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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1526 ORDINANCE NO. 1526 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF SANFORD, FLORIDA, CREATING A CODE ENFORCEMENT BOARD FOR ENFORCEMENT OF VARIOUS OCCUPATIONAL LICENSES, FIRE, BUILDING, ZONING, SIGN AND RELATED TECHNICAL CODES OF THE CITY OF SANFORD, FLORIDA, PROVIDING LEGISLATIVE INTENT; PROVIDING DEFINITIONS; PROVIDING FOR ORGanIZATION OF THE BOARD; PROVIDING ENFORCEmeNT PROCEDURES; PROVIDING FOR HEARINGS; PROVIDING POWERS OF THE BOARD; PROVIDING FOR THE IMPOSITION OF FINES AND LIENS ON THE PROPERTY OF VIOLATORS; PROVIDING FOR APPEAL; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY, CONFLICTS, 'AND EFFECTIVE DATE. WHEREAS, the 1980 Florida Legislature adopted Chapter 80- 300, which is an act relative to municipalities, authorizing the creation of code enforcement boards in the municipalities of the State of Florida, for the enforcement of various occu- pational licenses, fire, building, zoning, sign and related technical codes within the municipalities; and WHEREAS, it is the opinion of the City Commission of the City of Sanford, Florida, that a code enforcement board is needed to enforce the various technical codes of the City of Sanford, Florida, and that such creation and operation of said board would promote, protect and improve the health, safety, and welfare of the citizens of the City of Sanford, Florida; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE CITY OF SANFORD, FLORIDA: SECTION 1: Short Title - This Ordinance shall be known and cited as the "Municipal Code Enforcement Board Ordinance." SECTION 2: Intent It is the intent of this Ordinanceto promote, protect, and improve the health, safety and welfare of the citizens of the municipalities of this state by providing an equitable, expeditious, effective and inexpensive method of enforcing the various occupational license, fire, building, zoning, sign and related technical codes in force in municipalities. SECTION 3: Definitions (1) "Code Inspector" means any authorized agent or employee of the City of Sanford, Florida, who has been designated by the City Manager to ensure code compliance. (2) "City Attorney" means the legal counselor for the City of Sanford, Floroda. (3) "Enforcement Board" means the Code Enforcement Board. SECTION 4: Code Enforcement Board (1) The City Commission shall appoint a six-member code enforcement board. Members of the enforcement board shall be residents of the City of Sanford, Florida, and shall be made on the basis of experience or interest in the fields of zoning and building control. The membership of the enforcement board shall, whenever possible, consist of an architect, a businessman, an engineer, a gen- eral contractor, a subcontractor, and a realtor. (2) The initial appointments to the enforcement board shall be as follows: a. Two members appointed for a term of one year. b.Two members appointed for a term of two years. c.Two members appointed for a term of three years. Thereafter, all appointments shall be made for a term of three (3) years. Any member may be reappointed from term to term upon approval of the City Commission. Appointments to fill any vacancy on the enforcement board shall be for the re- mainder of the unexpired term of office. Any member who fails to attend two of three successive meetings without cause and with- out prior approval of the chairman shall automatically forfeit his appointment, and the City Commission shall promptly fill such vacancy. The members shall serve in accordance with the City Charter and may be removed as provided in the city code of ordin- -2- ances for removal of members of city boards. (3) The members of the enforcement board shall elect a chairman. The presence of four or more members ahall con- stitute a quorum of the enforcement board. Members shall serve without compensation, but may be reimbursed for such travel, mileage, and per diem expenses as may be authorized by the City Commission. (4) The City Attorney is hereby designated as counsel to the~code enforcement board, and shall serve in an advis- ory capacity to said board. (5) In the event that an alleged violator is represented by legal counsel, the City Commission shall, in its discretion, have authority to appoint special legal counsel to represent the City in such proceeding. SECTION 5: Enforcement Procedure (1) It shall be the duty of the code inspector to initiate enforcement proceedings of the various codes; provided, however, that no member of the board shall have the power to initiate such enforcement proceedings. (2) Except as provided in sub-section (3), if a violation of a code is found, the code inspector shall notify the violator in writing, specifying the nature of the violation, and shall further give reasonable time to correct such violation. In the event the violation continues beyond the specified time, the code inspector shall notify the enforcement board and request a hearing, pursuant to the procedure set forth in Section 6. (3) If the codeinspector has reason to believe that a violation presents a serious threat to the public health, safety, and welfare, the code inspector may proceed directly to the procedure in Section 6 without notifying the violator. SECTION 6: Conduct Of Hearing - (1) Upon receiving written notice of a violation, the chairman of the enforcement board may schedule a hearing on such violation, and hearings may also be called by written notice, signed -3- by at least three (3) members of the enforcement board. Written notice of such hearing shall be mailed to the alleged violator and such notice shall state an exact date, time and place for such hear- ing, and shall further give at least ten (10) days notice of such hearing. The board shall meet from time to time as may be neces= sary, but shall meet at least annually, for the purpose of electing a chairman and adopting such rules and regulations as may be neces- sary to conduct the business of the board. Minutes shall be kept of all hearings, and all hearings shall be open to the public. The City Commission shall provide clerical and administrative personnel as may be reasonably required by the board for the proper perfor- mance of its duties. (2) Each case before the board shall be presented by the code inspector designated by the City Manager, unless special legal counsel has been appointed by the City Commission for the prosecution of a particular violation. (3) The enforcement board shall proceed to hear the cases on the agenda for that day. All testimony shall be under oath and shall be recorded. The enforcement board shall take testi- mony from the code inspector and alleged violator. Formal rules of evidence shall not apply, but fundamental due process shall be ob- served and govern said proceedings. (4) At the conclusion of the hearing, the enforce- ment board shall issue findings of fact, based on evidence of record, and conclusions of law, and shall issue an order affording the pro- per relief consistent with powers granted herein. The finding shall be by motion approved by a majority of those present and voting, ex- cept that at least three (3) members of the enforcement board must vote for the action to be official. The record shall be presented to the court on appeal, and shall be subject to review. -4- SECTION 7: Powers of the Enforcement Board - The enforcement board shall have the power to: (1) Adopt rules for the conduct of its hearings. (2) Subpoena alleged violators and witnesses to its hearings. Subpoenas may be served by the police department of the municipality. (3) Subpoena evidence. (4) Take testimony under oath. (5) Issue orders having the force of law com- manding whatever steps are necessary to bring a violation into compliance. SECTION 8: Fines The enforcement board, upon notification by the code inspector that a previous order of the enforcement board has not been complied with by the set time, may order the violator to pay a fine not to exceed $500 for each day the violation continues past the date set for compliance. A certified copy of an order imposing a fine may be recorded in the public records, and there- after, shall constitute a lien against the land on which the vio- lation exists. After one (1) year from the filing of any such lien which remains unpaid, the enforcement board may authorize the City Attorney to foreclose on the lien, SECTION 9: Appeal - An aggrieved party may appeal a ruling or order of the enforcement board by certiorari in circuit court. An appeal shall be filed within thirty (30) days of the execution of the order to be appealed. SECTION 10: If any section or portion of a section of this Ordinance proves to be invalid, unlawful or unconstitutional, it shall not be held to invalidate or impair the validity, force or effect of any other section or part of this Ordinance. -5- SECTION 11: All ordinances or parts of ordinances in conflict here~th, be and the same are hereby repealed. SECTION 12: This Ordinance shall become effective October 1, A.D. 1980. PASSED and ADOPTED this 22nd day of September , A.D. 1980. Mayor Attest: CERTIFICATE I, H. N. Tamm, It., City Clerk of the City of San- ford, Florida, do hereby certify that a true and correct copy of the foregoing Ordinance No. 1526, PASSED and ADOPTED by the City Commission of the City of Sanford, Florida, on the 22nd day of September, 1980, was POSTED at the front door of the City Hall in the City of Sanford, Florida, on the 23rd day of September, 1980. City of Sanford, Florida -6-