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City of Greenwood, MO
Jackson County
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
[Ord. No. 2003-06-09-03 § 1, 6-9-2003]
The title of this Chapter shall be known as the "Uniform Vector Control Ordinance".
[Ord. No. 2003-06-09-03 § 1, 6-9-2003]
The purpose of this Chapter is to protect the public health, safety and general welfare by:
A. 
Preventing or controlling the spread of vector-borne disease.
B. 
Averting the blighting affects that the presence of vector infestation places on an affected neighborhood, including undermining the desirability of housing, causing decline in property value and contributing to the image of an environmentally unfit area.
C. 
Facilitating the services of the Public Works Department staff by making more uniform municipal regulations concerning vector control.
[Ord. No. 2003-06-09-03 § 1, 6-9-2003]
As used in this Chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
EXTERMINATION
The control and elimination of vectors by eliminating harborage areas, by removing food sources or making them inaccessible, by poisoning, spraying, fumigating, trapping or any other legal vector elimination method which is not injurious to human health or the safety of domestic animals.
GARBAGE
The animal and/or vegetable waste resulting from the handling, preparation, cooking, serving or non-consumption of food.
INFESTATION
The presence of vectors within or contiguous to a structure or premises.
INSPECTION OFFICER
A staff member of the Public Works Department and/or any other persons authorized, in writing, by the Board of Aldermen to conduct inspection and administrative procedures to enforce the provisions of this Chapter.
JUNK
All large items of rubbish including, but not limited to:
1. 
Non-operable automobiles or associated parts or equipment.
2. 
Non-operable appliances, such as refrigerators or stoves.
3. 
Scrap metal.
OCCUPANT
Any person living, sleeping, cooking or eating in or actually having possession of a dwelling unit or a rooming unit, except that in dwelling units a temporary guest will not be considered an occupant.
OWNER
Any person who, alone or joint-severally with others:
1. 
Shall have legal title to any premises, dwelling or dwelling unit, with or without accompanying actual possession thereof; or
2. 
Shall have charge, care or control of any premises, dwelling or dwelling unit as owner or agent of the owner or an executor, administrator, trustee, assignee of rents or guardian of the estate of the owner. Any such person thus representing the actual owner shall be bound to comply with the provisions of this Chapter to the same extent as if he were the owner.
PERSON
Any individual, business, firm, corporation, association or partnership.
PREMISES
All areas of a property, including all interior, exterior, grounds and yard spaces.
RUBBISH
Solid wastes, other than garbage, consisting of either:
1. 
Combustible wastes, such as paper, cardboard, plastic, yard clippings and wood; or
2. 
Non-combustible wastes, such as metal, glass and crockery.
STRUCTURE
Any manmade construction or building that is located on any part of the premises.
URBANIZED AREA
Any area that is located within one thousand (1,000) feet of either:
1. 
Any structure which is designed for human occupancy for any purpose, be it residential, business or leisure time, at any time of the day or night; or
2. 
A public or privately owned outdoor recreation site.
VECTOR
An organism which, either directly or indirectly, via microorganisms which it carries, can transmit disease to man. For the purposes of this Chapter, the term "vector" shall ordinarily, but not exclusively, refer to rodent, insect or vermin species.
VECTOR HARBORAGE OR VECTOR SOURCE
Any area, interior or exterior, where vectors can live, nest, breed or seek any form of shelter.
VECTOR-PROOF
Describing a form of construction that prevents the ingress or egress of vectors to and from a given space or structure or which prevents vectors from gaining access to food, water or harborage.
[Ord. No. 2003-06-09-03 § 1, 6-9-2003]
A. 
Inspection procedures shall be conducted by the Inspection Officer.
B. 
The Inspection Officer shall be empowered to inspect any structure or premises in the City at any reasonable time. The Inspection Officer is authorized to conduct the inspection on any part of the premises, including any interior spaces.
C. 
In the event that the owner or occupant refuses to permit the Inspection Officer to inspect the premises, the Inspection Officer shall obtain an administrative search warrant from the competent jurisdiction authorizing entry to the premises in question.
D. 
The Inspection Officer shall continue to inspect the premises periodically, as he or she deems necessary, until he or she has certified that the violation has been corrected.
E. 
The Inspection Officer shall reinspect any premises that have been previously cited for violating the terms of this Chapter within one hundred eighty (180) days of the date on which the violation has been certified as having been corrected.
F. 
Inspection of specific types of land uses which are prone to vector harborage shall occur regularly, as indicated below:
1. 
Commercial, industrial or institutional establishments in which foodstuffs are sold, handled, processed or stored: semiannual inspection.
2. 
Commercial, industrial or institutional establishments in which large quantities of materials must be regularly located in outside storage areas: semiannual inspection.
G. 
Any owner or occupant within the City may issue a complaint requesting action by the Inspection Officer. The complaint must be signed and in writing. The identity of the complainant shall be kept confidential unless otherwise requested by the complainant or a court of competent jurisdiction. Within fifteen (15) days of the receipt of the complaint, the Inspection Officer shall indicate, in writing, the action taken on the complaint.
[Ord. No. 2003-06-09-03 § 1, 6-9-2003]
A. 
When the Inspection Officer has deemed any premises in violation of this Chapter, he or she shall issue a written notice of violation to the owner and/or occupant, depending on the nature of the violation, and shall require the owner and/or occupant to correct the cited violation.
B. 
The written notice of violation shall contain, at a minimum, the following information:
1. 
Indicate the address and/or the location of the premises.
2. 
Describe all violations, including the date(s) on which they were observed, and indicating where on the premises the violations exist or were practiced.
3. 
At the discretion of the Inspection Officer, indicate alternative techniques or practices that are satisfactory to correct the cited violation.
4. 
Issue an order to correct and indicate the penalties for non-compliance.
5. 
Specify a period of time by which the violation must be corrected.
6. 
Carry the signature or a facsimile of the signature of the Inspection Officer.
7. 
Indicate the name, office mailing address and office telephone number of the Inspection Officer.
C. 
The notice of violation shall be served upon the owner of record or the occupant of the structure by any one (1) of the following methods:
1. 
Delivering the notice directly to the hands of the owner or occupant or responsible person in his or her household who will sign for him or her; or
2. 
Mailing the notice, or a copy thereof, by return-receipt mail to the last known address of the owner or occupant; or
3. 
If the letter is returned showing that it cannot be delivered, posting a copy of the notice in a conspicuous place in or about the cited premises.
D. 
The Inspection Officer shall certify to the correction of the violation cited in the notice. Such certification, at a minimum, shall consist of the Inspection Officer's signature and the date on which the certification is made.
[Ord. No. 2003-06-09-03 § 1, 6-9-2003]
A. 
Each day that a violation remains uncorrected after the period stated for correction in the notice of violation shall constitute a separate offense.
B. 
This Chapter shall be enforced by action brought before a judge in the same manner provided for the enforcement of summary offenses under the Missouri Statutes. Any person who violates or permits the violation of this Chapter shall, upon conviction in a summary proceeding, be punishable by a fine of not less than five hundred dollars ($500.00) nor more than one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) or by imprisonment for a term not exceeding ninety (90) days. Each day or portion thereof that such violation continues, or is permitted to continue, shall constitute a separate offense. Each Section of this Chapter that is violated shall also constitute a separate offense.
C. 
In cases of extended non-compliance or in cases of a clear and present danger to the health, safety or general welfare of the citizenry, the Governing Body of the City of Greenwood shall be empowered to exercise any of the following actions, subject to adequate notice to the owner of the property:
1. 
Order the Inspection Officer to cause the immediate vacancy of the cited premises by any and all individuals. The Inspection Officer shall post in plain view a notice stating "unfit for human occupancy" and requiring the vacancy of said premises until the violation is corrected.
2. 
Order the correction of the violation by municipal staff.
3. 
Engage a qualified contractor to correct the violation.
4. 
Authorize the condemnation and demolition of the cited premises.
D. 
Reimbursement for municipal costs incurred in the correction of violations or in demolition shall be recouped from the owner and/or occupant in any of the following ways:
1. 
Attaching a municipal lien on the cited property;
2. 
Civil action against the owner and/or occupant; or
3. 
Sale of personalty found on the premises.
[Ord. No. 2003-06-09-03 § 1, 6-9-2003]
A. 
General Requirements For All Property Owners.
1. 
The interior and exterior of all premises shall be maintained in a clean and sanitary condition that shall prevent vector harborage.
2. 
During construction activities, preventive measures shall be taken which shall preclude vector harborage.
3. 
If vector-proofing materials are removed from a structure during structural renovations, these materials shall be comparably replaced.
4. 
Upon receipt of a notice of violation, proper techniques of vector-proofing and/or extermination must be taken by the owner to correct the identified violation. If continued reapplication is necessary to correct the problem, the owner shall continue the extermination techniques as determined by the Inspection Officer.
B. 
General Requirements Of Occupants And Lessees.
1. 
Every occupant of a dwelling unit or a rooming unit and every lessee of space of a commercial, office or industrial premises shall be responsible to maintain said unit or space in a clean and sanitary condition which shall prevent vector harborage.
2. 
Every occupant and lessee shall dispose of all garbage and rubbish in a safe, clean and sanitary manner. Garbage must be temporarily stored prior to its collection for ultimate disposal in a tightly sealed, metal or heavy plastic container designed specifically for this purpose. Garbage may not be stored in plastic garbage bags unless they are placed in an acceptable container as described above. Rubbish must be temporarily stored in a closed container.
3. 
An occupant or lessee shall be held responsible for the extermination of vectors rather than the property owner when the unit or space occupied by the occupant or lessee is the only one (1) in which infestation is detected on multiple-occupancy premises. However, where infestation is found to be a direct result of owner neglect, the owner shall be held responsible for extermination.
4. 
Upon receipt of a notice of violation, proper steps must be taken by the occupant or lessee to correct the identified violation. If continued reapplication is necessary to correct the problem, the occupant or lessee shall continue the extermination techniques as determined by the Inspection Officer.
C. 
Building Requirements.
1. 
All openings, including any openings for utility lines, must be protected by vector-proof material, such as screening.
2. 
The walls, flooring, porches and basements of any structure must be vector-proofed.
3. 
Every plumbing and waste pipe shall be properly maintained in good sanitary condition in order to prevent a point of vector harborage on the premises.
D. 
Yard And Grounds Requirements.
1. 
The exterior spaces of all premises shall be kept free of all accumulated garbage, rubbish and junk.
2. 
Firewood stacks shall be raised at least twelve (12) inches above ground level.
3. 
Any exterior spaces located in an urbanized area shall be kept free of high grass or weed growth that may serve as a vector harborage.
4. 
Any exterior space located in an urbanized area shall be kept free of standing pools of stagnated water that may serve as a vector harborage. This includes, but is not limited to, tires, playground equipment, swimming pools, buckets, barrels or other areas where water can accumulate and stagnate.
5. 
No material, including firewood or building lumber, which may serve as a vector harborage shall be stored or stacked directly against the exterior wall of any structure.
E. 
Requirements For Animal Shelters. An animal shelter for more than two (2) animals must be properly and regularly sanitized and fumigated as necessary in order to prevent vector harborage Feed materials must be stored within vector-proofed, sealed containers or structures in accessible to vectors.
F. 
Extermination.
1. 
At the time infestation is identified, acceptable techniques of extermination shall be initiated by the person cited in the notice of violation to remove the infestation.
2. 
After the extermination is complete, proper precautions shall be taken to prevent reinfestation.