Lassen County Municipal Code Ch. 7.08 House Court, Tent Camp Spaces

For the purpose of this chapter, certain words and phrases are defined and certain provisions shall be construed as herein set out unless it is apparent from their content that they have a different meaning.

Words used in the singular include the plural and the plural include the singular.

Words used in the present tense include the future.

"Apartment"

is a room or suite of rooms which is occupied or intended or designed to be occupied by one family or person for living and/or sleeping purposes in a house court.

"Camp car and/or trailer"

is any unit used for living and/or sleeping purposes and which is equipped with wheels or similar devices used for the purpose of transporting the unit from place to place, whether by motive power or other means.

"Family"

is one person living alone or a group of two or more persons living together in an apartment whether related to each other or not.

"Health department"

means the health department of Lassen County and shall include the county health officer and his or her deputies.

"House court"

is any building or structure containing two or more apartments or any group of two or more separate buildings or structures containing one or more apartments each located on a parcel of land or contiguous parcel or parcels of land under the ownership or operation of one person, which building or structure or any portion thereof is, with the expressed consent of the owner or person legally in charge of the land upon which such house court is located, designed, built, rented, leased, let or hired out to be occupied by, or which is occupied as the home or residence or living quarters of two or more families or persons living independently of each other.

"Person"

means a corporation, copartnership or association as well as a natural person.

"Squatter"

is one who settles or locates on land enclosed or unenclosed with no bona fide claim or color of the title or without the expressed consent of the owner or person legally in charge of the land.

"Squatter camp"

is an area of land occupied by a squatter.

"Tent camp space"

is any place where one or more tents or camp cars or trailers are erected or maintained for hire or use or intended or designed to be used as living or sleeping quarters for one or more families or persons or where space is rented for the placing of such tents or camp cars or trailers, or where free camping is permitted with or without tents or camp cars or trailers, or where one or more tents or camp cars or trailers are established for living or sleeping purposes with the expressed consent of the owner or person legally in charge of the land upon which such camp space is located.

(Ord. 222 § 1, 1942)

It shall be the duty of the county health officer and his deputies to enforce all of the provisions of this chapter and for the purpose of securing enforcement thereof the county health officer or any of his duly authorized representatives shall have the right and are empowered to enter upon any public or private property, including any building or habitation, in the unincorporated area of Lassen County to inspect such accommodations and installations thereon or therein that may be covered by the provisions of this chapter.

(Ord. 222 § 2, 1942)

It is unlawful to construct, reconstruct or maintain or to begin the operation of or to operate a house court or tent camp space upon any public or private property in the unincorporated area of Lassen County except as herein otherwise specified; and it is unlawful to occupy for living and/or sleeping purposes or to reside in any established house court or tent camp space without written permission so to do from the owner of the land or person legally in charge thereof upon which such house court or tent camp space is located or the owner or person legally in charge of such house court or tent camp space; and in any prosecution for the violation of this chapter the burden of proving such permission shall rest upon the person or persons so occupying the house court or tent camp space and in the absence of such permission such tent camp space or house court habitation shall be declared to be a squatter camp, as defined in this chapter and shall be vacated when so ordered by the health officer, it being the expressed intention of this chapter that no squatter camp shall be permitted to exist in the unincorporated area of Lassen County.

(Ord. 222 § 3, 1942)

The provisions of this chapter shall be applicable to any and every house court, tent camp space and squatter camp in the unincorporated area of Lassen County and it is unlawful for any person, firm or corporation, maintaining, operating or conducting or carrying on, or for any person residing in any house court, tent camp space or squatter camp, or any other person, to violate or to contribute in any way to the violation, of any of the provisions of this chapter.

(Ord. 222 § 4, 1942)

The provisions of this chapter shall not be construed to apply to premises, buildings, structures or equipment referred to in an Act entitled "An Act of regulating construction and maintenance of auto camps in unincorporated areas, to provide for the inspection and supervision thereof," Chapter 214, of the state of California, Statutes of 1931, or in an Act entitled, "An Act regulating the sanitation and ventilation in and at camps where five or more persons are employed; and providing a penalty for the violation thereof," Chapter 182, state of California, Statutes of 1913, and amendments thereto, nor does this chapter apply to any supervised public park or public camp or picnic ground owned, operated and/or maintained by the federal government, the state of California or any agency of the state or by any political subdivision or municipality.

(Ord. 222 § 5, 1942)

An adequate number of covered metal water-tight and fly-tight depositories for garbage and rubbish shall be provided and shall be conspicuously and conveniently located in every house court and tent camp space.

(Ord. 222 § 6, 1942)

Each camping party shall be allowed usable ground space of not less than five hundred square feet.

(Ord. 222 § 7, 1942)

Every building, structure, camp car, trailer, tent or other habitation in a house court or tent camp space and all of the premises of every house court or tent camp space shall be kept clean and sanitary in every part and free from all accumulation of debris, filth, rubbish, garbage or other offensive matter.

(Ord. 222 § 8, 1942)

It shall be the duty of the owner or person legally in charge of the land upon which any house court or tent camp space is located or of the operator or person in charge of such house court or tent camp space to see that all of the buildings, structures, tents and equipment in connection therewith, are maintained in good repair and that the habitations are in such condition as to afford protection to the occupants against elements and so as to exclude dampness in inclement weather. The roofs shall be kept waterproof and all storm or casual water properly drained and conveyed therefrom to the street sewer, storm, drain or street gutter, or otherwise disposed of in a manner so as to not create an unsanitary condition.

(Ord. 222 § 9, 1942)

No habitations or shelters constructed of shacks, rugs, boxes, cans, weeds or refuse material of any objectionable nature, or any combination of the foregoing, shall be permitted in any house court or tent camp space and it shall be the duty of the owner or person legally in charge of the land upon which any house court or tent camp space is located or of the operator or person in charge of such house court or tent camp space where any such construction exists to have it removed from the premises or demolished.

(Ord. 222 § 10, 1942)

A supply of water safe for human consumption shall be provided in ample quantity to meet all requirements of the maximum number of persons using such house court or tent camp space at any one time. The water supply shall be easily obtainable from its source, or through a pipe distribution system from which faucets shall be located not more than one hundred fifty feet from any house court or tent camp space within such ground. If the water supply is obtained from a well the wells must be properly covered so that water may not be dipped therefrom, also be properly banked so that surface water cannot drain thereinto.

(Ord. 222 § 11, 1942)

No fires shall be at any time so located as to endanger automobiles or other property in any house court or tent camp space. No fires shall be left unattended at any time on the exterior premises of any house court or tent camp space and all campfires shall be completely extinguished before camping party leaves.

(Ord. 222 § 12, 1942)

All sewage effluent, garbage and rubbish from every house court and tent camp space shall be disposed of in a sanitary manner in such a way as to meet with the approval of the health department.

(Ord. 222 § 13, 1942)

At least one privy, or water closet or chemical type toilet, as approved by the health department, must be provided at every house court or tent camp space for each sex for every ten apartments, tents, camp cars, trailers, or other habitations. No house court habitation, or habitation in a tent camp space, shall be a greater distance from both men's and women's toilets than two hundred feet. The location of all toilets shall be plainly indicated by proper signs. The interior of all toilet buildings shall be kept clean and properly lighted and ventilated and from sunset to sunrise a proper light shall be kept burning in all public toilet buildings in house courts and tent camp spaces.

(Ord. 222 § 14, 1942)

Every privy now existing, or hereafter erected in a house court or tent camp space, shall be constructed or reconstructed in a substantial manner of durable materials and all cracks or ventilating openings in the structure shall be effectively battened or covered with wire screening not larger than number sixteen mesh. Every such structure shall be equipped with a full sized door and the door shall be equipped with a spring or similar device or so hung, that it will close tight of its own accord when not in use. Hinged covers shall be placed over all seat holes and so installed that they will close tight over the seat holes of their own accord when not in use.

Pits for such privies shall be of adequate depth and the structures shall be placed over them in such a manner as to prevent the ingress and egress of flies. All privy pits shall be provided with ventilator openings directly into the pit and such openings shall be effectively screened with wire screening not larger than number sixteen mesh. When the excreta in any privy comes within two feet of the surface of the pit it shall be filled with earth.

All nonconforming privies which are not reconstructed to meet the requirements hereinbefore set forth shall be demolished by the owners and the pits shall be properly disinfected, and filled with earth.

No privy hereafter constructed or moved shall be set within twenty-five feet of any human habitation or within fifty feet of any place where food for human consumption or a well is located in a house court or tent camp space. The health department shall have power to prescribe additional regulations as may be necessary.

(Ord. 222 § 15, 1942)

A sufficient number of public slop hoppers or sinks shall be provided at all house court or tent camp spaces and shall be connected with an adequate sanitary disposal system.

(Ord. 222 § 16, 1942)

It shall be the duty of the owner or resident caretaker of any house court or tent camp space to report immediately to the health officer, whereupon it shall be the duty of the health officer to examine or cause to be examined such person afflicted with, such infectious or contagious disease and cause such person to be isolated or removed from the house court or tent camp space whenever the same may be necessary for the protection of public health, and in accordance with the rules and regulations of the health department and the state department of public health.

(Ord. 222 § 17, 1942)

In addition to the other requirements in this chapter set forth, all buildings, structures or tents under or intended or designed to be used for human habitation hereafter erected in any house court or tent camp space shall meet the following minimum requirements and it shall be the duty of the owner or person legally in charge of the land upon which the house court or tent camp space is located or of the operator or person in charge of such house court or tent camp space to see that the following requirements are complied with:

(1) A clear air space of at least twelve inches shall be maintained between the ground and the lower edge of the floor of any building in a house court and the entire space under the building from the level of the floor to the ground must be enclosed, except that a sufficient number of ventilating screens or lattices must be provided to properly ventilate underneath the building. The provisions of this paragraph shall not apply to masonry floors laid directly on the ground.

(2) All floors, exterior and interior walls and ceilings and roofs of house court buildings shall be constructed of a good grade lumber or other impervious material and shall be kept sanitary at all times.

(3) Every house court sleeping room must have a floor area of at least eighty square feet and not less than seven feet in width at any point within that portion of the room for computing the minimum area of eighty square feet; and every living room, sleeping room or kitchen in a house court building must have a ceiling height of at least eight feet. Attic rooms or rooms where sloping ceilings occur, must have the prescribed ceiling heights in not less than one-half the area of the room.

(4) Every living room, sleeping room or kitchen in every house court building shall be provided with windows, the area of which shall be equal at least to one-eighth of the floor area except that in no event shall the aggregate window area of any living room, sleeping room or kitchen be less than twelve square feet.

(5) The windows of all rooms in house courts must open on to unobstructed areas of adequate dimensions, located on the same lot as the house court building they were designed to serve, and must be arranged so that at least one-half of their required aggregate area can be opened unobstructed.

(6) If a kitchen is provided in any house court building, it must be equipped with running water and a sink, if running water is available, and the drainage from such sink must be disposed of in a sanitary manner.

(7) No toilet room shall be permitted to open directly into a kitchen or other room in which food is prepared or stored.

(Ord. 222 § 18, 1942)

It shall be the duty of the owner or person legally in charge of land upon which any house court or tent camp space is located, or of the operator of or person legally in charge of such house court or camp space, to register all guests, take the license number of automobiles and trailers and to keep a registration book of the same which shall be open to inspection at any time by the health officer, his deputies and assistants and other county law enforcement officers.

(Ord. 222 § 19, 1942)

It shall be the duty of the owner or person legally in charge of the land upon which any house court or tent camp space is located or of the operator or person legally in charge to see that all of the provisions of this chapter are complied with.

(Ord. 222 § 20, 1942)