A. Inspection Required For A Permit: All rental units owned or controlled by a rental unit owner (and any affiliated entity) who is required to obtain a permit may be inspected by the City for the purpose of determining compliance with the City Code. The original unit that triggered the inspection requirement shall be subject to inspection. In addition, when the rental unit owner (and any affiliated entity) owns or controls eight (8) or fewer rental units, all of those units shall be subject to inspection. For rental unit owners (and any affiliated entities) who own or control in excess of eight (8) units, the original unit then up to twenty five percent (25%) of the remaining units owned or controlled by the rental unit owner shall be subject to inspection by the City (but no less than eight (8) units at a minimum if twenty five percent (25%) of the total units equals less than eight (8) units). These shall be selected by the City. Notwithstanding the twenty five percent (25%) inspection requirement above, if the City has a reasonable basis for believing that specific units are in violation of the City's Code, the City may include those units in the first eight (8) plus twenty five percent (25%) of units inspected and may inspect in excess of that amount if the City has a reasonable basis for believing violations exist in such units. Upon the request of a landlord and subject to (i) the availability of a City Building Inspector and (ii) the landlord paying costs consistent with this chapter, the City may conduct inspections of more than twenty five percent (25%) of the units annually.
B. Inspection Scheduling: The City's Building and Zoning Department shall work with the rental unit owner to schedule inspections of the Rental Unit(s) during reasonable hours and with reasonable notice to the rental unit owner and any tenants.
C. Inspection Termination: Inspections shall take place annually until twelve months have passed without a finding of liability for any violation of the Code of Ordinances of Woodstock and the laws of the State of Illinois related to the original rental unit in question.
D. Inspection Costs:
1. Rental unit owners subject to permitting shall not be responsible for City costs associated with an initial inspection of any rental unit or a follow-up re-inspection of any rental unit or with annual re-inspections.
2. If additional re-inspections are necessary, the rental unit owner shall be responsible for any inspection costs after the initial re-inspection of each rental unit.
3. In the event the City staff undertakes any such re-inspection (after the initial inspection and re-inspection), the rental unit owner shall pay a flat fee of forty dollars ($40.00) for each additional inspection per rental unit including for any additional violations found in the course of any re-inspection. The City may hire third party inspectors as the Director of Building and Zoning deems appropriate for special purposes (such as to examine matters outside the expertise or access of the City's regular building inspector) for such inspections or re-inspections, and the reasonable cost to the City for any second or subsequent re-inspection in such case shall be passed on to the rental unit owner. (Ord. 22-O-46, 9-6-2022)