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§ 10.30 APPEALS.
   (A)   Appeals permitted.
      (1)   Any person aggrieved by a citation issued by any Code Enforcement Officer under this title may appeal said citation to the Board of Commissioners. Before filing an appeal, the aggrieved person is strongly encouraged to meet with the City Administrator to discuss why the person believes the citation was issued in error. If unresolved, the appeal may be commenced.
      (2)   Appeals shall be commenced by filing a notice of appeal with the Finance Officer for the city. There shall be a $100 fee assessed for filing an appeal, which shall be paid to the City of Summerset at the time of filing the appeal. The notice of appeal shall include a statement of the action complained of, why the same should be modified or rescinded, an address where the appellant can be mailed notice of hearings, and a copy of the citation issued. Upon receipt of the appeal, all documents, including the appeal, shall be forwarded from the Code Enforcement Coordinator and Finance Officer to the City Attorney. The appeal shall be heard by the Board of Commissioners which may be during a special or regular Board of Commissioners meeting or executive session as decided by the Board of Commissioners.
   (B)   Time of hearing and notice. A public hearing shall be held on all appeals within 45 working days after the filing of the appeal, unless a later date is agreed upon by the aggrieved person and the city. The city shall cause written notice of the date, time, and place of such hearing to be served upon the aggrieved person by personal service or certified mail to the address set forth in the appeal documents at least ten days prior to the hearing. The appeal shall be scheduled on the agenda of a regularly scheduled meeting of the Board of Commissioners for a period of at 30 minutes unless otherwise directed by the Board of Commissioners.
   (C)   Hearing procedures. The following rules shall govern the procedures for an administrative hearing.
      (1)   Hearings and administrative appeals need not be conducted according to the technical rules relating to evidence and witnesses.
      (2)   Any relevant evidence shall be admitted if it is the type of evidence upon which reasonable persons are accustomed to rely in the conduct of serious affairs, regardless of the existence of any common law or statutory rule which might make improper the admission for such evidence after objection in civil actions in courts or competent jurisdiction in this state.
      (3)   Irrelevant and unduly repetitious evidence and evidence that lacks trustworthiness shall be excluded.
   (D)   Rights of parties at hearing. The aggrieved person and the city shall have these rights among others:
      (1)   To call and examine witnesses on any matter relevant to the issue of the hearing;
      (2)   To introduce documentary, physical, and oral evidence;
      (3)   To cross examine opposing witnesses on any matter relevant to the issues of the hearing; and
      (4)   To rebut evidence.
   (E)   Decision. After each appeal hearing, the Board of Commissioners shall consider the evidence in executive session and may state its decision when it has concluded the executive session. In addition, the Board of Commissioners shall provide written findings stating the following:
      (1)   The evidence the Board of Commissioners relied upon in reaching its decision; and
      (2)   Based upon such written findings, the Board of Commissioners may sustain or dismiss the citation or decision. In sustaining citation, the Board of Commissioners may in its discretion reduce or waive the payment of any civil penalty, permit, reinstatement, or late penalty fee.
   (F)   Report, costs. A written report of the decision, including the findings, shall be furnished to the aggrieved person and the Community Development Director within 20 working days from the date the appeal hearing is closed. The city and the aggrieved person shall bear their own respective costs of the appeal proceeding. The decision of the Board of Commissioners shall be final.
   (G)   Subject to judicial review. The decision of the Board of Commissioners may be subject to judicial review as provided by law.
(Ord. 36, passed 11-4-2010; Ord. 36A, passed 4-3-2014)
§ 10.31 COMPLAINTS AND ABATEMENTS.
   (A)   Filing a nuisance complaint.
      (1)   Unless otherwise stated in this subchapter, in the event any city representative receives a complaint, either orally or in writing, he or she shall forward the complaint to the Code Enforcement Officer for investigation.
      (2)   As part of the investigation, the Code Enforcement Coordinator shall obtain the following information in writing:
         (a)   Name, address, and phone number of the person making said complaint;
         (b)   Address of the property for which the complaint is being filed; and
         (c)   Nature of the complaint.
      (3)   After obtaining the necessary information from the complainant, the Code Enforcement Coordinator will request assistance from the Code Enforcement Officer or request an investigation by a more appropriate city employee and/or agent as is necessary based upon the nature of the complaint.
   (B)   Courtesy letter; notice of violation. Unless otherwise stated in this subchapter, in the event the Code Enforcement Coordinator, Code Enforcement Officer, and/or agent finds that any violation exists, the Code Enforcement Coordinator shall send a courtesy letter/notice of violation to the property owner. The letter shall state the following:
      (1)   Name and address of the property owner;
      (2)   Address and legal description of the property in violation;
      (3)   Nature of the violation;
      (4)   Title, chapter, and section violated;
      (5)   Demand that the property owner become compliant; and
      (6)   The date upon which the representative will inspect the property for compliance.
   (C)   Notice to complainant and right to review. In the event the Code Enforcement Coordinator or Code Enforcement Officer and/or agent concludes that a violation does not exist, the Code Enforcement Coordinator shall send a letter to the complainant within 15 days of advising her or him of said determination.
   (D)   Abatement or filing of review required within 15 days. Any person who has received written notification of an existing violation shall either abate said nuisance or file a written notice of review with the Code Enforcement Coordinator within 15 days of receipt of the courtesy letter/notice of violation. A complaint of a second or subsequent violation subject to this subchapter at the same property shall reduce the notice period established herein to seven days. Thereafter, the administrative citation may immediately be issued by the Code Enforcement Officer.
   (E)   Immediate abatement required in certain cases. Ordinance violations involving subjects such as, but not limited to, bonfires, campfires, dead animals, undressed hides, fireworks, depositing filth, spoiled foods, or similar items which are determined by the Code Enforcement Officer to be an immediate threat to public health and safety shall be abated immediately, unless it is otherwise dictated by the Mayor.
   (F)   Issuance of summons and complaint for violation. If the landowner fails to abate the nuisance or request a review from the Public Works Commissioner within the given time, Code Enforcement may issue administrative citations in accordance with § 10.28, above. The city also may issue a complaint and summons to the landowner ordering the landowner to appear in court to answer said violation in accordance with § 10.99 of this code. Each violation may be considered a Class II misdemeanor for each day of violation until the nuisance is abated.
(Ord. 36A, passed 4-3-2014; Ord. 2024-05, passed 4-18-2024)
§ 10.32 LANDOWNER RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY COSTS.
   Any related expenses, receipts, and administrative, legal, and/or investigative fees shall be billed to the landowner. The Code Enforcement Coordinator that conducted the authority to employ a contractor to assist with said abatement. In the event the landowner fails to pay said bill within 30 days, the City Finance Officer shall add those costs to the sewer bill owed by the property owner. In addition, the Finance Officer may file a special assessment on the property with the County Auditor’s Office.
(Ord. 36A, passed 4-3-2014)
§ 10.99 GENERAL PENALTY.
   Municipalities are authorized to provide for the punishment of each violation of an ordinance, resolution, or regulation with a fine not to exceed $500 or by imprisonment not exceeding 30 days or by both such fine and imprisonment. In issuing citations and fines for various offenses, the city adopts the fourth judicial circuit court fine and bond schedule for use by magistrate courts. The Board of Commissioners may set fines for offenses not included on the fourth judicial circuit court fine schedule by resolution.
(Ord. 2023-12, passed 7-20-2023)
Cross-reference:
Administrative penalties, see §§ 10.28 and 10.30
Statutory reference:
   Maximum penalty, see SDCL §§ 9-19-3 and 22-6-2(2)