The city building and safety officer, John Lebegue, is asking
for changes as follows: (Copy)
7-2-1. Enumeration of Nuisances
Amend Section 7-2-1 by adding:
(P) Any building or structure which is unsafe, dilapidated, vacant,
abandoned, boarded-1.1p or damaged by fire to the extent as not to
provide shelter. It is the policy of the City of Lincoln, that the
boarding of a building or structure is a temporary solution to
prevent unauthorized entry into a vacant building. A vacant building
may not remain boarded longer than six (6) months unless an
extension of that time is part of a plan approved by the Building
and Safety Official. The term abandoned building as used in this
Article includes any building or structure, whether completed or
not, which has not been occupied for a continuous period of a year
and fails to comply with all applicable building, housing,
electrical, fire, and plumbing codes.
Amend Section 7-2-1 by adding:
(Q) Any building or structure
determined under any law or ordinance to be unfit for human
habitation whether by unsanitary conditions or from which the
required plumbing, heating and lighting facilities have been
removed, or from which utilities, i.e. water, gas, electric, have
been disconnected, destroyed, removed or rendered ineffective.
Amend Section 7-2-1 by adding:
(R) Any condition or use of
premises or building exteriors which is detrimental to the property
of others or which causes or tends to cause substantial diminution
in the value of other property in the neighborhood in which such
premises are located. The City further finds that vacant and
abandoned buildings are unsightly, unsafe and create a hazard for
the neighborhood and citizens and have a negative effect on the
community.
Amend Section 7-2-1, (L), (2)
Refuse by adding the following new language:
to include furniture, mattress and box spring, inoperable household
appliances, discarded automobile and mechanical parts, cans,
containers or building materials, such as lumber, windows, doors,
cement blocks, bricks, broken concrete, piping and wiring.
Amend Section 7-2-1, (L) by adding #5:
Furniture located outside that is not designed or modified to
withstand the elements and outdoor use.
Section 7-2-4. Abatement of Nuisance
Amend Section 7-2-4 by adding:
(D) Abatement of Nuisance through Circuit Court Proceedings: If such
person, after being served with notice as provided in the foregoing
subsection, shall not within the time specified in the notice abate
such nuisance, the City shall employ one or more of the following
Circuit Court remedies:
1.) Prosecute any person violating
this article to obtain a conviction and assessment of a penalty.
2.) Obtain a court order directing the
defendant or defendants to abate the nuisance under such conditions
and circumstances as the court may direct.
3.) Commence proceedings in court
seeking a personal judgment from the owner of such property where
the nuisance was abated or removed at the expense of the City.
Section 4-9-1. Defined Term (Dangerous
Buildings)
Amend Section 4-9-1 by adding:
(E) Any building or structure in a
state of dilapidation or decay, vacant, abandoned, boarded for a
period of time in excess of six (6) months and damaged by fire to
the extent as not to provide shelter.
(F) Any building or structure
determined under any law or ordinance to be unfit for human
habitation whether by unsanitary conditions or from which the
required plumbing, heating and lighting facilities have been
removed, or from which utilities, i.e. water, gas, electric, have
been disconnected, destroyed, removed or rendered ineffective.
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Section 4-9-2. Abatement of Dangerous
Buildings: Amend Section 4-9-2 by adding the following language:
Administrative fee for owning and
maintaining a dangerous building:
a.) Any person who owns a structure
deemed a dangerous building under this code and who fails to bring
the structure into compliance with this code within one year of the
order to abate shall be assessed a fee of $500.00.
b.) If the same property in paragraph
(a) is not in compliance with this code within 18 months of the
order to abate, the owner shall be fined an additional $750.00 for
the second year and $2,000.00 for each additional year thereafter in
which that structure is not in compliance with this code.
c.) If the same structure in paragraph
(a) is not in compliance with this code within 2 years of the order
to abate, the owner shall be fined as additional $2,000.00 for the
second year and $2,000.00 for each additional year thereafter in
which that structure is not in compliance with this code.
d.) Any person who already owns a
structure deemed a dangerous building under this code and who has a
second structure deemed a dangerous building shall be assessed an
additional $2,000.00 for each year the second structure remains on
the dangerous building list. The fine shall be $2,000.00 per year
even if the first structure is taken off the dangerous building
list.
e.) Any person who owns 2 structures
deemed dangerous buildings under this code and who has a third or
more structures deemed dangerous buildings shall be assessed a fine
of$5,000.00 per structure for every year they remain on the
dangerous building list list. The fine shall be $5,000.00 per
structure per year even if the first and second structures are
removed from the dangerous building list.
The administrative fees authorized by
this section shall be a lien on any real estate owned by such
person. In addition to filing a lien upon such real estate, the City
shall have authority to collect such fee by filing a personal
collection action against the owner in court.
[Text from John Lebegue, building
and safety office, city of Lincoln]
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