A. Grounds For Permit Action: The City Department of Building and Zoning may impose conditions on a permit, revoke a permit, or refuse to issue a new permit or to renew an existing permit on any of the following grounds:
1. False statements, misrepresentations, or fraudulent statements on any application or other information or report required by this chapter to be given by the applicant or permittee.
2. Failure to pay any fine or penalty, re-inspection fees, sewer and water bill, or other financial claims due to the City as required by City Code (though in the case of unpaid sewer or water bills owed initially by a tenant, the City may issue a conditional permit, but may not revoke or refuse to issue a permit solely on that ground until such time as fifteen (15) days have elapsed since the City has followed its procedures for filing a notice of delinquency to the rental unit owner pursuant to subsection 6.4D.9G.
3. Failure to operate or maintain any rental unit in conformity with all applicable City Ordinances; or failure to correct deficiencies noted in any inspection report notice or action plan in the time specified by the City.
4. Failure to comply with the provisions of an approved action plan or not submitting an action plan if required by the City.
5. The presence of or failure to eliminate imminent health and life safety hazards as determined by the City, or its authorized representatives.
6. The abandonment of the property by the rental unit owner as determined by the inability to make contact with the rental unit owner or his/her designated agent using the contact information provided by them to the City.
B. Authority Of Director Of Building And Zoning Regarding Permits:
1. If required inspections of an applicant's rental unit(s) are satisfactory and all other conditions of this Section have been met, the Director of Building and Zoning shall issue a permit to the applicant. In situations where the original violating unit and additional units are subject to inspection pursuant to section 4.13.7, the Director of Building and Zoning shall not issue an unconditional permit until such time as all units subject to section 4.13.7 have been satisfactorily inspected.
2. In the event the inspection of a rental unit reveals deficiencies so that the rental unit Owner is not eligible for the issuance of an unconditional permit, the Director of Building and Zoning shall give due regard to the frequency and seriousness of violations, the ease with which such violations could have been cured or avoided and good faith efforts to comply, and shall issue written findings and a decision to either revoke or deny a permit or to issue a conditional permit.
C. Conditional Permitting: Following an initial inspection that finds violations under this chapter, the City's Director of Building and Zoning may issue a permit subject to compliance with an action plan to ensure the rental unit or units are brought into compliance in a timely manner. The action plan may impose a designated time frame during which steps must be taken to correct identified violations and specify the measures to be taken by the rental unit owner to ensure ongoing compliance with City Ordinances and laws of the State of Illinois. A conditional permit and action plan may also be appropriate in cases in which a violation cannot be corrected in a timely manner, such as because winter must pass before something can be done, in which case the conditional permit shall include a specific deadline for completion of the necessary improvements. In all cases, a conditional permit may not be issued when life safety issues are involved.
D. Revoke Or Deny A Permit: The Director of Building and Zoning may revoke or refuse to issue a permit for a rental unit owner (or may deny the right to rent specific units owned by the rental unit owner) under the following conditions:
1. If a rental unit owner has failed to comply with an action plan and is not reasonably progressing to fully comply; or
2. If, upon re-inspection of any rental unit, including those whose owners hold a conditional permit, the Building and Zoning Department determines that a rental unit (i) continues to fail to comply with the provisions of the Code of Ordinances of Woodstock and is not reasonably progressing to fully comply, or (ii) poses imminent life safety concerns; or
3. If a unit that had previously been in violation that was remedied subsequently falls back into non-compliance within six (6) months of the re-issue of a permit and is subsequently adjudicated liable. (Ord. 22-O-46, 9-6-2022)