Wasco Municipal Code Ch. 12.12 ENCROACHMENTS1

Sections: 12.12.010 Defined. 12.12.020 Permit--Required. 12.12.030 Permit--Application--Procedure. 12.12.040 Council decision--Appeal. 12.12.043 Action after expiration of permit unlawful. 12.12.045 Permit--Notification of council action. 12.12.050 Removal required when--Notice.

"Encroachment" is defined in this section as any permanent or temporary fixture such as a building or appurtenances thereto, fence, hedge, or any other thing, which intrudes into, upon, over or under, or invades any property belonging to the city, or intrudes into, upon, over or under, or invades any street, avenue, lane, alley, sidewalk, court, place, public way, property or right-of-way now open or dedicated or which may hereafter be opened or dedicated to public use within the city, but does not necessarily prevent public travel. (Ord. 60 §1, 1954).

It is unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to place, erect or maintain, or to permit the placing, erection, maintenance or existence of any encroachment, as defined in Section 12.12.010, upon, over or under any street, avenue, lane, alley, sidewalk, court, place, public way, property, or rights of way, now open or dedicated to public use within the city, or upon, over or under any property belonging to the city, without a permit from the city granted as herein provided. (Ord. 412 §1, 1996; Ord. 60 §2(a), 1954).

Any person, firm or corporation desiring to place, erect or maintain any such encroachment as hereinabove defined shall make application for a permit to the office of the building department of the city. Such application shall contain the name and address of the applicant, a description of the proposed encroachment and the proposed location thereof, the period of time for which such encroachment is proposed to be maintained, and such other information as may be required by the chief building inspector. Such application shall further contain an agreement on the part of the applicant that if the application is granted, applicant will indemnify and save and hold harmless the city, its agents, officers and employees against and from any and all damages, judgments, claims, demands, expenses, costs and expenditures, and against all loss or liability which the city or such officers, agents or employees may suffer, or which may be recovered from or obtainable against the city, or such officers, agents or employees, proximately caused by, growing out of, or in any way connected with, the placing, erection or maintenance of such encroachment, and upon the expiration of the permit or the revocation thereof, applicant will, at his, her, or its own cost and expense, remove the same from the public property or right-of-way where the same is located and restore the public property or right-of-way to the condition as nearly as possible to that condition it was before the placing, erection, maintenance or existence of the encroachment. Upon the receipt of such application, the building department shall make an investigation to determine if the maintenance of the encroachment will substantially interfere with the use of the public property, right-of-way or other public place where the same is proposed to be placed, erected or maintained, and whether the placing, erection or maintenance of the encroachment will constitute a hazard to persons using the public property, right-of-way or other public place. Upon the completion of such investigation, a report and findings shall be made, and the chief building inspector, in his discretion, shall then either grant or deny the applicant the permit to place, erect and/or maintain the encroachment. The permit, if granted, may be granted for a definite time or for an indefinite time, and the chief building inspector may impose such conditions to the granting of the same as in his discretion will best serve the public interest. In any event, a permit granted pursuant to this section is revocable at any time by the city council. Upon the revocation of any such permit, the city clerk shall give notice in the form and manner specified in Section 12.12.050 for such permit or to the person maintaining the encroachment to remove the encroachment. (Ord. 412 §1, 1996; Ord. 60 §2(b), 1954).

In the event the application for the permit is denied in whole or in part or the conditions imposed by the chief building inspector are unacceptable to the applicant, the applicant, within ten days after being notified of the chief building inspector’s action, may appeal his decision to the city council who may act upon the permit as if the application was being made directly to it. An appeal may be taken by letter form, filed with the city clerk within the period, who will then schedule the appeal before the city council no less than ten days after receipt. The city clerk will notify the appellant and the chief building inspector of the appeal, and the time and place of hearing. (Ord. 412 §1, 1996; Ord. 60 §2(c), 1954).

It is unlawful for a person, firm or corporation to place, erect or maintain or to permit the placing, erecting, maintenance or existence of an encroachment upon, over or under any street, avenue, lane, alley, sidewalk, court, place, public way, public property or right-of-way after his permit has expired or after his permit has been revoked and the time specified in the notice from the city clerk for removal of the same has expired. (Ord. 412 §1, 1996; Ord. 60 §2(d), 1954).

After the chief building inspector has acted on the application for an encroachment permit, the chief building inspector shall note such action on the application and then shall notify the applicant of such action and retain such application on file in his office. (Ord. 412 §1, 1996; Ord. 60 §2(e), 1954).

Any person, firm or corporation, whose property encroaches in any manner upon, over or under any property of the city, or any street, avenue, lane, alley, sidewalk, court, place, public way, property or rights-of-way, now open or dedicated or which may hereafter be opened or dedicated to public use, within the city, who has not obtained a permit for the placing, erection and/or maintenance of such encroachment, shall remove the same after written notice by the building inspector demanding such removal. Notice of such removal shall be by registered mail, addressed to the post office address of the owner or occupant of the premises where the encroachment exists, or by personal service of such notice upon the owner or occupant, by a person authorized by the building inspector to deliver such notice. The time required for the removal of the encroachment shall be specified in the notice by the building inspector, and shall be a reasonable time considering danger, risk and size of job. The building inspector is granted the right to determine the time in his discretion, considering the aforesaid factors, and such other factors as may be involved. (Ord. 412 §1, 1996; Ord. 60 §3, 1954).

Any person, firm or corporation failing to remove any encroachment from any property of the city, or from any street, avenue, land, alley, sidewalk, court, place, public way, property or right-of-way now open or dedicated or which may hereafter be opened or dedicated to public use within the city within the time specified in the notice for removal by the city clerk, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction, shall be punished by a fine not to exceed three hundred dollars, or by imprisonment in the county jail for a period of not to exceed ninety days, or by both such fine and imprisonment. (Ord. 60 §4, 1954).

1 For statutory provisions authorizing a city to prohibit and prevent obstructions in public places, see Gov. Code §38775.