1315 - Ordinance - Duties of Property Owners for Maintenance of SidewalksORDINANCE NO. 1315
AN ORDINANCE ESTABLISHING DUTIES OF
ABUTTING PROPERTY OWNERS FOR MAIN-
TENANCE OF SIDEWALKS AND PENALTIES
FOR VIOLATIONS.
THE CITY OF PORT ORCHARD DOES ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. DEFINITIONS. The words and phrases used
in this chapter, unless the context otherwise indicates, shall
have the following meanings:
A. "Abate" means to repair, remove, replace or
destroy or otherwise remedy the condition in question by such
means and in such a manner and to such an extent as the enforce-
ment officer in his judgment, determines is necessary in the
interest of the general health, safety and welfare of the
community.
B. "Enforcement Officer" means an individual or
group of individuals appointed by the City Council for the
purpose of enforcing this chapter.
C. "Premises" means any building, lot parcel, real
estate or land or portion of land whether improved or unimproved,
including adjacent sidewalks and parking strips.
D. "Responsible person" means any agent, lessee or
other person occupying or having charge or control of any pre-
mises, except the owner.
Section 2. It is unlawful for the owner and/or any
person, firm or corporation occupying or having charge or
control of any premises abutting upon any public street, right-
of-way or alley, or beneath such public sidewalk area, in the
City to construct, place, cause, create, maintain or permit to
remain upon any part of said right-of-way located between the
curbline, or if there is no curbline, then between the adjacent
edge of the traveled portion of such right-of-way and the
abutting property line, any condition, structure or object dan-
gerous or hazardous to the use of said right-of-way by the
members of the general public, including but not limited to the
following conditions:
A. Defective sidewalk surfaces, including but not
limited to broken or cracked cement, stub -toes, depressions
within or between sidewalk joints.
B. Defective cement surfaces placed adjacent to the
public sidewalk or defects at the juncture between said cement
surfaces and said public sidewalks, including stub -toes or
depressions at said junction.
C. Defects in sidewalks or public ways caused or
contributed to by the roots of trees or similar growth or veg-
etation located either on private adjoining property or on the
parking strip portion of any such street right-of-way.
Ordinance No. 1315
Page Two
D. Defective conditions caused by tree limbs,
foliage, brush or grass on or extending over such public side-
walks or rights -of -way.
E. Defective conditions on the parking strip area
between the curbline and the sidewalk of, if there is no curb -
line, then between the edge of the traveled portion of the
street and the sidewalk and between the sidewalk and the abutting
property line.
F. Defects resulting from accumulation of ice and snow
on public sidewalks or on the right-of-way between the curbline
or, if there is no curbline, then between the adjacent edge of
the traveled portion of the street roadway and the abutting
property line.
G. Defects consisting of foreign matter on the public
sidewalks, including but not limited to gravel, oil, grease, or
any other foreign subject matter that cause pedestrians using
said sidewalk to fall, stumble or slip by reason of the existence
of such foreign matter.
H. Defective handrails or fences or other similar
structures within or immediately adjacent to said right-of-way
area.
Section 3. In the event of any injury or damage to any
person and/or property proximately caused by the defective,
dangerous or hazardous condition of any sidewalk as hereinabove
specified, or by the presence or accumulation of ice or snow
thereon, or by lack of proper guards or railings on or along the
property abutting on any public way, then the abutting property
owner where such injury or damage occurs shall be liable therefore
including liability to the City for all damage, injury, costs and
disbursements including court costs and attorney's fees, which the
City may be required to pay or incur to any person injured or
property damages as aforesaid.
Section 4. Whenever any public right-of-way in the City
has been improved by the construction of a sidewalk along either
said thereof, the duty and expense of the maintenance, cleaning,
repair and renewal of said sidewalk, including the erection of
maintenance of suitable barriers along the outer margin of said
sidewalk where the same is elevated more than two feet above the
abutting property, shall be upon the owner of the directly abutting
property. All such repairs shall be made after application for/
and issuance of a proper building permit therefore, as required
by law, and all of such work to be duly inspected and approved
by the City Engineer.
Section 5. Any person, firm or corporation desiring to
change or relocate any sidewalk in front of and abutting its
property shall make application in writing to the engineering
department of the City, and such application shall contain, among
others, the exact location of such proposed change or relocation,
the location of any new sidewalk to be laid and the connections
and locations of other sidewalks upon such street; no change or
relocation of any sidewalk shall be made until the issuance of an
appropriate permit therefore.
Ordinance No. 1315
Page Three
Section 6. ENFORCEMENT --NOTICE. An enforcement
officer appointed by the City Council, having knowledge of any
violation, shall cause the owner of other responsible person to
be notified of the existence of such violation on any premises
and shall direct the owner or other responsible person to abate
the condition within ten days after notice or other reasonable
period. The notice shall be substantially in the following
form:
NOTICE TO ABATE UNSAFE OR UNLAWFUL CONDITION
TO
(name and address of person notified)
As owner, agent, lessee or other person
occupying or having charge or control of the
building, lot or premises at
you are hereby notified that the undersigned
pursuant to Ordinance of the City of
Port Orchard has determined that there exists
upon adjoining said premises the following
condition contrary to the provisions o-f sub-
section of the City Ordinance
You are hereby notifed to abate said condition
to the satisfaction of the undersigned within
ten days of the date of this notice. If you
do not abate such condition within ten days,
the City will abate the condition at your
expense.
Abate is to be accomplished in the following
manner:
You may appeal this decision by filing a
written notice of appeal with the City
Council of the City of Port Orchard within
five days after the date of this notice.
DATED
NAME OF OFFICER
Section 7. ABATEMENT BY THE CITY. In all cases
where the enforcement officer has determined to proceed with
abatement ten days after notice, the City shall acquire juris-
diction to abate the condition at the person's expense as pro-
vided in this chapter. Upon the abatement of the condition
or any portion thereof by the City, all expenses thereof shall
constitute a civil debt owing to the City jointly and severally
by such of the persons who have been given notice as provided
in this chapter. The debt shall be collectable in the same
manner as any other civil debt owing to the City.
Ordinance No. 1315
Page Four
Section 8. ABATEMENT BY OWNER OF OTHER RESPONSIBLE
PERSON. If and when an owner or other responsible person shall
undertake to abate any condition described in this chapter,
whether by order of the enforcement officer or otherwise, all
needful and legal conditions pertinent to the abatement may be
imposed by the enforcement officer. It is unlawful for the owner
or other responsible person to fail to comply with such condi-
tions. Nothing in this chapter shall relieve any owner or other
responsible person of the obligation of obtaining any required
permit to do any work incidental to the abatement.
Section 9. APPEAL. Any person who has received a
notice to abate a condition as determined by the code enforce-
ment officer under Section 6 may appeal the determination by
filing written notice of appeal within five days after the date
of the notice to abate, with the City Council. The notice shall
set forth the groups upon which the appeal is based. Upon
receipt of notice of appeal, the City Council shall hold a hearing
not more than ten days after the appeal was filed. It shall
be the duty of the code enforcement officer to present proof
relating to the grounds for the issuance of the notice to abate.
If the City Council finds that a violation exists based on the
criteria of this chapter, he shall order that such violation
be abated pursuant to this chapter and shall set forth reason-
able time limits for such abatement not to exceed forty-five
days from the date of the hearing. If the commissioner finds
that a violation does not exist under this chapter, he shall
cancel the notice to abate. Upon the filing of a proper notice
of appeal, the time limits specified in Section 6 shall be
stayed during the pendency of the appeal.
Section 10. SUMMARY ABATEMENT. Whenever any condition
on or use of property causes or constitutes, or reasonable
appears to cause or constitute, an imminent danger to the health
or safety of the public or a significant portion thereof, the
enforcement officer shall have the authority to summarily and
without notice abate the same. The expenses of such abatement
shall become a civil debt against the owner or other responsible
party and be collected as provided in Section 7.
Section 11. Any person, firm or corporation violating
any of the provisions of this chapter shall, upon conviction
thereof, be guilty of a misdemeanor and be punished by a fine in
any sum not exceeding five hundred dollars or by imprisonment in
the city jail for a period not exceeding six months, or by both
such fine and imprisonment.
PASSED by the City Council and APPROVED by the Mayor
this 12th day of August, 1985
LESLIE J. WEATHERILL, Mayor
ATTES :
aA.4_:.—
atricia Hower, City —Clerk
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
ty Attorney