Villa Park Municipal Code Art. 10-4 Organization and Enforcement

a. The provisions of Section 202, Powers and Duties of Building Official, of the Uniform Building Code shall apply to grading construction work.

b. Stop orders. Whenever any building or grading work is being done contrary to the provisions of this Chapter or the grading permit, the Building Official may order the work stopped by notice in writing served on any persons engaged in the doing or causing such work to be done, and any such persons shall forthwith stop such work until authorized by the Building Official to proceed with the work.

It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to do grading in the City of Villa Park or cause the same to be done, contrary to or in violation of any of the provisions of this Chapter.

The issuance of a building permit, performance of building permit inspections, or issuance, of a certificate of use and occupancy may be withheld for property on which a violation of the provisions of this Chapter exist, including work performed not in accordance with approved plans, until such violation has been corrected to the satisfaction of the Building Official.

Any person, firm, or corporation violating any of the provisions of this Chapter shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and each such person shall be deemed guilty of a separate offense for each and every day or portion thereof during which any violation of any of the provisions of this Chapter is committed, continued, or permitted, and upon conviction of any such violation such person shall be punishable by a fine of not more than five hundred ($500.00) dollars or by imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, or by both such fine and imprisonment.

a. Hazardous conditions exist when the state of any natural ground, natural slopes, excavation, fill, or drainage device, all of which exist on private property, are a menace to life or limb, or a danger to public safety, or endangers or adversely affects the safety, usability or stability of adjacent property, structures, or public facilities.

b. The Building Official may examine or cause to be examined every condition reported as hazardous as set forth in subsection a. of this section.

c. Notice of hazardous condition. In any case where a hazardous condition is found by the Building Official, he shall give notice, setting forth the finding to all owners of the property affected by the hazardous condition, authorized representative of the owners or a permittee under any active permit which gives permittee control of the property issued pursuant to this Chapter hereinafter referred to as 'owner,' of such required corrective work. The notice may state the time and place of a hearing to be held if the owner fails to comply with any demand for corrective work or reports. The purpose of the hearing would be for the presentation of evidence concerning the hazardous conditions and demand for corrective work or submission of reports. The notice shall set forth the right of the owner to be present at the hearing, at his option, and introduce such relevant evidence on the issues as he desires. If the time and place of any hearing scheduled for the presentation of evidence is not included in the initial notice(s), it shall be included in a subsequent notice.

d. Evidence. At the time and place so specified for the hearing, evidence shall be submitted as to the facts of any condition as to reasonably establish its existence, and the Building Official or his designee, as Hearing Officer, shall determine whether the facts presented reasonably establish the existence of a hazardous condition to the satisfaction of the Hearing Officer. Evidence may further be submitted as to the work or reports considered necessary to correct or determine work to correct said hazard.

Exception: Where City property or facilities are endangered by the hazardous condition found by the Building Official, at the request of the owner, the hearing may be held before a member of the Grading Board of Appeals selected by the Chairman of the Board. The Building Official may appeal such Hearing Officer's order as set forth in this section. Such Hearing Officer may not consider an appeal of the case as a member of the Grading Board of Appeals.

e. Order, finality and appeal. If the Hearing Officer determines the existence of a hazardous condition, he shall determine whether such hazards are subject to corrective work and/or the need for more analysis through the preparation of reports and shall order such work or reports and specify a completion time.

1. Finality of order. The determination and order may be made orally at the hearing and shall be written and transmitted to the owner within a reasonable time. The determination and order shall become final within five (5) days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, from the time it is first rendered in the event that the owner was not present at the hearing, within five (5) days of the mailing of the order to the last known address of said owner.

2. Appeal. The owner may, at any time prior to the determination and order becoming final, appeal in writing the decision of the Hearing Officer to the Grading Board of Appeals of the City of Villa Park. The Board shall fix a time and place and hold a hearing, consider the evidence and make a determination as set forth in Section 10-4.4 Grading Board of Appeals, of this Chapter. The order of the Grading Board of Appeals shall be immediately final.

f. Completion of work. The owner shall, following the finality of the determination and order of the Hearing Officer, or if appealed, the determination and order of the Grading Board of Appeals, commence the corrective action ordered or preparation of reports and such work or submissions shall be completed within the specified time.

g. Failure to complete work. If the owner neglects or fails to complete the corrective work or submit the reports ordered by the Hearing Officer or Grading Board of Appeals within the specified time, the Building Official may: (1) cause the work to be performed or reports to be prepared, or (2) advise the owner of the need for corrective work and warn him/her that in the absence of such corrective work, subsequent future hazards may occur which could result in an order to vacate the premises. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to limit the type of remedy or relief with the Building Official may have under any other provision of law.

h. Costs. Costs incurred by the City to perform any corrective work or prepare reports under subsection g. above shall be charged to the owner. The Building Official may apply to the City Council to cause the costs to be paid and levied as a special assessment against the property and collected in a manner provided for special assessments.

i. Vacation of property. If necessary, the notice and order in subsections c. or e. of this section shall include the requirement that the property, a portion thereof or adjacent sites be vacated within a specified time, in the interest of public safety, pending the finality of any determination and order or completion of corrective work.

The Building Official shall cause the property to be posted at conspicuous locations with a notice containing at least the following:

UNSAFE TO OCCUPY DO NOT ENTER Building Official, City of Villa Park Date Posted _______

Said posted notice may also contain the date, time and place of the hearing and the name, address and telephone number of the office or Building Official where additional information may be obtained.

Such posted notices shall remain posted until any necessary corrective work is completed. Such posted notices shall not be removed without written permission of the Building Official, and no person shall enter the property except for the purpose of making the required corrections or preparing reports.

j. Service of notices. The notices and order required by subsections c. and e. of this section may be served either:

(1) By mailing a copy by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the owner's address as designated on papers, applications, or permits on file with the Building Official; or

(2) By personally delivering a copy to the owner's address as designated on papers, applications or permits on file with the Building Official; or

(3) If the owner is absent from his place of residence and from his usual or designated place of business, by leaving a copy with some person of suitable age and discretion at either place, and sending a copy by certified mail, return receipt requested, addressed to the owner or authorized representative at his place of residence; or

(4) If such place of residence and business cannot be ascertained, or a person of suitable age or discretion there cannot be found, then by affixing a copy in a conspicuous place on the property, building, or structure and also delivering a copy to a person there residing, if any, or to the person in charge if any; and also sending a copy by certified mail, return receipt requested addressed to the owner at the place where the property, building or structure is situated, or to the owner at his last known or designated address, or both.

a. A Board of Appeals is hereby created. The Board shall consist of the City Manager and City Engineer of the City of Villa Park and a third member to be appointed by the City Manager based upon said person's expertise and shall function in accordance with Subarticle 4 of the Grading Manual.

b. The Board shall have the power, upon an appeal by the owner, agent in control or permittee under permit issued pursuant to this Chapter to reverse, modify, or otherwise alter the determinations and orders of the Building Official made pursuant to the procedures authorized in Section 10-4.3, Hazardous Conditions, of this Chapter under such rules and regulations as the Board may, from time to time, adopt. The Building Official shall not participate in the decision of the Board in such cases.

c. The Board's decision on an appeal shall be furnished in writing to the appellant and to the Building Official, and all such decisions shall be final immediately.