Clayton Municipal Code Ch. 8.08 Nuisances

It is declared a public nuisance for any person owning, leasing, occupying or having charge or possession of any premises in the city to maintain such premises in such manner that any of the following conditions are found to exist thereon:

A. Buildings or structures which are abandoned, boarded up, partially destroyed, left unreasonably in a state of partial construction and/or unused for a period in excess of six (6) months;

B. Unpainted buildings causing dry rot, warping and termite infestation;

C. Broken windows constituting hazardous conditions and inviting trespassers and malicious mischief;

D. Overgrown vegetation causing detriment to neighboring properties or property values;

E. Dead trees, dry dead shrubs, combustible refuse and waste, or any material growing upon the streets, sidewalks, or upon private property within the city, which by reason of their size, manner of growth, and location, obstruct a public right of way, endanger public health or safety, or constitute a fire hazard to any building, improvements, crops or other property, or when dry will, in reasonable probability, constitute such a fire hazard.

F. Attractive nuisances dangerous to children in the form of:

1. Abandoned and broken equipment,

2. Hazardous pools, ponds and excavations, and

3. Neglected machinery;

G. Broken or discarded furniture and household equipment in yard areas for unreasonable periods;

H. Clotheslines in front yard area;

I. Any violation of Chapter 17.76 of this code;

J. Packing boxes and other debris stored in yards and visible from public streets for unreasonable periods;

K. Neglect of premises:

1. To spite neighbors, or

2. To influence zone changes, or

3. To cause a detrimental effect upon nearby property or property values, or

4. Which results in paper, refuse, trash and other debris being blown upon or otherwise carried to adjacent privately or publicly owned properties or public streets and deposited and scattered thereon;

L. Maintenance of premises in such condition as to be detrimental to the public health, safety or general welfare or in such manner as to constitute a public nuisance as defined by Civil Code Section 3480;

M. Property including but not limited to building exteriors which are maintained in such condition as to become so defective, unsightly, or in such condition of deterioration or disrepair that the same causes appreciable diminution of the property values of surrounding property or is materially detrimental to proximal properties and improvements. This includes but is not limited to the keeping or disposing of or the scattering over the property or premises of any of the following:

1. Lumber, junk, or debris, or

2. Abandoned, discarded or unused objects or equipment such as furniture, stoves, refrigerators, freezers, cans or containers, or

3. Stagnant water, or excavations, or

4. Any device, decoration, design, fence, structure, clothesline or vegetation which is unsightly by reason of its condition or its inappropriate location;

N. Maintenance of premises so out of harmony or conformity with the maintenance standards of adjacent properties as to cause substantial diminution of the enjoyment, use, or property values of such adjacent properties;

O. Property maintained (in violation to others) so as to establish a prevalence of depreciated values, impaired investments, and social and economic maladjustments to such receipts from such particular area are inadequate for the cost of public services rendered therein.

P. Anything that is injurious to health, or is indecent, or offensive to the senses, or an obstruction to the free use of property, so as to interfere with the comfortable enjoyment of life or property by an entire community or neighborhood, or by any considerable number of persons, or that unlawfully obstructs the free passage or use, in the customary manner, of any stream or any public park, sidewalk, pathway, square, street, highway, or other public place.

Q. Any activity that supports the development, attraction, or harborage of vectors, or that facilitates the introduction or spread of vectors, including but not limited to the following (for the purposes of this subsection, "vector" means any animal capable or transmitting the causation agent of human disease or capable of producing human discomfort or injury, including, but not limited to, mosquitoes, flies, mites, ticks, other arthropods, and rodents and other vertebrates):

1. Any artificial alteration of property, excluding water, from its natural condition, resulting in it supporting the development, attraction, or harborage of vectors, with the presence of vectors in their developmental stages on the property being prima facie evidence that the property is a public nuisance; or

2. Any water that is a breeding place for vectors, with the presence of vectors in their developmental stages in the water being prima facie evidence that the water is a public nuisance.

R. Any violation of Title 17 (Zoning) of this code, the provisions of any code adopted by reference by this code; permits issued by the City; conditions of development approval; or ordinances and regulations adopted by the City.

S. Repeated disruptive activities including, but not limited to, disturbances of the peace and quiet of the neighborhood of which causes discomfort or annoyance to any reasonable person of normal sensitiveness residing in the area, public drunkenness, drinking in public, harassment of passerby, sale of stolen goods, public urination or defecation, theft, assaults, battery, acts of vandalism, excessive littering, illegal parking, loud noises, traffic violations, curfew violations, or police detentions and arrests.

T. Any use of land in the incorporated area of the city not permitted under Title 17 (zoning) of this code or any building or structure erected, constructed, altered, moved or maintained contrary to Title 17 (zoning) of this code.

All or any part of premises found, as provided in this chapter, to constitute a public nuisance shall be abated by rehabilitation, demolition, or repair pursuant to the procedures set forth in this chapter.

Notwithstanding and in addition to any other remedy available under this chapter, or any other Municipal Code Section or City ordinance, or other federal, state or local law regulation, if a public nuisance as defined in this chapter exists and constitutes an immediate threat to public health or safety, the City may summarily and without hearing abate such nuisance at the expense of the persons creating, causing, committing, or maintaining the nuisance. The expense of abatement of the nuisance may be collected in the same manner as other abatement costs in this chapter. Notice of the summary abatement shall be provided to the owner or any other responsible party as provided for in this chapter the same day or as soon as practical. Such notice shall include a provision authorizing the owner or responsible party to dispute the existence of the nuisance conditions before the hearing officer in the same manner as a general nuisance hearing.

The procedures set forth herein shall not in any manner, however, limit or restrict the city from enforcing city ordinances or abating public nuisances in any other manner provided by law.

It shall be the duty of the owner, and of responsible party occupying or having charge or control of any parcel of land, improved or unimproved, to maintain such parcel of land free of any nuisance and/or nuisance conditions at all times. The same responsibility extends to the public rights-of-way or public land, related to any vehicle, vessel, structure, machinery, container, refuse, debris or other item found to be or having been under the charge or control of a property owner, responsible party, or last registered or documented owner. Any owner or responsible party shall be responsible for the removal or correction of any nuisance or nuisance conditions and the costs for such removal or correction.

A. When the enforcement officer finds that a nuisance condition exists upon any premises in the city, he or she may, or upon the direction of the city council or city manager shall, serve a notice to abate upon the owner or responsible party in possession or having control of the premises upon which the condition exists, directing him or her to abate or cause the nuisance condition(s) upon the premises to be abated on or before a specified compliance date. The notice shall also state that the responsible party may file a written request for a hearing with the city clerk to dispute the alleged conditions within thirty (30) days of the notice.

B. The enforcement officer shall post one copy of the notice in a conspicuous place on the property in question and shall deliver one copy of the notice to the owner or responsible party in possession or control of the property upon which the nuisance condition exists either in person or by certified mail, with a return receipt requested.

C. The failure of the owner or responsible party to actually receive the notice shall not affect in any manner the validity of any proceedings pursuant to this chapter.

D. In the event the responsible party files a timely request for an abatement hearing, the city clerk shall schedule the hearing. The hearing shall be conducted within forty-five (45) days of receipt of the request unless otherwise agreed to in writing by the parties. The city clerk shall send written notice of the location, time and date of the hearing at least ten (10) days in advance of the hearing date.

E. In the event the responsible party fails to appeal the notice, the nuisance conditions shall be deemed confirmed. Such failure shall also constitute a failure to exhaust available administrative remedies.

In the event a hearing is timely requested pursuant to Section 8.08.050, the hearing shall be conducted pursuant to the following procedures:

A. At the time and place designated in the notice of hearing, the hearing officer shall hear and consider all relevant evidence, including but not limited to, applicable staff reports, oral evidence, physical evidence and documentary evidence regarding the alleged nuisance, and proposed method of abatement. The hearing may be continued from time to time.

B. Failure of the owner or responsible party to appear at the hearing shall be deemed a waiver of the right to a hearing and an admission by the owner or responsible party of the existence of the nuisance condition charged. In the event of such failure to appear, the hearing officer may order that the nuisance condition be abated by the enforcement officer. Such failure to appear shall also constitute a failure to exhaust available administrative remedies.

C. The city shall bear the burden of proof to demonstrate, by a preponderance of the evidence, that a nuisance exists and that the proposed mechanism for abatement is appropriate. The city need not demonstrate that the proposed mechanism for abatement is either the most appropriate or least expensive.

D. The hearing shall not be conducted according to the formal rules of evidence. Any relevant evidence shall be admitted if it is the type of evidence on 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 of such evidence over objection in civil actions in courts of competent jurisdiction in this state. However, irrelevant or unduly repetitious evidence may be excluded.

E. Prior to conclusion of the hearing, if the owner or responsible party is present, the hearing officer may request the owner or responsible party to sign a consent to enter and perform work. The permission given shall be used only if the nuisance condition is determined to exist and is not abated by the schedule of correction specified in the hearing officer's decision.

F. If the owner or responsible party does not provide written consent, entry onto the property may be made by obtaining verbal permission from the owner or a responsible party, or by means of an inspection warrant, or by any other lawful manner.

G. The City Manager shall designate the hearing officer(s) for nuisance hearings. Hearing officers may be employees of the City, including the City Manager, or any other person qualified to hear such matters.

A. Within ten (10) days after the conclusion of the hearing, the hearing officer shall issue a written decision. The decision shall set forth the factual findings made by the hearing officer, a conclusion as to whether a nuisance condition exists, the manner of abatement, including an order that such nuisance (if one is found to exist) be abated by the city and a schedule of correction or the date by which the abatement shall be completed.

B. If the hearing officer determines that a nuisance exists which has not been corrected within the time period specified in the notice to abate nuisance conditions, the hearing officer shall so find in the decision, and may include in the decision any or all of the following:

1. An order to correct, including a schedule of correction where appropriate;

2. An order to pay abatement costs, including administrative costs incurred to date, as provided in this chapter.

C. Failure to issue a decision in ten (10) days shall not affect the validity of such decision.

D. The decision shall be mailed by certified mail with a return receipt requested to the owner and shall be mailed to the enforcement officer. A copy of a summary of the decision and any order it contains shall also be posted on the property by the enforcement officer in a conspicuous location.

Upon receipt of the hearing officer's decision if: (i) no schedule of correction has been issued, or (ii) upon the failure of the property owner to comply with such schedule if a schedule was included, if the nuisance condition has not been abated the enforcement officer shall forthwith abate, or cause to be abated, the nuisance condition upon the premises. The enforcement officer is authorized to enter upon private property for this purpose, consistent with the provisions of the U.S. Constitution.

The cost of abatement shall become a personal obligation of the property owner and responsible party and may be collected in any legal manner, expressly including as lien or special assessment pursuant to the procedures set forth in this chapter.

A. Any owner or responsible party may, at his/her/its own expense and prior to the scheduled abatement hearing, abate a declared nuisance condition in accordance with the provisions of the notice sent by the enforcement officer; provided that all necessary permits are first obtained. If the enforcement officer determines that the nuisance condition has been abated prior to the hearing, the hearing proceedings shall be terminated. If any abatement referenced in this section takes place after the specified compliance date, but prior to date set for hearing, termination of the hearing shall only take place upon the owner or responsible party's payment of outstanding penalties, administrative and/or abatement costs.

B. Any owner or responsible party may also request the city to abate a declared nuisance condition on his/her/its property. However, the owner or responsible party making the request shall be responsible for the payment of all penalties, abatement costs and/or administrative costs incurred by the city. The request for the city to perform the abatement shall be in writing and include a written consent to enter and perform work. Any such request shall be deemed an agreement to pay for the costs of such abatement, including but not limited to any penalties, administrative costs, and an agreement that such costs may be collected as a lien upon the property. The abatement hearing proceedings shall thereafter be terminated.

In the event the city abates the nuisance, the enforcement officer shall keep an account of the cost (including incidental expenses) of abating such nuisance on each separate lot, or parcel of land where the work is done and shall create an itemized report in writing showing the cost of abatement and rehabilitating, demolishing or repairing of the premises, buildings or structures, including any salvage value relating thereto. The term "incidental expenses" shall include, but not be limited to, the actual expenses and costs of the city in the preparation of notices, specifications and contracts, and in inspecting the work, and the costs of printing and mailing required under this chapter. Costs shall be recovered through a lien, special assessment or other procedures as permitted by law. Liens and special assessments may only be imposed if the property owner received the notice to abate.

A. In addition to liability for the costs of abatement itself pursuant to Section 8.08.100 and this section of this chapter, the owner and/or responsible party shall also be liable for any expenses and administrative abatement costs incurred by the city, county or any related agency incurred after the initial inspection and identification of the nuisance. Administrative costs shall be included in the records and reports in the same manner as abatement costs under Section 8.08.100.

B. The administrative costs may include any and all costs incurred by the city in connection with the matter before the hearing officer, including but not limited to, costs of investigation, city staffing costs incurred in preparation for the hearing and for the hearing itself, including but not limited to the fees and costs of the city's consultants, and costs for all re-inspections necessary to enforce the notice to abate nuisance conditions.

C. In the event that the city is entitled to recover its attorneys' fees and costs, such fees and costs shall be collected at the same time and pursuant to the same procedures as administrative costs pursuant to this section.

In the event the City decides to collect abatement costs as a lien, it shall impose such lien pursuant to this section:

A. Upon receipt of the itemized report referenced in Section 8.08.100, the city clerk, or his or her designee, shall serve notice of the lien in the same manner as summons in a civil action in accordance with Code of Civil Procedure § 415.10 et seq. If the owner of record, after diligent search cannot be found, the notice may be served by posting a copy thereof in a conspicuous place upon the property for a period of ten (10) days and publication thereof in a newspaper of general circulation in Contra Costa County. The period of notice commences upon the first day of publication and terminates at the end of the tenth day, including therein the first day. Publication shall be made on each day on which the newspaper is published during the ten (10) day period.

B. The notice shall inform the owner of the pending lien and inform the property owner of the public hearing where the city council will consider imposing the itemized report as a lien against the property. The hearing shall be conducted no less than ten (10) days from service of the notice.

C. At the hearing and after considering the relevant evidence, the city council may adopt a resolution confirming the itemized report and directing the city clerk to record a lien against the property in the Contra Costa County recorder's office and, from the date of recording, shall have the force, effect and priority of a judgment lien.

D. The lien shall identify:

1. The amount of the lien;

2. The city as the agency on whose behalf the lien is imposed;

3. The date of the abatement order or notice;

4. The street address, legal description and assessor's parcel number of the parcel on which the lien is imposed; and

5. The name and address of the recorded owner of the parcel.

E. In the event that the lien is discharged, released or satisfied, through either payment or foreclosure, notice of the discharge containing the information specified in subsection D shall be recorded by the city clerk.

F. A lien may be foreclosed by an action brought by the city for a money judgment.

G. The city may recover from the property owner any costs incurred in the processing and recording of the lien and providing notice to the property owner as part of its foreclosure action to enforce the lien.

In the event the City decides to collect abatement costs as a special assessment, it shall impose such special assessment pursuant to this section:

A. The property owner shall be invoiced for the amount stated in the itemized report referenced in Section 8.08.100 which shall be due within thirty (30) days. The invoice shall be sent certified mail to the property owner, if the property owner's identity can be determined from the county assessor's or county recorder's records. If payment is not received, the itemized report shall be submitted in writing to the city clerk no sooner than fifteen (15) days of the invoice due date. Any such report may include the abatement costs, fees and penalties for any number of properties and abatements, whether or not such properties are contiguous.

B. If the invoice is not timely paid, the city clerk shall provide written notice to the property owner by certified mail, if the property owner's identity can be determined from the county assessor's or county recorder's records. The notice shall inform the owner of the pending special assessment, including the information set forth in subsection C, and the date, time and location of the public hearing where the city council will consider imposing the itemized report as a special assessment against the property. The hearing shall be conducted no less than ten (10) days from service of the notice.

C. At the hearing and after considering the relevant evidence, the city council may adopt a resolution confirming the itemized report and assessing the report as a special assessment against the property. The city clerk shall then provide all documentation necessary to the county to enter such assessment. After entry, the assessment may be collected at the same time and in the same manner as ordinary municipal taxes are collected, and shall be subject to the same penalties and the same procedure and sale in case of delinquency as provided for ordinary municipal taxes. The property may be sold after three (3) years by the tax collector for unpaid delinquent assessments. The tax collector's power of sale shall not be affected by the failure of the property owner to receive notice. All laws applicable to the levy, collection and enforcement of municipal taxes shall be applicable to the special assessment. However, if any real property to which the cost of abatement relates has been transferred or conveyed to a bona fide purchaser for value, or if a lien of a bona fide encumbrance for value has been created and attaches thereon, prior to the date on which the first installment of the taxes would become delinquent, then the cost of abatement shall not result in a lien against the real property but instead shall be transferred to the unsecured roll for collection.

D. Subject to the requirements applicable to the sale of property pursuant to Section 3691 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, the city may conduct a sale of vacant residential developed property for which the payment of that assessment is delinquent.

E. Notices or instruments relating to the special assessment shall be entitled to recordation.

The enforcement officer may record and file any notices related to nuisance abatement proceedings in the office of the county recorder, as permitted pursuant to Government Code § 38773.5.

Upon entry of a second or subsequent civil or criminal judgment within a two-year period finding that an owner of property is responsible for a condition that may be abated in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, except for conditions abated pursuant to Health and Safety Code § 17980, relating to abandoned buildings, the court may order the owner to pay treble the costs of the abatement, as authorized by Government Code § 38773.7. Costs of abatement shall include, without limitation by reason of enumeration, all administrative costs of the city.

Nothing in this chapter shall be deemed to prevent the city council from ordering the city attorney to commence a civil or criminal proceeding to abate a public nuisance under applicable Civil or Penal Code provisions as an alternative to the proceedings set forth in this chapter.

Any person violating any abatement order issued pursuant to the provisions of this chapter is guilty of a misdemeanor or infraction as provided for in Section 1.02.010.

(Ord. 451, 2013)