§ 14-01-020. Accumulation of garbage, refuse and debris; removal.

(a)

No person shall permit to accumulate upon premises owned, leased or occupied by him, any garbage or refuse, except in covered watertight containers made of metal or plastic.

(b)

No person shall throw, place, dump or dispose of any debris on any street, gutter, sidewalk or alley, nor shall any person allow the accumulation upon his property, of any debris for a longer period than five (5) days. Sites subject to an active building permit may accumulate these items for longer than five (5) days, but such items must be maintained in an orderly fashion so as not to impede on the property of others or create a hazard or attractive nuisance. Materials must be removed upon the completion of the permitted construction.

(c)

No person shall dump, deposit, place or dispose of any trash, debris, junk, or other matter on public property or upon the property of another without the written consent of the property owner.

(d)

No person shall cause or permit to remain upon any property, private or public, any dead animal, animal waste or vegetable or mineral matter or any composition or residue thereof which is in an unsanitary condition or is hazardous to public health.

(e)

Any unauthorized accumulation of garbage, refuse or debris is declared to be a nuisance and is prohibited.

(f)

No person shall cast, place, sweep or deposit anywhere within the city any garbage, refuse or debris in such a manner that it may be carried or deposited by the elements upon the street, sidewalk, alley, sewer, parkway or other public place, or into any occupied premises within the city.

(g)

Subject to any limitations otherwise provided by law, the code enforcement officer is authorized to inspect any private property or private premises where he has reasonable cause to suspect that unlawful accumulations of refuse may exist.

(1)

If, on the basis of such inspections, the code enforcement officer finds that any of subsections (a) through (e) have not been complied with or that a health hazard exists, he shall notify an interested party where the unlawful refuse accumulations exist, to properly correct such conditions, within a designated period of time not to exceed fifteen (15) days.

(2)

Upon failure, neglect or refusal of any owner or interested party to properly correct such conditions within the time prescribed, the city manager or his designee may contract for the correction of the unlawful refuse accumulation, or order its correction by the city, at the expense of the owner, tenant, lessee, manager or occupant in charge of the property.

(3)

The cost of correction shall be the actual cost of correction plus two hundred dollars ($200.00) to cover related costs of inspection, billing and initial filing of a lien on the property as described within this subsection. Said costs shall become a line item charge on the municipal utility bill for the premises, to be paid as consideration for continued municipal water, sewer and/or garbage service. Any account holder receiving a surcharge under this section must pay any and all outstanding current charges on the account and then may request a review of the surcharge. The city manager shall establish a procedure for the review, which will include review by multiple individuals. If the review shows that the transgression was clearly caused by events or circumstances beyond or uncontrollable by the account holder, then the city manager may credit the account for the amount of the surcharge. Said costs shall be a lien on the property, and shall remain in full force and effect for the amount due plus interest (at the legal rate from the date of the filing of the lien until paid) and all other costs, including attorney fees. The lien shall be enforced and foreclosed according to applicable state law.

(h)

Where the code enforcement officer finds that immediate measures are required to alleviate a threat to the public health and safety due to certain unlawful refuse accumulations, the code enforcement supervisor may waive the fifteen-day notification period in order to take whatever steps are necessary for correction of the accumulation.

(i)

Costs for correction of unlawful refuse accumulations shall be determined on the basis of man-hours, equipment at a normal rental rate per day, plus any direct costs paid by the city to correct the accumulation. In addition, two hundred dollars ($200.00) to cover related costs of inspection, billing and initial filing of a lien on the property shall be added to direct and indirect costs as listed within this subsection.

(j)

Nothing in paragraph (f) of this section shall be construed to require any notice before the filing of a municipal court action for a violation of this section.

(Ord. No. 700, § 2, 9-24-85; Ord. No. 1082, § 3, 11-23-99; Ord. No. 1240, § 10, 5-10-05; Ord. No. 1261, § 1, 3-28-06; Ord. No. 1332, § 3, 4-22-08; Ord. No. 1398, § 4, 6-14-11)