[Adopted 6-28-1971 by Ord. No. 15528]
[Amended 8-31-1992 by Ord. No. 92-43]
As used in this article, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
A person who uses or occupies a building structure, whether
as owner or tenant. A tenant who uses a part of a building structure
shall be deemed the "occupant" of that part of which he has actual
or constructive possession. The owner, agent or other person having
custody or control of a building structure shall be deemed "occupant"
of the part that is vacant.
Includes the agent operating and managing the building structure
as well as the legal owner.
Any condition which provides shelter or protection for rats,
thus favoring their multiplication and continued existence in, under
or outside of any structure.
Preventing ingress and egress of rats. It shall consist of
closing, with material impervious to rat-gnawing, all openings which
may be reached by rats.
[Amended 8-31-1992 by Ord. No. 92-35]
All buildings in the City of Schenectady shall
be ratproofed, freed of rats and maintained in a ratproof and rat-free
condition to the satisfaction of the Building Inspector.
[Amended 8-31-1992 by Ord. No. 92-35]
A.
Upon receipt of written notice and/or order from the
Building Inspector, the owner of any building specified therein shall
take immediate measures for ratproofing the building, and unless said
work and improvements have been completed by the owner in the time
specified in the written notice, in no event to be less than 15 days,
or within the time to which a written extension may have been granted
by the Building Inspector, then the owner shall be deemed guilty of
an offense under the provisions of this article.
B.
Whenever the Building Inspector has shown such offense
to occur, he shall have the authority to order said building vacated
and closed until it has been made ratproof and may cause to be posted
at each entrance to such building a notice with the following words
therein: "This building is unsafe, and its use for occupancy has been
prohibited by the City of Schenectady Building Inspector." Such notice
shall remain posted until said condition has been abated. It shall
be unlawful for any person to remove such notice without written permission
of the Building Inspector or for any person to enter the building
except for the purpose of ratproofing the same or of demolishing the
building or for making any attempt to rectify the condition.
C.
If the owner is guilty of such offense, the Building
Inspector may cause the building to be made ratproof, and the amount
of the cost thereof shall be a lien against the real property upon
which said building was or is situated. Said costs shall be placed
upon the City's tax books against said property and may be collected
and the lien may be foreclosed in the same manner as taxes and tax
liens are collected and foreclosed or by suit as the City may determine.
[Amended 8-31-1992 by Ord. No. 92-35]
The owners of all ratproof buildings are required
to maintain the premises in a ratproofed condition and to repair all
breaks and leaks that may occur in the ratproofing without a specific
order of the Building Inspector.
[Amended 8-31-1992 by Ord. No. 92-35]
A.
Whenever the Building Inspector notifies the occupant
or occupants of a building, in writing, that there is evidence of
rat infestation of the building, said occupant or occupants shall
immediately institute rat eradication measures and shall continuously
maintain such measures in a satisfactory manner until the premises
are declared by the Building Inspector to be free of rat infestation.
Unless said measures are undertaken within five days after receipt
of notice, it shall be construed as a violation of the provisions
of this article, and the occupant shall be held responsible therefor.
B.
If such violation occurs, the Building Inspector may
cause the rats to be eradicated and charge the cost to the occupant.
If the building is occupied, the cost of eradicating the rats shall
constitute a lien on property which the occupant has on the premises
where the work is done and upon the premises themselves. If the building
is vacant, the cost of eradicating the rats shall constitute a lien
on the premises themselves.
[Amended 8-31-1992 by Ord. No. 92-35]
The Building Inspector is empowered to make
inspections of the interior and exterior of all buildings to determine
full compliance with this article, and the Building Inspector shall
make periodic inspections of all ratproofed and previously rat-free
buildings to determine evidence of rat infestations and the existence
of new breaks or leaks in their ratproofing, and when any evidence
is found indicating the presence of rats or openings through which
rats may again enter buildings, the Building Inspector shall serve
the owners or occupants with notices and/or orders to abate the condition
found.
[Amended 8-31-1992 by Ord. No. 92-35]
Whenever conditions inside or under occupied buildings provide extensive harborage for rats in the opinion of the Building Inspector, said Building Inspector is empowered, after due notification in accordance with § 208-3, to close such buildings until such time as the conditions are abated by ratproofing and harborage removal.
Whenever conditions inside or under unoccupied
buildings provide extensive harborage for rats, in the opinion of
the Health Officer, said Health Officer is empowered, if said conditions
are not corrected within a period of 60 days after written notification
to the owner or within the time to which a written extension may have
been granted by the Health Officer, to institute condemnation and
destructive proceedings.
It shall be unlawful under the provisions of
this article for the occupant, owner, contractor, public utility company,
plumber or any other person to remove and fail to restore in like
condition the ratproofing from any building for any purpose. Further,
it shall be unlawful for any person or agent to make any new openings
that are not closed or sealed against the entrance of rats.
It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or
corporation hereafter to construct, repair or remodel any building,
dwelling, stable or market or other structure whatsoever unless such
construction, repair, remodeling or installation shall render the
building or other structure ratproof in accordance with the regulations
prescribed herein and hereunder. The provisions of this section apply
only to such construction, repairs, remodeling or installing as affect
the ratproof condition of any building or other structure.
It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation hereafter to occupy any new or existing building wherein foodstuffs are to be kept, handled, sold, held or offered for sale without complying with § 208-10 of this article; and, unless the provisions of this section are complied with, no City license or permit to conduct or carry on such business as defined above will be issued.
[Amended 8-31-1992 by Ord. No. 92-35]
It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or
corporation to demolish any building before it has been certified
by the Building Inspector as being rat-free.
All food within the City of Schenectady for
feeding chickens, cows, pigs, horses and other animals shall be stored
in rat-free and ratproof containers or compartments or rooms, unless
stored in a ratproof building.
[Amended 8-31-1992 by Ord. No. 92-35]
Within the corporate limits of the City of Schenectady,
all garbage or refuse consisting of waste animal or vegetable matter
upon which rats may feed and all small dead animals shall be placed
and stored until collected in covered metal containers of a type prescribed
by the Building Inspector. It is further declared unlawful for any
person, firm or corporation to dump or place on any premises, land
or waterway any dead animals or any waste vegetable or animal matter
of any kind.
It shall be unlawful for any person to place,
leave, dump or permit to accumulate any garbage, rubbish, junk or
unlicensed junk used cars or trash in any building or on any premises,
improved or vacant, or on any open lot or alley in the City of Schenectady
so that the same shall or may afford food harborage for rats.
It shall be unlawful for any person to permit
to accumulate on any premises, improved or vacant, or on any open
lot or alley in the City of Schenectady any lumber, boxes, barrels,
bottles, cans, containers or similar materials that may be permitted
to remain thereon unless the same shall be placed in open racks that
are elevated not less than 18 inches above the ground and evenly piled
and stacked.
[Amended 3-11-1996 by Ord. No. 96-15]
A.
Any person issued a notice of violation pursuant to
any provision of this chapter shall be subject to administrative fee
of $50, and such administrative fee shall be charged against the land
upon which the notice of violation was issued as a municipal lien
or such administrative fee shall be added to the tax rolls as an assessment
or levied as a special tax against said property or recovered in a
civil suit against the person to which the notice of violation was
issued.
[Added 6-3-1996 by Ord. No. 96-31]
B.
Each violation of this chapter shall be a violation
and shall be punishable as follows:
(1)
For a first offense: by a fine of not less than $350
nor more than $500.
(2)
For a second offense within 12 months of a prior violation
of this chapter regarding the same premises by the same person(s),
firm(s) and/or corporation(s): a fine of not less than $500 nor more
than $1,000.
(3)
For a third offense and any subsequent offenses thereafter
within 12 months of a prior violation of this chapter regarding the
same premises by the same person(s), firm(s) and/or corporations(s):
a fine of not less than $1,000 nor more than $2,500 or by a term of
imprisonment of not less than five days nor more than 15 days, or
by both such fine and imprisonment.
(4)
In the alternative, each violation of this chapter
may be punishable by a penalty of not less than $350 nor more than
$2,500, to be recovered by the City in a civil action.
C.
A separate offense shall be deemed committed on each
day during or on which a violation occurs or continues unabated after
the time limit set for the abatement of the violation.
[Added 3-11-1996 by Ord. No. 96-15]
All fines and penalties collected under § 208-17 of this chapter shall be received in a dedicated fund for the purpose of offsetting personnel costs of Code Enforcement Officers employed by the City of Schenectady.
