Bill No. 19- 1145

ARTICLE I — NUISANCES

Ordinance No. 19- 1145

Section 17- 1 — Nuisances Prohibited: It shall be unlawful for any person, owner, lessee oroccupant, agent, entity, servant, representative or employee of any such owner, having control ofany lot or land in the City of Saint James, Missouri or within ('/2) mile thereof, to cause, contribute,

permit, keep or maintain any nuisance, as defined by the laws of this State or provisions of theCode of the City of St. James, Missouri. No such person or entity shall fail or refuse to abate orremove a nuisance within the time required by the City as specified in this Article. Additionally, it is unlawful for any such person or entity to cause or maintain a nuisance on the land or propertyof another, with or without permission. Each day that a nuisance shall be maintained shallconstitute a separate offense, and upon conviction thereof shall be punished as provided in theCode of the City of St. James and the laws of this State.

Section 17- 2 — Nuisances — Generally: In addition to any other act declared by the RevisedStatutes of Missouri or provisions of the Code of the City of St. James and any of its Ordinancesto be a nuisance or to be injurious, detrimental, or dangerous to the public health, the followingare declared to be, but shall not be limited to, nuisances affecting health:

A. All decayed or unwholesome food offered for sale to the public, or offered to the publicat no charge.

B. All diseased animals running at large. C. All ponds or pools of stagnant water.

D. Carcasses of dead animals not buried or destroyed within twelve ( 12) hours after death.

E. Accumulations, wheresoever they may occur, of debris of any kind including, but notlimited to, weed cuttings, cut, fallen, or hazardous trees and shrubs, lumber, rocks or

bricks, tin, steel, parts of derelict cars or trucks, broken furniture, appliances, manure

rubbish, garbage, refuse, any flammable material which may endanger public safety orany material or condition which is unhealthy or unsafe.

F. Privy vaults or garbage cans which are not fly -tight, that is, privy vaults or garbage canswhich do not prevent the entry of flies, insects and rodents.

G. The pollution of any well, cistern, spring, underground water stream, lake, canal, or bodyof water by sewage or industrial wastes, or other substances harmful to human beings.

H. Dense smoke, noxious fumes, gas and soot, or cinders in unreasonable quantities, or thepresence of any gas, vapor, fume, smoke, dust or any other toxic substance on, in or

emitted from the equipment of any premises in quantities sufficient to be toxic, harmful

or injurious to the health of any employee or to any premises, occupant, or to any otherperson.

I. Common drinking cups, roller towels, combs, brushes or eating utensils in public or semi- public places where not properly sanitized after use.

J. Any vehicle used for garbage or rubbish disposal which is not equipped with a water -tightmetal body and provided with a tight metal cover or covers and so constructed as to

prevent any of the contents from leaking, spilling, falling, or blowing out of such vehicle

at any time, except while being loaded or not completely secured and covered so as to

prevent offensive odors from escaping therefrom or exposing any part of the contents at

any time.

K. Any and all infestations of flies, fleas, roaches, lice, ticks, rats, mice, fly maggots, mosquito larvae and hookworm larvae.

L. The keeping, possession, display, or offer for sale of any wild animal within the city. Forpurpose of this section, the term " wild animals" shall include but not be limited to

dangerous or exotic carnivorous animals and bats, nonhuman primates, dangerous orpoisonous reptiles, foxes, raccoons, skunks, opossums and turtles, or any wild animalcrossbred to domestic dogs or cats.

M. Unlicensed dumps, and licensed dumps not operated or maintained in compliance with

the ordinances of the City of Saint James and the Statutes of the State of Missouri. N. Any and all discharges, either directly or indirectly, into a storm water system ofany waste

materials, liquids, vapor, fat, gasoline, benzene, naphtha, oil or petroleum product, mud,

straw, lawn clippings, tree limbs or branches, metal or plastic objects, rags, garbage or

any other substance which is capable of causing an obstruction to the flow of the storm

system or interfere with the proper operation of the system, or which will pollute thenatural creeks or waterways.

O. All other acts, practices, conduct, business, occupation callings, trades, uses of property, and all other things detrimental or certain to be detrimental to the health of the inhabitants

of the City of Saint James. P. Commercial aboveground storage tanks or containers for gasoline or other volatile fluid

must comply with Department of Natural Resources and the Environmental Protection

Agency for spill containment.

Q. The burning ofgarbage, refuse, waste, leaves, straw, or other combustible materials in any

ash pit, stove or incinerator on or in any street, curb, gutter, storm water ditches, alley is

prohibited. Burning on any private property of garbage, refuse, waste, leaves, straw, or

other combustible materials is allowed by the issuance of a burn permit from the St. JamesFire Protection District and must adhere to Fire District regulations.

R. All privies or private vaults not connected with a sanitary sewer where available, or with

an efficient septic tank in areas where sanitary sewers are not available. S. Any dirt gathered in the cleaning of yards, waste from industrial or business

establishments, or any rags, damaged merchandise, wet, broken or leaking barrels, casks

or boxes, or any materials which are offensive, or tend by decay to become putrid or torender the atmosphere impure or unwholesome.

T. Perforated, punctured, ruptured, broken, cracked, or leaking sanitary sewer lateral lines.

U. The removal or destruction of vegetation or the failure to establish or maintain such

vegetation within the City of Saint James so as to cause or be very likely to cause damageto, or otherwise adversely affect, adjoining private or public streets, storm sewers or

properties due to soil erosion or siltation.

V. The keeping or allowing to remain on any premises any trees, shrubs, or other vegetationinfected with fungus or any other disease that will or might spread to other non -infectedtrees, shrubs or other vegetation.

W. All dead, or decaying trees and all trees, dead limbs or branches in trees that create a

dangerous or unsafe condition to the public or neighboring properties and all trees infected

by a disease that is not promptly treated or that is not remediable are hereby declared tobe a public nuisance and shall be promptly taken down and removed from the premises

by owner( s) or occupant( s).

X. Any weeds, grass and brush exceeding seven ( 7) inches in height. Any person owning or

occupying any lot or tract of land in the City shall remove promptly any tree limbs, fallentrees, accumulation of fallen leaves, dead shrubbery and other kinds of yard waste,

rubbish, refuse and trash from such lot or tract of land. In no circumstance shall any person

owning or occupying any lot or tract of land in the City cause or allow such tree limbs,

fallen trees, accumulation of fallen leaves, dead shrubbery and other kinds of yard waste,

rubbish, refuse and trash from such lot or tract of land to be placed in or upon any abutting

street or roadway. Whenever private property abuts a public right-of-way or easementbelonging to the City, or any public entity, and there exists in such right- of-way or

easement the lawn or grassy area between the private property line and the midline of said

right- of-way or easement, then such the lawn or grassy area shall be considered, for

purposes of this Section requiring cutting of weeds or rank vegetation, to be a part of the

private lot which abuts the right- of-way or easement, and it shall be the duty of those

responsible under this Section for the maintenance of the private lot to equally maintain

the lawn or grassy area within the abutting right- of-way or easement, and all of the

provisions of this Section shall apply with equal force and effect to the lawn or grassyarea. " Grass, weeds, or rank vegetation," shall not be deemed to include any genuine

agricultural product or crop that is grown for agricultural purposes. Y. All substances which emit or cause foul, obnoxious, unhealthy or disagreeable odors or

effluvia in the neighborhood where they exist. Z. Abandoned, discarded, or unused objects or equipment including, but not limited to,

furniture and household appliances.

AA. The open storage of inoperable or unlicensed vehicles or other vehicles deemed by

the City to constitute a public safety hazard or nuisance is prohibited. Nothing in this

Section shall apply to a vehicle which is completely enclosed within a locked building or

locked fenced area and not visible from adjacent public or private property, nor to anyvehicle upon the property of a business licensed as salvage, swap, junk dealer, towing or

storage facility so long as the business is operated incompliance with its business license

and the property is in compliance with applicable zoning ordinances.

BB. Any condition in violation of St. James City Code and Ordinance pertaining to themaintenance and condition of real property.

Section 17- 3 — Authority to Abate — Generally: The City is authorized to provide for the

abatement of a condition of any lot or land that has the presence of a nuisance as provided in thisChapter 17, including, but not limited to, any nuisance which may endanger public safety or which

is unhealthy or unsafe and declared to be a public nuisance. Except for exigent or emergency

circumstances, enforcement officials shall not enter and inspect private property without the

consent of an owner or occupant of the property or pursuant to a warrant issued by the municipal

judge or an order by any other court of jurisdiction. A warrant, however, shall not be required to

enter and inspect any place where the public is invited or to use normal means of public access tothe doors of residences.

Section 17- 4 — Authority to Abate Emergency Cases: In cases where it reasonably appears that

there is an immediate danger to the health, safety, or welfare of the public due to the existence ofa nuisance, the Mayor or his/ her designee shall have the authority to order the immediate abatement

of the nuisance in an appropriate manner or the immediate vacation of the vicinity.

Section 17- 5 — Abatement Procedure — Generally:

A. Notice. If the Mayor or his/ her designee, has reason to believe that a nuisance is being

maintained within the City, the City shall notify the person causing, maintaining or

permitting the same to remove, terminate or abate such nuisance within a reasonable timenot less than ten ( 10) days as determined by the City after consideration of the nature of

the nuisance and the actions necessary to remedy the situation. Such notice shall also state

that upon failure to abate the condition causing the nuisance within the prescribed time

period, the City shall hold a hearing where all parties may be heard and present evidenceas to whether the condition constitutes a nuisance and should be removed. Such notices

shall be given by first class United States mail, in person or by posting a copy thereof onthe property involved. Where the property is not owner -occupied. service of the notice shall

be to the owner of the property and to any occupant of the property. The notice shall

specifically describe each condition of the lot or land declared to be a public nuisance and

identify what action will remedy the public nuisance. The notice shall include a date, time, and place of the scheduled hearing no sooner than ten ( 10) days after such notice and

include a statement that the hearing shall be deemed automatically canceled if the propertyowner abates the conditions described in the notice within the time specified in such notice.

B. Hearing. Should the person or persons so notified fail to remove, terminate or abate such

nuisance within the time specified, the scheduled hearing shall take place. The hearing shall

be before the Mayor or his/ her designee, be under oath, which shall be administered by the

Mayor or his/her designee, and all such parties shall have an opportunity to be heard and

present evidence as to whether the condition maintained on the property constitutes a

nuisance and whether the procedures of this Article were substantially complied with. After

hearing all evidence, if the Mayor or his/ her designee finds a nuisance is being maintainedin violation of this Article, he/ she may order the nuisance abated within a reasonable time.

The order shall be in writing specifying the grounds for the order and the time by which

the nuisance must be abated and either provided at the hearing or shall be served to the

affected persons in accordance with Section I 7- 5( A).. The notice shall also inform the

recipients that the failure to comply with the order shall mean that the City will abate thenuisance with costs to the owner and/ or occupant.

C. Abatement/ Special Tax Bill. Upon failure of the person to comply with the City' s order,

the City may cause the same to be promptly removed, terminated or abated and thereafter

certify the cost of such corrective action, along with proof of notice to the owner of the

property, to the City Clerk, who shall cause a special tax bill to be issued in that amountagainst the property from which the nuisance was removed, terminated or abated, the same

to be collected with other taxes assessed against the property. No mere clerical error or

informality in such lien or in the proceedings leading to its issuance shall be a defensethereto. The certified costs associated with the removal, termination or abatement of such

nuisance shall include all expenses incurred by the City in the removal of the nuisance,

including, but not limited to, the actual cost of inspecting the land or lot, the actual cost of

service of notice as provided herein, the actual cost of abatement, reasonable attorneys' fees, and the actual cost of issuing and recording the tax bill. Such tax bill shall bear interest

at the rate ofeight percent (8%) per annum if not paid within thirty (30) days after issuance. If the certified cost is not paid, the tax bill shall be considered delinquent, and the collection

of the delinquent bill shall be governed by the laws governing delinquent and back taxes. The tax bill from the date of its issuance shall be deemed a personal debt against the owner

and shall also be a first lien on the property from the date the tax bill is delinquent until

paid and shall be prima facie evidence of the recitals thereof and of its validity. No person

shall enter private property to abate a nuisance unless the owner or occupant has consented

to the entry, the municipal judge has issued a warrant for the entry, exigent or emergency

circumstances exist, or by order of any court of jurisdiction.

D. Other Remedies. Nothing in this Section shall limit the right of the City to seek any other

remedy allowed by law in addition to or in lieu of the remedy specified herein, including

but not limited to an injunction. Any person or entity who fails to remove a nuisance after

being notified to do so shall be guilty of an ordinance violation and may be charged inMunicipal Courtwith the offense of " failure to abate a nuisance." Jurisdiction of the case

shall proceed in all respects as in other cases of ordinance violations.

PASSED: ( of APPROVED: — 7` 3- 1

Honorable Rick Krawiecki, Mayor

ATTEST:

wtoamu k&' Sarah Wheeler, City Clerk