(a) Any property owner whose property is served by a lateral sanitary or storm sewer shall be responsible for the maintenance, cleaning and/or repair of such line in accordance with the requirements of this section.
Upon determining that a lateral sanitary and/or storm sewer is in need of maintenance, cleaning and/or repair, and upon the approval of Council, the Director of Public Service is authorized to cause the necessary maintenance, cleaning and/or repair on any lateral sanitary or storm sewer in the City at the best possible price, or, alternatively, to permit the owner of the premises to cause such maintenance, cleaning and/or repair to be made to the satisfaction of the Director within a reasonable time after written notice to the owner of the need for such repair and/or cleaning.
(b) Upon completion of such maintenance, cleaning and/or repair, the Director shall certify the cost of such maintenance, cleaning and/or repair to the Director of Finance, who shall, upon receipt of such certification, take all necessary proceedings to collect such charge. Such collection shall be made from the owner of the property for whose benefit the necessary repairs were made.
The charges for maintenance, cleaning and/or repair provided for in this section, together with charges for interest, shall constitute a lien upon the property so served, as shown by the records of the Director of Finance. If not paid when due, such charges and interest shall be certified to the County Auditor and collected in the same manner as other taxes on real estate. In addition to such collection procedure, any such unpaid amount may be collected through a civil action brought in the name of the City in any court of competent civil jurisdiction.
(Ord. 88-54A. Passed 10-18-88.)
(c) Any unpaid portion of the certified cost of repairs shall bear interest as follows:
(1) For the first year following the completion of the repairs, unpaid sums shall bear interest at a rate equal to the rate of interest charged or chargeable to the City on borrowed sums on the date the Director of Public Service certifies the cost of repairs.
(2) Thereafter, unpaid sums shall bear interest at a rate equal to three percentage points above the prime rate established by the National City Bank of Cleveland on the first anniversary of the aforesaid date of certification, but in no event shall such interest rate be less than the interest rate as stated in subsection (c)(1) hereof.
(Ord. 85-3. Passed 2-19-85.)
(d) As used in this section, “lateral sanitary or storm sewer” means the entire lateral sanitary and storm sewers from the main line to the building to which such lateral sewer is connected.
(Ord. 88-54A. Passed 10-18-88; Ord. 2011-25. Passed 6-21-11.)
(e) The owners or tenants of property located in Mixed Use, Apartment, Retail and Industrial Districts, and any nonresidential property or multiple residential units in a Single Family and Multi Family District, which property is tied into the City sewer systems, shall permit the testing of lateral sanitary and storm sewers by the City or its agent. Testing shall be by the City or its agent using a video camera in the sanitary and storm mainline and/or other test determined by the City Engineer, and the cost of such testing shall be paid by the owner or tenant of the property at the prevailing price as set forth from time to time by Council. An owner or tenant may request of the City Engineer permission to hire its own contractor to perform the required tests at its cost. However, the test shall be under the supervision of the City Engineer, and the owner or tenant shall pay any costs associated with said supervision.
The City shall not test any lateral sewers more than once every ten years unless the City Engineer demonstrates good cause for the test. The finding of the City Engineer demonstrating good cause shall be set forth in writing to the owner or tenant. Said finding may be appealed to the Board of Zoning Appeals. The owner or tenant shall have seven days from the receipt of the City Engineer's written finding within which to file its written notice of appeal.
(Ord. 89-56. Passed 5-21-91; Ord. 99-27. Passed 4-20-99; Ord. 2012-59. Passed 11-20-12.)