San Mateo Municipal Code Ch. 7.42 Lien and Assessments of Costs and Expenses Incurred in Public Nuisance…

This chapter is intended to provide a means of assessing the costs and expenses incurred by the City in the abatement of public nuisances, violations of Title 25 or 27, or substandard housing against the property involved, of imposing a lien for such an assessment, and of collecting that assessment with the annual property tax roll.

(a) The City Manager, or the Manager's designated representative, will keep an account of the cost of each abatement and will submit it to the Council for affirmation and assessment upon completion of the abatement or from time to time as the Manager may determine is appropriate. The expenses and costs incurred will include all expenses and costs, both direct and indirect, that the City incurred, including but not limited to remediation, administration, investigation, boundary determination, measurement, clerical, legal, and other related costs.

(b) Any lumber or other building materials salvaged from the abatement that the Manager, or the Manager's designated representative, determines can be reasonably sold at public auction will be advertised for public sale in a newspaper of general circulation. The Manager or Manager's designated representative will then cause the lumber or other building materials at public auction to be sold not earlier than five (5) days following advertisement. Any amount received from any sales of materials removed from the property involved will be deducted from the costs and expenses incurred in the abatement.

(c) Any personal property salvaged from the abatement will be stored by City as an expense of the property owner or, in the alternative, may be delivered to the known address of the owner of the personal property. The property owners and the occupants of the property will be notified of the storage, and the property will be made available for pick-up by the apparent owners upon payment of the storage expenses. The City will store the personal property for at least ninety (90) days after the abatement. At any time after that period, the personal property that the City Manager, or the Manager's designated representative, determines can reasonably be sold at public auction will be advertised for public sale in a newspaper of general circulation. The Manager or Manager's designated representative will then cause the personal property to be sold at public auction not earlier than five (5) days following advertisement. If the personal property is unsold after the auction, the City may dispose of it as the Manager determines is most efficient. Any amount received from any sales of the personal property removed from the property involved will be deducted from the costs and expenses incurred in the abatement.

(a) At least ten (10) days before the date set for the Council hearing on the costs and assessment, the City will mail a notice of hearing to the owners of each property against which costs are proposed to be affirmed and assessed as the owners are listed in the last equalized tax roll of the San Mateo County Assessor available at the City. The name and address of the owners as shown on that assessment roll shall be conclusively deemed to be the proper persons and addresses for mailing the notice, and the failure of any or all of the addressees to receive the notice shall not invalidate the proposed affirmation of costs and assessment. The notice will also be posted concurrently on the property proposed for assessment.

(b) The notice will contain the address of the designated property, the date of the order of abatement, a description of the costs reported, and a warning that the City intends to assess the costs as a lien against the designated property, and designation of the time and date of the hearing on the affirmation of the costs and assessment at which the owner may appear and be heard.

(a) At the hearing specified in the notice or as the date and time of the hearing may be continued from time to time by the Council, the Council will hear all objections to the costs reported and the proposed assessment against the designated property. Upon closure of the hearing, the Council may approve or modify the costs reported as it deems appropriate, and determine whether to confirm the assessment as approved or modified by resolution.

(b) Upon approval, the approved costs shall constitute a special assessment against the property designated and after made and confirmed by the Council, constitute a lien against the property for the amount assessed as of the date of the Council's action until paid. The lien may be recorded by the City at that time.

On or before August 1 of each year, the City Manager will forward the amounts of the respective assessment levied against properties in the City under this chapter during the preceding twelve (12) months to the San Mateo County Assessor for collection on the tax rolls in the same manner and by the same persons and at the same time as, together with and not separately from, City general property taxes as provided in Chapter 3.38.