§ 83-7. Nuisance abatement procedure.

(a)

Appointment and designation of public officer. Each of the following is hereby appointed and designated as a public officer with the authority to carry out the powers and duties of this article: the director of community development, the director of public safety, and the director of the county board of health. Such appointment and designation shall include the designees of such persons.

(b)

Complaint and investigation. Whenever a request is filed with a public officer by a public authority or by at least five residents of the unincorporated area of the county charging that any property:

(1)

Is unfit for human habitation or for commercial, industrial, or business use and not in compliance with applicable codes;

(2)

Is vacant and being used in connection with the commission of drug crimes; or

(3)

Constitutes an endangerment to the public health or safety as a result of unsanitary or unsafe conditions,

the public officer with whom the request is filed shall make an investigation or inspection of the specific property to determine if such conditions exist under applicable codes. The public officer shall have the authority to enter upon premises to conduct an inspection, provided such entry is made with the least possible inconvenience to the person(s) in possession. If such an inspection is necessary, the public officer shall endeavor to obtain the permission of the owner to conduct such inspection. If permission is withheld, the public officer may seek the assistance of the county attorney's office to obtain an inspection warrant from a court of competent jurisdiction. The public officer may determine under existing ordinances that a property is unfit for human habitation or for commercial, industrial, or business use upon a finding of conditions on the property which are dangerous or injurious to the health, safety, or morals of the occupants, occupants of neighboring properties, or other residents of the county. Such conditions may include the following (without limiting the generality of the foregoing): defects therein increasing the hazards of fire, accidents, or other calamities; lack of adequate ventilation, light, or sanitary facilities; dilapidation; disrepair; structural defects; and uncleanliness. The public officer may determine that the property is being used in the commission of drug crimes upon personal observation or report of a law enforcement agency.

(c)

Judicial complaint and summons. If the public officer's investigation or inspection confirms that any property meets one or more of the three enumerated standards from subsection (b), the public officer may file in a court of competent jurisdiction a complaint in rem against the lot, tract, or parcel of real property wherein the nuisance complained of exists and shall cause summons and a copy of the complaint to be served on the interested parties for such dwelling, building, or structure pursuant to the provisions of section 83-8. The complaint shall identify the subject real property by appropriate street address and official tax map reference; identify the interested parties; state with particularity the factual basis for the action; and contain a statement of the action sought by the public officer to abate the alleged nuisance.

(d)

Time of hearing. The summons shall notify the interested parties that a hearing will be held before a court of competent jurisdiction at a date and time certain. Such hearing shall be held no sooner than 15 days and no later than 45 days after the filing of said complaint in the proper court. However, in the event that service upon the probate judge is necessary under the provisions of section 83-8, the hearing will be held no sooner than 30 days following service upon the probate judge, though still in no event shall the hearing be held more than 45 days after the filing of said complaint.

(e)

Right to be heard. The interested parties shall have the right to file an answer to the complaint and to appear in person or by attorney and offer testimony at the time and place fixed for the hearing.

(f)

Order. If, after such notice and hearing, the court determines that the property in question meets one or more of the standards enumerated in subsection (b) so as to constitute a public nuisance, the court shall state in writing findings of fact in support of such determination and shall issue and cause to be served upon the interested parties that have answered the complaint or appeared at the hearing an order which does one of the following:

(1)

If the repair of the said property can be made at a reasonable cost in relation to its present value, the order shall require the owner, within a specified time, to repair such property so as to bring it into full compliance with the applicable codes relevant to the cited violation and, if applicable, to effect a closing of any structure so that it cannot be used in connection with the commission of drug crimes; or

(2)

If the repair of the said property in order to bring it into full compliance with applicable codes relevant to the cited violations cannot be made at a reasonable cost in relation to the present value thereof, the order shall require the owner, within a specified time, to demolish and remove the noncompliant dwelling, building, or structure and all debris from the property.

For purposes of this section, in cases in which the nuisance complained of is a dwelling, building, or structure of any kind, the court shall make its determination of "reasonable cost in relation to the present value" without consideration of the value of the land on which the structure is situated; provided, however, that costs of the preparation necessary to repair a structure may be considered. Income and financial status of the owner shall not be a factor in the court's determination. The present value of the structure and the costs of repair, alteration, or improvement may be established by affidavits of real estate appraisers with a Georgia appraiser classification as provided in O.C.G.A. title 43, ch. 39A, qualified building contractors with a current business license to do work in the county, or qualified building inspectors without actual testimony presented. Costs of repair, alteration, or improvement of the structure shall be the cost necessary to bring the structure into compliance with the applicable codes relevant to the cited violations.

(g)

Remedies of public officer in the event of noncompliance with order.

(1)

The order entered under subsection (f) shall further provide that, if the owner fails to comply with an order to repair, demolish, or close the property within the specified time, the public officer may cause such property to be repaired, demolished, or closed. Such abatement action shall commence within 270 days after the expiration of time specified in the order for abatement by the owner. Any time during which such action is prohibited by a court order issued pursuant to O.C.G.A. § 41-2-13 or any other equitable relief granted by a court of competent jurisdiction shall not be counted toward the 270 days in which such abatement action must commence. The public officer is also authorized to file a motion for attachment for contempt against the owner with the court which issued the order as an alternate or additional remedy.

(2)

If the public officer chooses to have the work done as ordered on any dwelling building or structure, he or she shall cause to be posted on the main entrance of the building, dwelling, or structure a placard with the following words, including the Spanish translation:

This building is unfit for human habitation or commercial, industrial, or business use and does not comply with the applicable codes or has been ordered secured to prevent its use in connection with drug crimes or constitutes an endangerment to public health or safety as a result of unsanitary or unsafe conditions. The use or occupation of this building is prohibited and unlawful.

(h)

Salvage. If the public officer has a structure demolished, reasonable effort shall be made to salvage reusable materials for credit against the cost of demolition. The proceeds of any moneys received from the sale of salvaged materials shall be used or applied against the cost of the demolition and removal of the structure, and proper records shall be kept showing application of sales proceeds. Any such sale of salvaged materials may be made without the necessity of public advertisement and bid. Neither the public officer nor the county shall have any liability resulting from or occasioned by the sale of any such salvaged materials, including, without limitation, defects in such salvaged materials.

(i)

Lien for costs. The order shall provide that the amount of all costs associated with the abatement action shall be a lien against the real property upon which such cost was incurred. Such costs shall include but not be limited to the cost of demolition, reasonable attorneys' fees and all court costs, appraisal fees, administrative costs incurred by the tax commissioner, restoration to grade of the real property should it be demolished, and title examination costs. Such lien shall attach to the real property upon the filing of a certified copy of the order requiring repair, closure, or demolition, in the office of the clerk of superior court, and shall relate back to the date of the filing of the lis pendens notice required under section 83-8(b). The clerk of superior court shall record and index such certified copy of the order in the deed records of the county and enter the lien for costs of abatement on the general execution docket. Such lien should cross-reference the order and include the original caption and case number from the nuisance abatement action. The lien shall be superior to all other liens on the property, except liens for taxes to which the lien shall be inferior, and shall continue in force until paid in full.

(j)

Enforcement of lien.

(1)

Upon a final determination of costs, fees, and expenses incurred in accordance with this article, the public officer shall transmit to the tax commissioner a statement of the total amount due and secured by said lien, together with copies of all notices provided to interested parties. The statement of the public officer shall be transmitted within 90 days of completion of the repairs, demolition, or closure. It shall be the duty of the tax commissioner to collect the amount of the lien using all methods available for collecting real property ad valorem taxes, including specifically O.C.G.A. title 48, ch. 4; provided, however, that the limitation of O.C.G.A. § 48-4-78 which requires 12 months of delinquency before commencing a tax foreclosure shall not apply. The tax commissioner shall remit the amount collected to the general fund of the county.

(2)

Enforcement of liens may be initiated at any time following receipt by the tax commissioner of the final determination of costs. The unpaid lien amount shall bear interest and penalties from and after the date of final determination of costs in the same amount as applicable to interest and penalties on unpaid real property ad valorem taxes. An enforcement proceeding pursuant to O.C.G.A. § 48-4-78 for delinquent ad valorem taxes may include all amounts due under this article.

(3)

The redemption amount in any enforcement proceeding shall be the full amount of the costs as finally determined with interest, penalties, and costs incurred by the county and the tax commissioner in the enforcement of the lien. Redemption of the property from the lien may be made in accordance with the provisions of O.C.G.A. §§ 48-4-80 and 48-4-81.

(k)

Waiver of lien. The board of commissioners may waive and release any such lien imposed on property of the owner for costs incurred by the county up to the time of the entry of the order and any additional costs incurred subsequent thereto in attempting to bring the property into compliance by entering into a contract with the owner in which the owner agrees to a timetable for rehabilitation of the real property or the dwelling, building, or structure on the property and demonstrates the financial means to accomplish such rehabilitation.

(l)

Appellate procedure. Where the abatement action does not commence in the superior court, review of a court order requiring the repair, alteration, improvement, or demolition of a property shall be by direct appeal to the superior court under O.C.G.A. § 5-3-29.

(m)

Alternate remedies. Nothing in this section shall be construed as to limit or impair the authority of public officers or other county employees under existing and future ordinances to issue citations for violations of state minimum standard codes, optional building, fire, life safety, and other codes adopted by ordinance, and conditions creating a public health hazard or general nuisance, and to seek to enforce such citations in a court of competent jurisdiction prior to issuing a complaint in rem as provided in this code section. The issuance of a citation for a violation of any such codes shall not be required as a prerequisite to issuing a complaint in rem under this section.

(Ord. of 8-14-01; Ord. of 7-27-04)