Chapter 18.118 — Enforcement

Sections:

18.118.010 – Purpose and Intent 18.118.020 – Permits and Licenses 18.118.030 – Enforcement Responsibility 18.118.040 – Violations 18.118.050 – Inspections 18.118.060 – Initial Enforcement Action

• 18.118.070 – Legal Remedies 18.118.080 – Recovery of Costs

• 18.118.090 – Additional Permit Processing Fees 18.118.100 – Re-inspection Fees 18.118.110 – Remedies Cumulative

This chapter establishes provisions intended to ensure compliance with the requirements of the Municipal Code, the Development Code, and any conditions of planning permit approval, to promote the City's planning efforts, and for the protection of the public health, safety, and welfare of the City.

All departments, officials, and public employees of the City who are assigned the authority or duty to issue certificates, licenses, permits, and other approvals shall comply with the provisions of the Development Code.

• A. Permits in Conflict with Development Code. Certificates, licenses, permits, and other approvals for uses or structures in conflict with the provisions of the Development Code shall not be issued.

• B. Permits Deemed Void. Any certificate, license, permits, and other approvals issued in conflict with the provisions of the Development Code is void and of no effect.

• A. Responsibility of Director. The Director shall exercise the authority provided in California Penal Code Section 836.5 and issue notices of violation, stop work orders, and citations for any violations pertaining to the use of any land, and the addition, alteration, construction, conversion, installation, moving, reconstruction, or use of any structure.

• B. Additional Responsibility to Enforce. All officers of the City shall render any and all necessary assistance to the Director for enforcement.

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A. Violations.

1. Any use of land or structures operated or maintained and any structure constructed or maintained contrary to the provisions of the Development Code is hereby declared to be a violation of the Development Code and any person responsible for the violation may be held accountable as set forth in Municipal Code Chapter 1.12, Chapter 1.14 and Chapter 8.08.

2. The violation of any required condition imposed on a permit or approval shall constitute a violation of the Development Code and may constitute grounds for revocation or modification of the permit, or any other remedy available to the City under the Municipal Code or the Development Code.

3. Any violations of the Development Code or any required condition(s) imposed on a permit or approval granted shall be treated as a strict liability offense regardless of intent.

• B. Public Nuisance. Any use or structure altered, constructed, converted, demolished, enlarged, established, erected, maintained, moved, or operated contrary to the provisions of the Development Code or any applicable condition(s) of approval imposed on a permit or approval, or any property found to be maintained in violation of Municipal Code Chapter 8.08 is hereby declared to be unlawful and a public nuisance, and shall be subject to the remedies and penalties established by in the Municipal Code.

• C. Criminal Violations. Any person, whether an agent, principal, or otherwise, violating, permitting, or causing the violation of any provision of the Development Code or any permit issued in compliance with the Development Code shall be guilty of a misdemeanor or an infraction at the election of the City and/or its prosecuting official, and upon conviction thereof, shall be punishable as established by Municipal Code Chapter 1.12.

• D. Continuing Violation. Any violator shall be guilty of a separate offense for each and every day during any portion of which any violation of the Development Code or any applicable condition of approval imposed on a permit is committed, continued, or allowed to continue and the violator shall be punished accordingly.

E.

Stop Work Order.

1. Any construction in violation of the Development Code or any conditions imposed on a permit shall be subject to the issuance of a "Stop Work Order" or other similar notice issued by the City.

2. Any violation of a Stop Work Order or other similar notice shall constitute a misdemeanor and a public nuisance, and shall be subject to the remedies and penalties established by the Municipal Code and this chapter.

• A. Pre-approval inspections. Every applicant seeking a permit or any other approval in shall allow the City officials handling the application access to any premises or property that is the subject of the application.

• B. Post approval inspections. If the permit or other request is approved, the owner or applicant shall allow appropriate City officials access to the premises in order to determine continued compliance with the approved permit and/or any conditions of approval imposed on the permit.

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• A. Procedures for Initiating Enforcement. This section describes the procedures for initiating enforcement action in cases where the Director has determined real property within the City is being used, maintained, or allowed to exist in violation of the provisions of the Development Code.

• B. Encourage Voluntary Cooperation. It is the objective of these provisions to encourage the voluntary cooperation of property owners or other responsible parties in the prompt correction of violations, so that the other enforcement measures provided by this chapter may be avoided. These provisions shall not limit or prevent the City from taking any other steps necessary to obtain compliance with this Development Code.

• C. Notice to Responsible Parties. The Director shall provide the record owner of the subject site and any person in possession or control of the site with a written Notice of Violation, which shall include all of the following information:

  1. A description of each violation and citations of applicable Development Code provisions being violated;

  2. A time limit for correcting the violation(s);

  3. A statement that the City intends to charge the property owner and/or the person in possession or control for all administrative costs associated with the abatement of the violation(s) and/or initiate legal action; and

  4. A statement that the property owner or person in possession or control may request and be provided a meeting with the Director to discuss possible methods and time limits for the correction of the violation(s).

D.

Time Limit for Correction.

1. The Notice of Violation shall state that the violation(s) shall be corrected within 30 days from the date of the notice to avoid further enforcement action by the City, unless the responsible party contacts the Director within that time to arrange for a longer period for correction.

2. The Director may also require through the Notice of Violation that the correction occur within less than 30 days if the Director determines that the violation(s) constitutes a more serious hazard to public health or safety.

• E. Use of Other Enforcement Procedures. Enforcement procedures may be employed by the City after or instead of the provisions of this section where the Director determines the process in this section would be ineffective in securing the correction of the violation(s) within a reasonable time.

• A. Civil Actions. Any structure set up, erected, constructed, altered, enlarged, converted, moved, or maintained or any use of any land, structure, or premises established, conducted, operated, or maintained contrary to the provisions of the Development Code is hereby declared to be unlawful and a public nuisance and the City Attorney may upon request of the Director, and shall upon request of the Commission or Council, commence action or proceedings for the abatement and removal and enjoinment thereof in the manner provided by law and shall take other steps and shall apply to any courts as may have jurisdiction to grant relief as will abate and remove the

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structure and restrain and enjoin any person from setting up, erecting, building, maintaining or using any structure or using any property contrary to the provisions of the Development Code.

• B. Costs and Damages. Any person violating any provisions of the Development Code or any permit issued shall be liable to the City for all of the costs incurred and the damages suffered by the City, its agents, and agencies as a direct result of the violation(s), including reasonable attorney fees and costs. In determining the amount of the civil penalty to impose, the Court should consider all relevant circumstances, including the extent of the harm caused by the conduct constituting a violation(s), the nature and persistence of the conduct, the length of time over which the conduct occurred, the assets, liabilities, and net worth of the defendant, whether corporate or individual, and any corrective action taken by the defendant.

This section establishes procedures for the recovery of administrative costs, including staff and City Attorney time expended on the enforcement of the provisions of the Development Code in cases where no permit is required in order to correct a violation. The intent of this section is to recover City administrative costs reasonably related to enforcement.

A. Record of Costs.

1. The Department shall maintain records of all administrative costs incurred by responding City departments, including City Attorney costs, associated with the processing of violations and enforcement, and shall recover the costs from the property owner and/or the person in possession or control.

2. Staff time shall be calculated at an hourly rate as established and revised from time to time by the Council, or the actual rate charged to the City.

• B. Notice. Upon investigation and a determination that a violation of any of the provisions of the Development Code or any condition(s) imposed on a permit or approval is found to exist, the Director shall notify the record owner and/or any person having possession or control of the property by mail, of the existence of the violation(s), the Department's intent to charge the property owner and/or the person in possession or control for all administrative costs associated with enforcement, and of the owner's right to a hearing on any objections they may have. The notice shall be in a form approved by the City Attorney.

C.

Summary of Costs and Notice.

1. At the conclusion of the case, the Director shall send a summary of costs associated with enforcement to the property owner and/or person having possession or control of the property by certified and first class mail.

2. The summary shall include a notice in a form approved by the City Attorney, advising the responsible party of their right to request a hearing on the charges for City cost recovery within 10 days following the date of the notice, and that if no request for hearing is filed, the responsible party will be liable for the charges.

3. In the event that no request for hearing is timely filed or, after a hearing the Director affirms the validity of the costs, the property owner and/or person in possession or control shall be liable to the City in the amount stated in the summary or any lesser amount as determined by the Director.

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4. The costs shall be recoverable in a civil action in the name of the City, in any court of competent jurisdiction, or by tax assessment or a lien on the property in compliance with Government Code Section 54988, at the City’s election.

5. The obligation to pay any unpaid costs shall be made a personal obligation of the property owner and/or person in possession or control. The obligation may be recovered against the property owner and/or the person in possession or control through a civil action initiated by the City or its authorized collection agent, or in any other manner provided for by law. The City shall be entitled to recover costs of the civil action, including attorney’s fees.

• D. Request for Hearing on Costs. Any property owner and/or other person having possession and control of the subject property who receives a summary of costs shall have the right to a hearing before the Director.

  1. A request for hearing shall be filed with the Department within 10 days following the service by mail of the Department's summary of costs, on a form provided by the Department.

  2. Within 30 days following the filing of the request, and on 10 days’ written notice to the property owner and/or the person in possession or control, the Director shall hold a hearing on objections, and determine their validity.

  3. In determining the validity of the costs, the Director shall consider whether total costs are reasonable in the circumstances of the case. Factors to be considered include:

     • a. Whether there is a present ability to correct the violation(s);

     • b. Whether the property owner and/or the person in possession or control moved promptly to correct the violation(s);

     • c. The degree of cooperation provided by the property owner and/or the person in possession or control; and

     • d. Whether reasonable minds can differ as to whether a violation(s) exists.

  4. The Director’s decision shall be appealable directly to the Council.

Any person who establishes a land use, or alters, constructs, demolishes, enlarges, erects, maintains, or moves any structure without first obtaining any permit required by the Development Code, shall pay double the permit processing fees established by the Fee Schedule for the correction of the violations, before being granted a permit for a use or structure on the site.

A. Amount and Applicability of Re-inspection Fee.

1. A re-inspection fee shall be imposed on each person who receives a Notice of Violation, notice and order, or letter of correction of any provision of the Development Code or the Municipal Code, adopted Building Code, or state law.

   • a. The fee amount shall be established by the Master Fee Schedule.

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• b. The fee may be assessed for each inspection or re-inspection conducted when the particular violation for which an inspection or re-inspection is scheduled is not fully abated or corrected as directed by, and within the time and manner specified in, the notice or letter.

2. The fee shall not apply to the original inspection to document the violations and shall not apply to the first scheduled compliance inspection made after the issuance of a notice or letter, if the correction has been made to the satisfaction of the Director.

B. Continuation of the Original Case.

1. If a notice or letter has been previously issued for the same violation and the property has been in compliance with the provisions of the Development Code or the Municipal Code for less than 90 days, the violation shall be deemed a continuation of the original case, and all inspections or re-inspections, including the first inspection for the repeated offense, shall be charged a re-inspection fee.

2. This fee is intended to compensate for administrative costs for unnecessary City inspections, and is not a penalty for violating the Development Code or the Municipal Code.

3. Any re-inspection fees imposed shall be separate and apart from any fines or penalties imposed for violation of the Development Code or the Municipal Code, or costs incurred by the City for the abatement of a public nuisance.

• A. Cumulative, not exclusive. All remedies contained in the Development Code for the handling of violations or enforcement shall be cumulative and not exclusive of any other applicable provisions of any law.

• B. Other remedies. Should a person be found guilty and convicted of a misdemeanor or infraction for the violation of any provision of the Development Code, the conviction shall not prevent the City from pursuing any other available remedy to correct the violation(s).

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