[Added 10-19-2015 by Ord.
No. 948]
Borough Council hereby finds that disruptive properties place
a substantial unacceptable threat and burden on the common health,
safety, and welfare of the citizens of the Borough of Mount Oliver.
To this end, Borough Council hereby authorizes and directs the Chief
of Police, or his designee, as provided in the following sections,
to charge the cost of law enforcement resulting from authorities being
called to a disruptive property to the property owner in order to
deter repeated violation of state and local law, and to pursue charges
against the owner and/or occupant of a disruptive property when disruptive
activity (as defined herein) remains unabated over an unreasonably
long period of time. Nothing in this article is intended to deter
individuals within the Borough from requesting public safety services
when they are in legitimate need of such.
A.
"Disruptive activity" shall be any form of conduct, action, omission,
incident, or behavior perpetrated, caused, or permitted on a property
by the owner(s), tenant(s), occupant(s), or their invitee(s) of the
property, which constitute a violation of any of the following ordinances
of the Borough of Mount Oliver or statutes of the Commonwealth of
Pennsylvania:
(1)
Any public order offense under Chapters 55, Adult Entertainment, or 154, Noise, of the Mount Oliver Code; or 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5501 (Riot), 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5502 (Failure to Disperse), 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5503 (Disorderly Conduct), 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5505 (Public Drunkenness), 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5506 (Loitering), 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5512 (Lotteries), 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5513 (Gambling. Devices, Gambling), or 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5514 (Pool Selling and Bookmaking);
(2)
Any violation involving a minor under Chapter 92, Curfew, of the Mount Oliver Code; or 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 4304 (Endangering the Welfare of Children), 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 6110.1 (Possession of Firearm by Minor), 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 6301 (Corruption of Minors), 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 6308 (Purchase, Consumption, or Possession of Alcoholic Beverages), 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 6310 (Inducement to Buy Alcoholic Beverages), 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 6310.1 (Selling or Furnishing Alcoholic Beverages to Minors), or 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 6319 (Solicitation of Minors to Traffic Drugs) of the Pennsylvania Crimes Code;
(3)
Any violation of the Pennsylvania Uniform Firearms Act, 18 Pa.C.S.A.
§ 6101 et seq.;
(4)
Any animal offense under Chapter 67, Animals, of the Mount Oliver Code; or 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5511 (Cruelty to Animals); and
(5)
Any violation of the Pennsylvania Controlled Substance, Drug, Device,
and Cosmetic Act, 35 P.S. § 780-101 et seq.
B.
When the Chief of Police determines that the owner(s), tenant(s),
or occupant(s) of a property, or any person present at a property
with the permission and knowledge of the owner(s), tenant(s), or occupant(s),
has either been arrested or issued a citation or summons for disruptive
activities occurring on the property on three separate occasions within
any ninety-day period, the Chief of Police may declare the property
to be a disruptive property and proceed with the notice and enforcement
procedures set forth in this chapter.
[Amended 10-15-2018 by Ord. No. 974]
C.
For rental properties containing four or more rental units, each
individual rental unit shall be considered a "property" for the purposes
of enforcement of this chapter, thus requiring that three separate
citations, summonses, and/or arrests for disruptive activity must
be made involving the same rental unit in order to declare the individual
rental unit a disruptive property. Any occurrence of the disruptive
activity in the common area or curtilage of a rental property shall
be charged to the specific rental unit that the actor occupies and
not the property in whole.
[Amended 10-15-2018 by Ord. No. 974]
D.
After a property has been declared a disruptive property, if law
enforcement authorities are not called upon to respond to any disruptive
activities for a period of 12 consecutive months, then the property
will no longer be classified as a disruptive property.
E.
Where a tenant or occupant of a property is the victim of abuse or of a crime committed at the property, resulting in an arrest or the issuance of a citation or summons to an owner, other tenant or occupant, or any person present at the property for a violation of any of the ordinances or statutes identified in Subsection A above, such incident shall not be considered "disruptive activity" for purposes of this article.
[Added 10-15-2018 by Ord.
No. 974]
[Amended 10-15-2018 by Ord. No. 974]
A.
The Chief of Police shall provide notice to the property owner(s),
tenant(s) and/or occupant(s) once a property has been declared disruptive.
A separate notice shall be provided to the property owner(s), tenant(s)
and/or occupant(s) for each subsequent citation, summons, or arrest
made for a disruptive activity occurring on the property, so long
as it continues to be declared disruptive.
B.
With respect to a property owner, the notice identified in Subsection A shall be deemed to be properly delivered if sent either by first-class mail to the property owner's registered address or, if unavailable, to the property owner's last-known address or as may be found in public records, or if delivered in person to the property owner. If a current address cannot be located, notice shall be deemed sufficient if posted on the potential disruptive property and a copy of the notice is sent via first-class mail to the last-known address of the property owner. With respect to a tenant or occupant, the notice identified in Subsection A shall be deemed to be properly delivered if sent by first-class mail to the potential disruptive property.
C.
The notice required by Subsection A shall contain the following information:
(1)
The street address or legal description sufficient for identification
of the property;
(2)
A statement that the property is declared as a disruptive property
and a description of the disruptive activity and the date on which
the citations, summonses, or arrests were made resulting in that declaration;
(3)
A statement that the occurrence of any subsequent disruptive activity
at this property within 12 months following the date of the notice
may result in the property owner being charged with the costs of the
administration and law enforcement actions taken by the Borough in
response to the disruptive activity;
(4)
Notice of the property owner's, tenant's and/or occupant's rights to appeal pursuant to § 87-22 of this chapter and to obtain, upon written request for such, copies of all documentation supporting the Chief of Police's determination that disruptive activity has occurred at the property; and
(5)
A statement that the property owner shall, within 10 business days
of the date of the notice, respond to the Chief of Police, in writing,
stating either:
A.
Within 10 business days of service of the notice of a disruptive property, the property owner may submit, in writing, a plan to the Chief of Police by which the property owner proposes to prevent further disruptive activities from occurring at the property. The time period for implementation of any proposed plan shall not exceed 60 days from the date of submission. The Chief of Police shall, within 10 business days of receipt of said proposal, either approve or disapprove of the proposal and provide the property owner with written notice of his/her decision. The denial of a plan by the Chief of Police may be appealed by the property owner pursuant to § 87-22.
B.
If the Chief of Police determines that any subsequent disruptive activity occurred with a twelve-month period after a property was declared a disruptive property, and the property owner, tenant or occupant failed to file an appeal of the declaration pursuant to § 87-22 or the property owner failed to file an approved plan to abate the disruptive property, the property owner may be assessed all costs incurred by the Borough in providing public safety services to the property in response to the subsequent disruptive activity. Within 30 days of the Borough incurring any costs set forth in this subsection, the Borough of Mt. Oliver shall invoice the property owner for such costs. The invoice shall contain a description/summary of all costs incurred by the Borough and a notice that the property owner has the right to appeal the demand pursuant to § 87-22. The invoice shall be delivered to the property owner in accordance with§ 87-20B. Failure to pay any such costs of providing public safety services to the property shall be cause for the Borough to file either, or both, an in rem judgement against the property or an in personam (personal) action against the property owner(s) for recovery of the costs incurred by the Borough.
[Amended 10-15-2018 by Ord. No. 974]
C.
Costs of providing public safety services shall be determined based
on the time required to respond to the disruptive activity multiplied
by an hourly rate based upon the wages and benefits (billable rate)
of the public safety employee, in addition to dispatch costs, vehicle
and equipment costs, and supervisory and administrative costs.
D.
The Borough shall not assess any costs of providing public safety services to a property unless/until final determination has been made by the Board on any appeal filed by the property owner, tenant or occupant pursuant to § 87-22, or the property owner has failed to successfully implement a plan approved by the Chief of Police pursuant to Subsection A above.
[Amended 10-15-2018 by Ord. No. 974]
[Amended 10-15-2018 by Ord. No. 974]
A.
Any property owner who receives a notice of the issuance of a citation, summons, or arrest for a disruptive activity at his/her property, a notice declaring his/her property a disruptive property, or an invoice for costs of providing public safety services to a disruptive property may, within 10 business days of the service date of the notice, appeal the notice to the Disruptive Property Appeals Board pursuant to Article VIII. The Board shall conduct a hearing and render a decision in accordance with Borough ordinances and regulations governing its conduct and procedure. The property owner may prevail on appeal of any notice if the owner demonstrates that:
(1)
He/she was not the owner at the time of any of the disruptive activity
that was the basis for the notice;
(2)
He/she had knowledge of the disruptive activity but promptly took
all actions necessary to prevent the occurrence of future disruptive
activity; or
(3)
He/she had no knowledge of the disruptive activity and could not,
with reasonable care and diligence, have known that the activity;
and upon receipt of the notice of the declaration of the property
as a disruptive property, he/she promptly took all actions necessary
to prevent the occurrence of future disruptive activity.
B.
Any tenant or occupant who receives a notice of the issuance of a citation, summons, or arrest for a disruptive activity at his/her residence or a notice declaring his/her residence a disruptive property may, within 10 business days of the service date of the notice, appeal the notice to the Disruptive Property Appeals Board pursuant to Article VIII. The Board shall conduct a hearing and render a decision in accordance with Borough ordinances and regulations governing its conduct and procedure. The tenant or occupant may prevail on appeal of any notice if the tenant or occupant demonstrates that the disruptive activity that was the basis for the notice does not constitute "disruptive activity" within the meaning of this article.
C.
Upon appeal of a notice declaring property a disruptive property,
or an invoice for costs of providing public safety services to a disruptive
property, if a property owner, tenant or occupant is able to demonstrate
to the Board that one or more of the citations, summonses, or arrests
for disruptive activity, which were the basis of the declaration of
disruptive property, is subject to a "not guilty" plea by the offending
party, then the Board shall order a stay of any/all further enforcement
of this chapter by the Borough pending a determination by the District
Magistrate or Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas on the citation
or summons. If the offending party is found to be "not guilty" on
one or more of the citations or summons, then the property will no
longer be classified as a disruptive property.
The declaration of a disruptive property or the charging or
assessment of costs by the Borough on a property under this article
does not affect or limit the Borough's rights or authority to bring
criminal prosecution or other legal action against any person or violation
of the Mount Oliver Code.
