§ 94-154. Notice of code violations and appeals.

1.

Issuance of notice of code violation: Public officers and law enforcement officers may lawfully issue, or cause to be issued, notices of violations of this Ordinance.

2.

Contents of notice of code violation: The notice issued for the violation, shall be by a standard form notice, which notice should include the following information:

(a)

The name and mailing address of the Complaining Party as of the date the noticed ordinance violation was committed;

(b)

Citation that this Ordinance was violated;

(c)

The date, time and specific location where the nuisance service call originated and the address where the public/law enforcement officer responded;

(d)

The monetary amount of the civil fine and the deadline date such fine must actually be received by the County's Code Enforcement Department;

(e)

The mailing address of the Code Enforcement Department to which the fines must be delivered by or on behalf of the Complaining Party, and the name of the payee to facilitate payment by money order, check or other negotiable instrument;

(f)

A statement of the 21-day time limit within which the Complaining Party may file an appeal and a brief description of the appeal process; and

(g)

A statement that if the Complaining Party fails to pay the civil fine in full or fails to timely appeal the violation(s), the Complaining Party shall thereby be deemed to: (i) have waived all rights to dispute that violation; (ii) to thereby admit the violation; and (iii) failure to pay all applicable fines, and costs as applicable, can result in loss of privileges and imposition of liens pursuant to this article.

3.

Delivery of notice of code violation: The notice of code violation shall be delivered to the Complaining Party's home mailing address by United States certified mail, proper postage prepaid. The County shall have the right, but not any obligation, to serve the notice by personal service upon the Complaining Party or may otherwise elect to serve the Complaining Party by any other means then authorized by law.

4.

Appeals to Special Magistrate:

(a)

Upon receipt of a notice of code violation, the noticed Complaining Party may contest the notice by filing an appeal that is actually received by the County's Code Enforcement Department not later than 21 calendar days after the Complaining Party received such notice. A Code Enforcement Department employee shall note on the appeal the date and time of receipt of that appeal.

(b)

The appeal must include the Complaining Party's name, mailing address and phone number, and must state in clear, meaningful detail all grounds upon which the violation is being contested by the appeal.

(c)

The Code Enforcement Department shall promptly refer the appeal to a Special Magistrate. The Special Magistrate shall endeavor to schedule the appeal hearing within 60 days after the Special Magistrate's receipt of the appeal (provided the appeal was actually received by the County's Code Enforcement Department not later than 21 days after the Complaining Party's receipt of the notice of code violation). The Special Magistrate by order may summarily dismiss the appeal with prejudice if the appeal does not comply with any requirement listed in subsections (a) or (b), above.

(d)

If upon appeal the noticed violation is not voided by order of the Special Magistrate, the Complaining Party shall pay in full the civil fine, plus all costs actually incurred by the County and/or Special Magistrate resulting from that appeal. The civil fine and applicable incurred costs must be delivered in full to the County's Code Enforcement Department not later than 21 days after the Complaining Party's receipt of the Special Magistrate's order that states the noticed code violation was not voided by the Special Magistrate, and shall specify the applicable civil fine, and applicable incurred costs, if any. All of the Special Magistrate's orders, letters and other papers, etc., can be mailed to the Complaining Party by ordinary U.S. mail, proper postage prepaid, addressed to the Complaining Party's mailing address as listed in the Complaining Party's appeal, which mailing shall be sufficient receipt by the Complaining Party.

(Ord. No. 2009-42, § 4)