Laserfiche WebLink
^ maintenance offenses — where, if anything, we should be looking for moie flexible <br />methods of enforcement to achieve more cooperation and compliance. <br />Section 106 also appears to require creating liens against pioperties (similar to <br />curre,nt practices with unpaic� utilitv bills �vhich o�to_tax rolls on the property) in <br />enforcement actions — which will encumber the owners' ability to sell or transfer <br />ownership of the property if they are unable to maintain or repair it. In fact, <br />Section 107.5 prohibits transfer of ownership as soon as a notice of violation is <br />served and until compliance is achieved. (Once the code inspector has issued a <br />compliance (fix up) order or a citation has been issued shouldn't that be part of tl�e <br />record as pat of the owners disclosure prior to sale as in other issues such as wat�r <br />damage, mold, etc. Isn't_it in_th�_ublic's interest to have the issue iaentifieci and <br />resolved ?) Again, this seems to go in the wrong direction, by forcibly limiting the <br />owners' options to sell or transfer property to someone else better able to take care <br />of it. (VVithout the compliance i�su� bein� known ho�v can the buyer\seller <br />negotiate on the appropriate price? By not revealing buildin� faults, isn't this <br />counter productive to practice of good housin�preservation and buildin� <br />maintenance?) <br />I also have a question about a comment in a previous staff report — that the net <br />result of the proposed code is to require maintenance of properties "only in <br />compliance with the code in effect when they were built." (See the praposed chan�es <br />� in the cit�- ordinance adoptin�the IP�ICy_�.i�hich clarifies this issue.) Again, I can't <br />find anything in the code that limits compliance to previous code standards. Section <br />101.2 says that the code applies to "all existing residential and non-residential <br />structures" and provides "minimum requirements and standards" for maintenance. <br />Section 101.3 specifically requires that� <br />Existing structures and premises that do not comply with these provisions <br />shall be altered or repaired to provide a minimum level of health and safety <br />as required herein. (Emphasis added). <br />There is no reference to measuring compliance by codes in place at the time of <br />construction. <br />If the impact of the proposed maintenance code is to be limited consistent with staff <br />recommendations, then these sections need to be removed or amended. Another <br />solution would be to leave current code enforcement provisions in our ordinances as <br />is, and consider adopting only some of the maintenance standards (in Chapters 3-7). <br />I will not support the proposed maintenance code unless the scope and enforcement <br />powers are limited consistent with our current ordinances. <br />� <br />