appear to the inspector to be especially dangerous to life and unsafe under § 93.06 the inspector shall: (a) make a written finding that the building or structure appears to be unsafe and is condemned; and (b) affix a condemned notice of the dangerous character or conditions of the building or structure to a conspicuous place on the exterior wall of such building or structure.
(B) Removal of condemnation notice unlawful. It shall be unlawful for any person to remove a condemned notice from a building or structure after such condemned notice has been affixed to it by the inspector pursuant to the provisions of § division (A) above.
(C) Complaint and notice of hearing. If a building or structure has been condemned by the Inspector as unsafe pursuant to this ordinance, the inspector should serve the owner with a written complaint and notice of hearing which notice shall state that:
(1) The building or structure is condemned due to its condition that appears to constitute a fire or safety hazard or appears to be dangerous to life, health or other property and that it is held to be unsafe;
(2) A hearing will be held before the Inspector at a designated place and time, which time should be not less than ten days nor more than 30 days after the date of such notice, and that at such hearing the owner shall be entitled to be heard in person or by counsel and to present arguments and evidence pertaining to the matter;
(3) Following the hearing, the Inspector may issue such order to repair, close, vacate or demolish the building or structure as the Inspector deems to be appropriate under the existing conditions; and
(4) Upon the issuance of a complaint and notice of hearing pursuant to this chapter, the inspector may cause the filing of a notice of lis pendens, with a copy of the complaint and notice of hearing attached thereto, in the office of the Clerk of Superior Court of Alleghany County, as applicable, to be indexed and cross-indexed in accordance with the indexing procedures of the North Carolina General Statutes. The Inspector shall cause a copy of the notice of lis pendens to be served upon the owner of the building or structure at the time of filing in accordance with G.S. § 160A-428 as applicable. Upon compliance with the requirements of any order issued based upon such complaint and hearing, the inspector shall direct the Clerk of Superior Court to cancel the notice of lis pendens.
(D) Order to take corrective action; contents; issuance.
(1) If, upon a hearing held pursuant to division (B) above, the inspector shall find that the building or structure is in an unsafe condition which constitutes a fire or safety hazard or renders it dangerous to life, health or other property, the Inspector shall issue an order in writing, directed to the owner or owners of such building or structure, directing the owner or owners to remedy the defective condition by repairing, closing, vacating or demolishing the building or structure or taking other necessary steps within such a period as the Inspector may prescribe, which period may not be less than 60 days from the service of the order, provided that, where the Inspector finds that there is imminent danger to life, health or other property, the order may require that corrective action be taken in such lesser period as may be feasible.
(2) Buildings of historical value may be granted exemption from this chapter by the Board of Adjustment. In granting an exemption the board must make a finding that the building is a building of historical value to the city, that the owner will repair the damage on a timely basis, with compliance not to exceed six months, and that the building will be reconstructed and/or repaired in such a way as to keep the historical character of the building.
(E) Service of written notice or order of inspector. In any case where this chapter requires service of a written notice or order by the Inspector, such notice or order shall be made in the following manner:
(1) The written notice or order shall be served upon each owner by mailing the same by certified or registered mail, return receipt requested, to the owner's last known addressor by personal service of the notice or order upon each owner.
(2) If the name or whereabouts of an owner are unknown and cannot after due diligence be discovered, the notice or order shall be considered properly and adequately served upon such owner if a copy thereof is posted on the outside of the building or structure in question at least ten days prior to the hearing, if a hearing is required, and a notice of the hearing published in a newspaper having general circulation in the jurisdiction at least once not later than one week prior to the hearing.
(F) Appeal of order of inspector; finality if not appealed. Any owner who has received an order may appeal from the order to the Board of Adjustment by giving notice of appeal in writing to the inspector and to the City Clerk within ten days following issuance of the order. In the absence of an appeal to the Board of Adjustment within the prescribed time, the order of the inspector shall be final. the Board of Adjustment shall hear appeals within a reasonable time after receipt of the notice of appeal and it may modify and affirm or revoke the order.
(G) Failure to comply with order of inspector. It shall be unlawful for the owner of a building or structure to fail to comply with an order issued from which no appeal has been taken or fail to comply with an order of the Board of Adjustment following an appeal, unless the owner shall, within ten days following issuance of the order by the Board of Adjustment, appeal from that order as by law provided.
(H) Remedies; lien for cost of demolition and removal.
(2) The inspector, however, shall not take such action until the Town Council shall have by ordinance ordered the inspector to proceed with such action with respect to the particular property or properties which the Inspector shall have found to be unsafe or not in compliance with all standards of nonresidential building and premises fitness and which property or properties shall be described in the ordinance. No such ordinance shall be adopted to require demolition of a building until the owner has first been given a reasonable opportunity to bring it into conformity with this chapter. The ordinance adopted pursuant to this chapter shall be recorded in the office of the Register of Deeds of the Alleghany County and shall be indexed in the name of the property owner or owners in the grantor index.
(3) The amount of the cost of repairs, alterations or improvements, or vacating and closing, or removal or demolition by the Inspector shall be a lien against the real property upon which the cost was incurred, which lien shall be filed, have the same priority, and be collected as a lien for special assessments provided in G.S. Chapter 160A, Art. 10. If the building is removed or demolished by the Inspector, he shall sell the materials of the building, and the personal property, fixtures or appurtenances found in or attached to the building, and shall credit the proceeds of the sale against the cost of the removal or demolition and any balance remaining shall be deposited in the Superior Court by the Inspector, shall be secured in a manner directed by the Court, and shall be disbursed by the court to the persons found to be entitled thereto by final order of the decree of the court.
(I) Failure of occupant to comply with order to vacate. If any occupant fails to comply with an order to vacate a building, the Inspector may file a civil action in the name of the town to remove such occupant. The action to vacate the building shall be in the nature of summary ejectment and shall be commenced by filing a complaint naming as parties-defendant any persons occupying such building. The Clerk of Superior Court shall issue a summons requiring the defendant to appear before a magistrate at a certain time, date and place not to exceed ten days from the issuance of the summons to answer the complaint. The summons and complaint shall be served as provided in G.S. 42-29. The summons shall be returned according to its tenor, and if on its return it appears to have been duly served, and if at the hearing the inspector produces a certified copy of an ordinance adopted by the Town Council pursuant to this chapter authorizing the inspector to proceed to vacate the occupied building, the magistrate shall enter judgement ordering that the premises be vacated and that all persons be removed. The judgement ordering that the building be vacated shall be enforced in the same manner as the judgement for summary ejectment entered under G.S. 42-30. An appeal from any judgement entered hereunder by the magistrate may be taken as provided in G.S. 7A-228, and the execution of such judgement may be stayed as provided in G.S. 7A-227. An action to remove an occupant of a building who is a tenant of the owner may not be in the nature of a summary ejectment proceeding pursuant to this chapter unless such occupant was served with notice at least 30 days before the filing of the summary ejectment proceeding that the Town Council has ordered the inspector to proceed to exercise his duties under this chapter to vacate and close or remove and demolish the building.
(J) Demolition of nonresidential buildings by owner. Where a nonresidential building is under the jurisdiction of this chapter, the building may be demolished by the owner provided that the following requirements are met:
(1) The owner obtain a demolition permit from the Inspections Department of Alleghany County.
(2) All sewer, gas, water and similar taps or connections be properly closed and disconnected.
(3) All debris from the building be removed from the site. This requirement is for the removal of all debris that is above the street level of the building.
(4) The lot be graded to a smooth, even, finished grade, free from building material, debris, holes, and/or depressions. Where building debris remains on the site below street level, the owner must back fill the lot with 12 inches of clean fill which shall be graded to a smooth, even finished grade.
(5) Where walls of adjacent buildings become exposed as a result of the demolition, said walls must have all doors, windows, vents or other similar openings closed with material of the type comprising the wall, unless such doors, windows, vents, or other similar openings are to be maintained in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. No protrusions or loose material shall be in the wall. The exposed wall shall be painted, stuccoed or bricked so as not to detract from the aesthetics and value of the adjacent property and weatherproofed if necessary to prevent deterioration of the wall.
(Ord. passed 4-7-2015)