Chapter VIII · Health and Welfare

ARTICLE 2. HEALTH NUISANCES

Sections 8-201 to 8-210 · 10 sections

8-201 Nuisances unlawful; defined.

It shall be unlawful for any person to maintain or permit any nuisance within the city as defined, without limitation, as follows:

(a)Placement storage or accumulation of garbage, animal feces, rubbish, trash, refuse, junk and other materials, metals, plumbing fixtures, appliances, auto parts, tires, fencing, lumber or other litter, and stuffed, broken or discarded furniture, clothing, or other household items creating an unsightly appearance on any public or private property whether vacant or occupied;

(b)All dead animals not removed within 24 hours after death;

(c)Any place or structure or substance which emits or causes any offensive, disagreeable or nauseous odors;

(d)All stagnant ponds or pools of water;

(e)All grass or weeds or other unsightly vegetation not usually cultivated or grown for domestic use or to be marketed or for ornamental purposes;

(f)All articles or things whatsoever caused, kept, maintained or permitted by any person to the injury, annoyance or inconvenience of the public or of any neighborhood;

(g)Any fence, structure, thing or substance placed upon or being upon any street, sidewalk, alley or public ground so as to obstruct the same, except as permitted by the laws of the city;

(h)Any motor vehicle which is not currently registered or tagged pursuant to K.S.A. 8-126 to 8-149 inclusive, as amended; or parked in violation of city ordinance or incapable of moving under its own power; or in a junked, wrecked or inoperable condition. Any one of the following conditions shall raise the presumption that a vehicle is junked, wrecked or inoperable:

(1)Absence of current registration upon the vehicle;

(2)Placement of the vehicle or parts thereof upon jacks, blocks, or other supports;

(3)Absence of one or more parts of the vehicle necessary for the lawful operation of the vehicle upon street or highway.

The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to:

(A)any motor vehicle which is enclosed in a garage or building;

(B)the parking or storage of a vehicle inoperable for a period of 30 consecutive days or less; or

(C)to any person conducting a business enterprise in compliance with existing zoning regulations or who places such vehicles behind screening of sufficient size, strength and density to screen such vehicles from the view of the public and to prohibit ready access to stored vehicles by children. However, nothing in this subsection shall be construed to authorize the maintenance of a public nuisance.

(K.S.A. 21-4106:4107; Ord. 135; Code 1998 Ord. 300; Code 2016)

8-202 Public officer.

The Mayor shall designate a public officer to be charged with reporting to the Mayor and City Council all investigations under this Code assigned to the City health officer.

(Ord. 278: Code 2016; Ord. 332)

8-203 Complaints; inquiry and inspection.

The public officer shall make inquiry and inspection of premises upon receiving a complaint or complaints in writing signed by two or more persons stating that a nuisance exists and describing the same and where located or is informed that a nuisance may exist by the chief of police or the fire chief. The public officer may make such inquiry and inspection when he or she observes conditions which appear to constitute a nuisance. Upon making any inquiry and inspection the public officer shall make a written report of findings and report the same as may be required by this Code.

(Ord. 278; Code 2016; Ord. 332)

8-204 Right of entry.

(a)Whenever necessary to make an inspection of any building, structure or premises to determine if a nuisance exists, or whenever the public officer has cause to believe that there exists therein any condition which endangers the public health, the public officer is authorized to enter such building, structure or premises at all reasonable times to inspect the same and to exercise any power or authority or to perform any duty imposed upon the public officer under this code.

(b)The authority granted to the public officer by subsection (a) of this section is subject to the following:

(1)If the building, structure or premises is occupied, the public officer shall first present proper credentials, explain the purpose for which admittance is desired and demand entry.

(2)If such property is unoccupied, the public officer shall first make a reasonable effort to locate the owner or other person having charge or control of the property, present proper credentials, explain the purpose for which admittance is desired and demand entry.

(3)If the public officer is refused admission or cannot locate the owner or occupant, the public officer shall refrain from entering until authorized to do so by proper judicial authority.

(Ord. 135, Sec. 3; Code 1998; Code 2016)

8-205 Notice.

Any person, corporation, partnership or association found by the Public Officer to be in violation of section 8-201 shall be served a notice of such violation. The notice shall be served either by personal service to the owner, certified mail service with return receipt requested or by tacking said notice on the offending property and mailing a copy thereof by regular, first-class mail. The method of service used by the public officer or a law enforcement officer shall be whichever method the officer determines to be feasible and appropriate. The City shall maintain a true and correct copy of notices sent pursuant to this section.

(Ord. 278; Code 2016; Ord. 332; Ord. 379)

8-206 Same; contents.

The notice shall state the condition(s) which is (are) in violation of section 8-201. The notice shall also inform the person, corporation, partnership or association that

(a)He, she or they shall have 10 days from the date of serving the notice to abate the condition(s) in violation of section 8-201;or

(b)He, she or they have 10 days from the date of serving the notice to request a hearing before the governing body of the matter as provided by section 8-209;

(c)Failure to abate the condition(s) or to request a hearing within the time allowed may result in prosecution as provided by section 8-207 and /or abatement of the condition(s) by the city as provided by section 8-208.

(Ord. 135, Sec. 5; Code 1998)

8-207 Failure to comply; penalty.

Should the person, corporation, partnership or association fail to comply with the notice to abate the nuisance or request a hearing, the Public Officer, Mayor or City Council may direct the filing of a complaint in the municipal court of the city against such person, corporation, partnership or association and upon conviction of any violation of provisions of section 8-201, be fined in an amount not to exceed $100 or be imprisoned not to exceed 30 days or be both fined and imprisoned. Each day during or on which a violation occurs or continues after notice has been served shall constitute an additional or separate offense.

(Ord. 278; Code 2016; Ord. 332)

8-208 Abatement.

In addition to, or as an alternative to prosecution as provided in section 8-207, the Public Officer may seek to remedy violations of this section in the following manner. If a person to whom a notice has been sent pursuant to section 8-205 has neither alleviated the conditions causing the alleged violation nor requested a hearing before the governing body within the time periods specified in section 8-206, the Public Officer may present a resolution to the governing body for adoption authorizing the public officer or other agents of the city to abate the conditions causing the violation at the end of 10 days after passage of the resolution. The resolution shall further provide that the costs incurred by the city shall be charged against the lot or parcel of ground on which the nuisance was located as provided in section 8-210. A copy of the resolution shall be served upon the person in violation in one of the following ways:

(a)Personal service upon the person in violation;

(b)By tacking the notice on the offending property and sending a copy thereof by regular, first-class mail;

(c)Service by certified mail, postage prepaid, return receipt requested; or

(d)In the event the whereabouts of such person are unknown and the same cannot be ascertained in the exercise of reasonable diligence, an affidavit to that effect shall be made by the Public Officer and filed with the city clerk, and the serving of the resolution shall be made by publishing the same once each week for two consecutive weeks in the official city newspaper and by posting a copy of the resolution on the premises where such condition exists.

(e)If the owner or the agent of the owner of the property has failed to accept delivery or otherwise failed to effectuate receipt of a notice or order sent pursuant to this section during the preceding 24 month period, the governing body of the city may provide notice of the issuance of any further orders to abate or remove a nuisance from such property or provide notice of the order by such methods including, but not limited to, door hangers, conspicuously posting notice of such order on the property, personal notification, telephone communication or first class mail. If the property is unoccupied and the owner is a nonresident, notice provided by this section shall be given by telephone communication or first-class mail.

(Ord. 278; Code 2016; Ord. 332; Ord. 379)

8-209 Hearing.

If a hearing is requested within the 10 day period as provided in section 8-206, such request shall be made in writing to the governing body. Failure to make a timely request for a hearing shall constitute a waiver of the person’s right to contest the findings of the public officer before the governing body. The hearing shall be held by the governing body as soon as possible after the filing of the request therefore, and the person shall be advised by the city of the time and place of the hearing at least five days in advance thereof. At any such hearing, the person may be represented by counsel, and the person and the city may introduce such witnesses and evidence as is deemed necessary and proper by the governing body. The hearing need not be conducted according to the formal rules of evidence. Upon conclusion of the hearing, the governing body shall record its determination of the matter by means of adopting a resolution and serving the resolution upon the person in the manner provided in section 8-208.

(Ord. 135, Sec. 8; Code 1998)

8-210 Costs assessed.

If the city abates or removes the nuisance pursuant to section 8-208, the city shall give notice to the owner or his or her agent by certified mail, return receipt requested, of the total cost of the abatement or removal incurred by the city. The notice shall also state that the payment is due within 30 days following mailing of the notice. The city also may recover the cost of providing notice, including any postage, required by this section. The notice shall also state that if the cost of the removal or abatement is not paid within the 30-day period, the cost of the abatement or removal shall be collected in the manner provided by K.S.A. 12-1,115, and amendments thereto, or shall be assessed as special assessments and charged against the lot or parcel of land on which the nuisance was located and the city clerk, at the time of certifying other city taxes, shall certify the unpaid portion of the costs and the county clerk shall extend the same on the tax rolls of the county against such lot or parcel of land and it shall be collected by the county treasurer and paid to the city as other city taxes are collected and paid. The city may pursue collection both by levying a special assessment and in the manner provided by K.S.A. 12-1,115, and amendments thereto, but only until the full cost and applicable interest has been paid in full.

(Code 2016)