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<br /> <br /> REQUEST FOR COUNCIL ACTION <br /> <br />DATE: January 11, 2016 <br />ITEM NO: 19 <br />Department Approval: Administrator Reviewed: Agenda Section: <br />Name Soren Mattick JML Attorney’s Report <br />Title City Attorney <br />Item Description: Code Enforcement <br />Summary <br />On December 14, the Council agreed to a vote on pursing code enforcement action toward the <br />property owners at 1386 Rest Point Road. The complaints received to date include: one or more <br />wind energy conversion systems installed unlawfully, lawn drying equipment installed <br />unlawfully, the operation of a home occupation without a license, and a shed installed within the <br />required setbacks. <br /> <br />The City Council had also asked that staff prepare a brief report and presentation regarding code <br />enforcement. Presently, the City’s code enforcement program is administered by Jeremy <br />Barnhart and Roger Peitso as a component of their day to day duties. The City does not actively <br />police the City regarding code compliance and relies upon written complaints from citizens <br />before initiating an investigation. Generally speaking, Jeremy will respond to complaints <br />regarding the zoning ordinance and Roger will respond to complaints regarding the building <br />code. Upon receiving a complaint, staff’s approach has been to 1) acknowledge receipt of the <br />complaint; 2) inspect the site; 3) determine if a violation exists; 4) contact the property owner <br />and make them aware of the violation; 5) work with the property owner to obtain voluntary <br />compliance; 6) bring an enforcement action if voluntary compliance fails. <br /> <br />Staff investigates all complaints regardless of the perceived egregiousness of the violation. <br />When determining the appropriate course of action, staff must balance priorities, and code <br />enforcement falls behind building permits, inspections, land use applications, general research, <br />and daily citizen inquiries. Staff is currently working on 20 open cases which involve varying <br />levels of violations, including hazardous buildings, drainage and grading issues, weeds, and <br />parking of vehicles. Currently, only a hazardous building has been turned over to the City <br />attorney. There aren’t any active criminal prosecution or civil enforcement actions at this <br />point. Staff’s goal is compliance, and will work with property owners so long as they work with <br />staff, giving them as much time as is reasonable to complete the necessary work. The trade-off <br />for this is enforcement takes longer, requiring more staff time. <br /> <br />Action Requested: <br />1. Staff is seeking direction on how the Council wants staff to pursue code enforcement and <br />whether any changes need to be made in the current practice. <br /> <br />2) Staff is requesting the Council discuss and vote on the next steps regarding 1386 Rest Point <br />Road.