It shall be unlawful for any owner, occupant or agent or other person having charge or control of any premises in such municipality to permit to exist any dangerous structure which is unfit for human use or habitation due to dilapidation, defects increasing the hazards of fire, accidents or other calamities, lack of ventilation, light or sanitary facilities, or due to other conditions, rendering such structures unsafe, unsanitary or dangerous or detrimental to the health, safety or morals, or otherwise inimical to the welfare of the residents of the City, and it is hereby deemed necessary by such governing body of the City to require or cause the repair, closing or demolition or removal of such structures in the manner hereinafter provided. For purposes of this article, the following definitions shall apply:
(a) Dangerous Structure - A structure which is unfit for human use or habitation due to conditions that exist which are dangerous or injurious, or which are potentially dangerous or injurious, to the health, safety or morals of the occupants of such buildings or other residents of the city, or which have a blighting influence on properties in the area, which such conditions may include (but shall not be limited to) the following: defects therein increasing the hazards of fire, accident or other calamities; lack of adequate ventilation or heating; air pollution; lack of adequate sanitary facilities; dilapidation, disrepair, structural defects or uncleanliness; overcrowding; inadequate ingress or egress; dead or dying trees, limbs or other unsightly natural growth causing a blight to adjoining property; vermin infestation; abandoned structures which are open and readily accessible to children, transients or others without right or privilege to be therein; inadequate drainage; or any violation of health, fire, building, zoning or nuisance regulations or any other laws or regulations relating to the use of land and the use and occupancy of buildings and improvements.
(b) In addition to the foregoing, the term dangerous structure also means a building or structure which may be deemed to be a dangerous building due to the existence of defects as set forth in the International Building Code or the International Residential Code incorporated by reference in Chapter 4 of this code.
(c) A residential structure or dwelling shall mean any building or structure, or part thereof, used and occupied for human habitation or intended to be so used, and includes any appurtenances belonging thereto or usually enjoyed therewith.
(d) A nonresidential structure shall mean any structure which is used for other than residential purposes, or a part of such structure, or a structure a part of which is used for other than nonresidential purposes and, where applicable, the premises on which such structures are situated.
(Ord. 1252; Code 2014)
Any person violating any of the provisions of the International Building and Residential Codes as incorporated in Chapter 4 of this code shall be guilty of an unclassified misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be fined or imprisoned, or receive both fine and imprisonment, as provided for unclassified misdemeanors in the criminal code of the city. Each and every day during which any violation of any provisions of the International Building and Residential Codes is committed, continued or permitted, shall be deemed a separate violation.
(Ord. 1252; Code 2014)
(a) Whenever a petition is filed with the Governing Body by at least five residents of the municipality or by the Public Officer or by a representative of the building inspection staff of the municipality charging that any structure is a “dangerous structure” as defined herein, the Governing Body shall review such petition to determine whether it discloses a reasonable basis for such charges. In making such determination, the Governing Body may request that the Public Officer or any member of the building inspection staff of the municipality conduct a preliminary investigation as to such matters and submit a report thereon to the Governing Body for review.
(b) If the Governing Body makes a determination that such petition, together with the results of any such preliminary investigation, discloses a reasonable basis for such charges, the Governing Body shall then, by resolution, fix a time and place at which the owner, occupier, mortgagee of record and any other party of interest, may appear and show cause why such structure should not be condemned and ordered repaired or demolished in the case of unsafe or dangerous structures or rehabilitated in the case of abandoned property . Such resolution shall be published once each week for two consecutive weeks on the same day of each week. At least 30 days shall elapse between the last publication and the date set for the hearing. A copy of the resolution shall be mailed by certified mail within three days after its first publication to each such owner, agent, lienholder and occupant, at the last known address and shall be marked “deliver to addressee only.”
(c) After such notice and hearing, the Governing Body shall determine whether the structure under consideration is a dangerous structure under the provisions of this article. If such a determination is made, the Governing Body shall also determine the nature of the repairs, alterations or other improvements that would be necessary to abate such conditions, and whether such repairs, alterations or other improvements can be made at a reasonable cost in relation to the replacement value of the structure. The governing body hereby establishes that such costs shall be deemed to be reasonable for purposes of this article if they do not exceed fifty percent (50%) of the existing value of the structure in its then current condition. The Governing Body shall set forth such findings and conclusions of existing conditions by resolution to be published one time in the official City newspaper and shall cause a copy thereof to be mailed to the owner thereof and any other party in interest along with any orders issued by the Governing Body as follows:
(1) If the Governing Body finds that the necessary repairs, alterations or other improvements can be made at a reasonable cost, the owner of the property and any other appropriate party in interest shall be ordered within a specified time to make such necessary repairs, alterations or improvements ; and, in relation to such orders, if the findings of the Governing Body include a finding that the existing conditions present a significant danger or hazard to anyone present within such structure, the Governing Body may also order that any such structure be vacated and closed until conformance with this Article can be met.
(2) If the Governing Body finds that the necessary repairs, alterations or other improvements cannot be made at a reasonable cost, the owner of the property and any other appropriate party in interest shall be ordered within a specified time to remove or demolish such structure, and to vacate and close such structure until such removal and demolition is accomplished.
(3) The orders issued by the Governing Body shall include an order that a review hearing or hearings shall be conducted as the Governing Body shall prescribe to determine whether satisfactory compliance has been made with the orders issued . At any such review hearing the Governing Body may issue such modified or additional orders as then determined necessary to secure compliance with the provisions of this article.
(d) The rules of evidence prevailing in courts of law or equity shall not be controlling in hearings before the Governing Body, provided that all parties are afforded basic procedural due process in such hearings. The Governing Body may continue the hearing from time to time as necessary for the determination of the issues under hearing. No further notice of such continuance shall be necessary if the time and place of the continued hearing is announced during the hearing, which is being continued.
(e) If, during the course of such proceedings, the owner or other appropriate party in interest has been found to have failed to comply with any such orders, the Governing Body shall issue a report to that effect with the Public Officer, or with his or her designee, the receipt of which shall constitute authorization for the Public Officer or his or her designee to proceed to cause such structure to be repaired , altered or improved, or to be vacated and closed, or to be removed or demolished as the findings and orders of the Governing Body have determined as necessary.
(f) The amount of the cost of such repairs, alterations or improvements, or of such vacating and closing, or of such removal or demolition by the Public Officer or his or her designee shall be a lien against the real property upon which such cost was incurred, and such lien, including as part thereof allowance of the Governing Body’s costs and the necessary attorney’s fees, may be foreclosed in judicial proceedings , in the manner provided or authorized by law for loans secured by liens on real property . In lieu of foreclosure, the costs, including the Governing Body’s costs, may be assessed as a special assessment against the lot or parcel of land on which structure was located, and the City Clerk shall at the time of certifying other city taxes certify that unpaid portion of the aforesaid costs, and the County Clerk shall extend the same on the tax rolls of the County against the lot or parcel of land. If the structure is removed or demolished by the Public Officer or by his or her designee, the materials of such structure shall be sold and the proceeds thereof shall be credited against the cost of the removal or demolition; and, if there be any balance of such proceeds remaining, it shall be paid to the parties entitled thereto as determined by proper judicial proceedings instituted by the Public Officer or his or her designee after deducting the costs of such judicial proceedings, including his or her necessary attorney’s fees incurred therein , as determined by the Court.
(g) Nothing in this article shall prohibit the parties involved in these proceedings from entering an agreement; which agreement, if entered, shall control the parties.
(Ord. 1252; Code 2014)
Any person or party affected by an order issued by the Governing Body may petition the District Court of Marion County, Kansas, pursuant to K.S.A. l7-4759(e), as such person or party’s exclusive remedy applicable to these proceedings.
(Ord. 1252; Code 2014)
The owner of any structure ordered by the Governing Body to be repaired or to be demolished or removed shall comply with all pertinent provisions of the building codes of the city, and shall pay or cause to be paid any applicable building, demolition or wrecking permit fee. Upon removing any such structure, the owner, wrecker or licensed contractor shall seal the sanitary sewer connection in the manner set forth by the building inspector. In addition, after the demolition and removal of any structure the owner or licensed contractor shall fill any basement or other excavation located upon the premises and take such other action necessary to leave the premises in a safe condition.
(Ord. 1252; Code 2014)
When in the opinion of the Public Officer, upon consultation with the Mayor or, in the Mayor’s absence, with the members of the Governing Body, that any structure or portion thereof is in a condition constituting an immediate hazard and requiring immediate action to protect the public, such officer may erect barricades, cause the property to be immediately vacated, shored or taken down without delay and without prior notice or hearing to the owner, agents, lien holders or occupants. Costs of such action shall be assessed against the property as provided in Section 8-203.
(Ord. 1252; Code 2014)
Upon the issuance of an order by the Governing Body under Section 8-203 finding the existence of dangerous structure conditions which render such structure unfit for human habitation, the Governing Body shall give notice thereof to the Public Officer of the City, who shall then place or cause to be placed on the particular structure covered by the order a notice as follows:
“This structure has been found unfit for human habitation by the order of the Governing Body of the City of Marion. This notice shall remain on this structure until it is (use either of the following as applicable) repaired, altered or improved or vacated and closed as required by the order of the Governing Body; or removed and demolished as required by the order of the Governing Body.”
(Ord. 1252; Code 2014)
Nothing in this article shall be construed to abrogate or impair the powers of this City to enforce any other provisions of its ordinances or its charter, or regulations, nor to prevent or punish violations thereof, not to proceed in an appropriate court to enjoin and seek removal of a nuisance condition pursuant to K.S.A. 60-908, and amendments thereto; and the powers conferred by this article upon the designated Public Officer or other public officials shall be in addition and supplemental to the other powers conferred by the City.
(Ord. 1252; Code 2014)
(a) It shall be unlawful for any person:
(1) To use or occupy any such structure which has been found to be a dangerous structure which is unfit for human use or habitation;
(2) To remove any notice posted upon any structure pursuant to Section 8-207;
(3) To fail to comply with any order issued by the Governing Body for the abatement of any nuisance conditions or of any dangerous or dilapidated structure condition; or
(4) To relocate to any other property within the City any items or structures found under this Article to constitute a nuisance condition or a dangerous or dilapidated structure condition when the location thereof on such other property would also be a violation of the provisions of the Marion City Code.
(b) Any person convicted of a violation of the provisions of this article shall upon conviction thereof, and in the absence of any other prescribed penalty herein, be fined not less than $500, or be imprisoned not more than three months, or be both so fined and imprisoned.