Words used in this Code shall have the same meaning as that defined by the Zoning Ordinance, unless otherwise defined by this Code.
ABANDONED BUILDING. Any building or portion of a building under construction which has stood with an incomplete exterior shell for more than one year, or any completed building or portion thereof which has stood unoccupied for longer than six months, and which is unsecured or has Housing Code or Building Code violations.
BOARD OF APPEALS. The Board established and appointed by the city to hear appeals from the City Building Code, referred to herein as THE BOARD.
DETERIORATION. A state of conditions caused by a lack of maintenance or excessive use, characterized by holes, breaks, rot, crumbling, peeling paint, rusting or other evidence of physical decay or neglect.
ENFORCEMENT OFFICER. The Director of Community Development, Chief of Police or City Manager.
EXPOSED TO PUBLIC VIEW. Any premises or any part thereof which may be lawfully viewed by the public or from adjoining premises.
EXTERIOR. Yards and other open outdoor spaces on premises, and the external surfaces of any structure.
EXTERMINATION. The control and elimination of insects, rodents and vermin.
FARM. A tract of land having an area of ten or more acres devoted to raising of crops or domestic livestock.
INFESTATION. The presence of insects, rodents, vermin or other pests on the premises to the extent that they constitute a health hazard, are deemed by an Enforcement Officer to be in threat of spreading to adjoining premises, or are exposed to public view.
JUNK. Any discarded or salvaged material or fixture; obsolete or inoperable machinery or vehicle, or parts thereof, or scrap metal.
NUISANCE. Physical conditions that are dangerous or detrimental to the health or safety of persons on or near the premises where the conditions exist, or anything that is injurious to the senses or interferes with the comfortable enjoyment of life or property.
OWNER. Any person who alone, jointly or severally with others, holds legal or equitable title to any premises, with or without accompanying actual possession thereof.
PREMISES. A lot, plot or parcel of land together with the structures thereon.
PUBLIC AUTHORITY. Any officer of any department or branch of the city, county or state charged with regulating health, fire, zoning or building regulations, or other activities concerning property in the city.
REFUSE. Any material that has lost its value for the original purpose for which it was created or manufactured, or for its redesigned use, whether putrescible or non-putrescible, combustible or non-combustible, which is not securely stored in a building or legal outdoor storage yard for prompt disposal or resale, including, but not limited to: junk; paper or cardboard; plastic; metals; glass; yard clippings, leaves, woody vegetative trimmings and other plant wastes which have not been properly composted; vegetable or animal waste resulting from the handling, processing, storage, preparation, serving or consumption of food; crockery; bedding, furniture or appliances; offal; rubbish; ashes or incinerator residue; construction debris; accumulation of animal feces; dead animals; or wastes from commercial or industrial processes.
RESPONSIBLE PARTY. Any person having possession, charge, care or control of real or personal property, whether with or without the knowledge and consent of the owner, including without limitation any one or more of the following: owner, agent, property manager, contract purchaser, mortgagee or vendee in possession, receiver, executor, trustee, lessee or tenant, or any other person, firm or corporation exercising apparent control over a property.
VEHICLE. Any device designed to transport a person or property by land, air or water, such as automobiles, trucks, trailers, motorcycles, tractors, buggies, wagons, boats, airplanes, or any combination thereof, except bicycles.
VEHICLE, INOPERABLE. Any vehicle that is not licensed for the current year as required by law or which exhibits any of the following characteristics:
(1) Cannot legally travel on a public street due to broken, damaged or missing windshield or other glass customary to the vehicle, fender, door, bumper, hood, wheel, steering wheel or exhaust system;
(2) Lacking an engine or other means of power suitable to the design, one or more wheels, or other structural parts which renders the vehicle incapable of both forward and reverse movement in the manner for which it was designed;
(3) Has become a habitat for rats, mice, snakes or any other vermin or insects; or
(4) Constitutes a threat to the public health and safety because of its defective or obsolete condition.
(Title VI, Ch. 6, § 1.06)