HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrd 1913ORDINANCE NO. 1913
ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF BURLINGAME REPEALING, AMENDING, AND
MODIFIYING PORTIONS OF TITLES 1 AND 18 OF THE BURLINGAME MUNICIPAL
CODE TO PROVIDE FOR PROPERTY UPKEEP STANDARDS AND ENHANCED CODE
COMPLIANCE ENFORCEMENT FOR NON-RESIDENTIAL PROPERTIES
WHEREAS the City Council has determined that certain properties within the City of
Burlingame may become dilapidated or otherwise contribute to blight; and
WHEREAS such properties may diminish neighboring properties' values; and
WHEREAS such properties may pose such dangers to the neighborhood without themselves
constituting a health or safety violation already addressed under City Codes; and
WHEREAS the Council has determined that additional standards for property upkeep should be
provided in the Code for commercial and other non-residential properties; and
WHEREAS increased flexibility in permitting demolition of deteriorated structures even where
new plans for redevelopment have not been submitted would contribute to maintaining the
aesthetics and safety of the City.
NOW, THEREFORE, the City Council does hereby ordain as follows:
DIVISION 1:
Section 1: Burlingame Municipal Code Title 1 is hereby amended as follows:
1. Current Section 1.04.010, Definiti
ons is repealed and re-enacted as follows:
Section 1.04.010 DEFINITIONS
"Building" means any structure with substantial walls and roof securely affixed to the land and
entirely separated on all sides from any structure by space or by walls in which there are no
communicating doors, windows or openings
"City" means the city of Burlingame.
"Days" shall mean calendar days. In the event the last day of the specified time period falls on a
Saturday, Sunday or federal holiday observed by the city, then the last day of the specified time
period shall be the next business day.
"Owner" means any person owning property, as shown on the last equalized assessment roll for
city taxes, or the lessee, tenant or other person having control or possession of the property.
"Person' includes any individual, firm, association, corporation, limited liability company, trust,
or partnership. Masculine gender includes the feminine, feminine gender includes the masculine,
and the singular number includes the plural.
"Nonresidential Property" means any property within the City of Burlingame, except properties
zoned Rl-R4.
"State of partial construction" means, since commencement of construction, construction has
been suspended or abandoned for an unreasonable period of time, and the appearance of the
building substantially detracts from the appearance of the immediate neighborhood or the
condition of the building is detrimental to the public health, safety or welfare.
"Structure" means anything constructed or erected, except fences, the use of which requires
permanent location on the ground or attached to something having a permanent location on the
ground.
"Vehicle" means a device by which any person or property may be propelled, moved or drawn
upon a highway, excepting a device moved by human power.
2. Section 1.16.015, Nonresidential Property Nuisances is added as follows
1.16.015 Nonresidential Property Nuisances.
It is unlawful for any person owning, leasing, renting, occupying or having charge or possession
of any nonresidential property in the city to maintain or to allow to be maintained such property
in such manner that any of the following conditions are found to exist thereon for an
unreasonable period of time and are visible from a public street or adjoining parcel, except as
may be allowed by any other provision of law, including provisions of city ordinances:
A. The accumulation of dirt, litter, or debris;
B. Lumber, junk, trash, recyclables, salvage materials, building materials, landscaping materials
or other similar materials, provided that short-term storage of materials in a secure and non-
hazardous manner incident to an active building permit shall not constitute a nuisance under this
provision;
C. Attractive nuisances or hazards including abandoned, broken, or neglected equipment,
machinery, tools, refrigerators and freezers, hazardous pools, ponds, and excavations;
D. Broken or discarded furniture, household equipment, electronic equipment, and furnishings or
abandoned shopping carts;
E. Overgrown vegetation likely to harbor rats, vermin and other nuisances dangerous to public
health, safety, and welfare, or obstructing a necessary view of drivers on public streets or private
driveways;
F. Weeds, dead, decayed, diseased or hazardous trees, fallen leaves and other vegetation
constituting an unsightly appearance or dangerous to public health, safety and welfare;
G. vehicle parts or
other articles
of personal
property which are abandoned or left in a state of
partial construction
or repair;
H. Mobile homes, recreational vehicles, utility trailers, unmounted campertops, boats, cars,
trucks, or other vehicles that are parked or stored in violation of the zoning provisions or that
appear inoperable;
I. Graffiti on the exterior of any building, fence, wall, automobile, or other structure;
J. Fences and walls which have become dilapidated or are in a state of disrepair;
K. Buildings which are abandoned, boarded up, partially destroyed, or left in a state of partial
construction;
L. Structures which are unpainted or where a substantial portion of the paint on the building
exterior is chipping, peeling, cracked or mostly worn off,
M. Improper maintenance of signs related to uses no longer conducted or products no longer sold
on the property;
N. Construcfion equipment, materials or machinery of any type of description parked or stored so
as to be visible from a public right-of-way or from adjoining properties except while excavation,
construction or demolition operations covered by an active building permit are in progress on the
subject property or an adjoining property;
O. Any property with pooled oil or other hazardous lds accumulation, oil or hazardous
liquids flowing into a public right-of-way, storm drain, or adjoining property, or excessive
accumulation of grease or oil on paved surfaces, buildings, walls or fences;
P. The leaving of any garbage can
, recycling container or refuse container on any public right-of-
way, except as permitted by Section 8. 16.040 of this Code;
Q. Propert
y otherwise maintained in such a blighted condition, or in such condition of
deterioration or disrepair that the same causes appreciable diminution of the property values of
surrounding properties or is materially detrimental to proximal properties and improvements.
3. Section 1:16.016, Declaration of public nuisance is added as follows:
1. 16.016
Section
Declaration of public nuisance.
Any property found to be maintained in violation of Section 1.16.015 is declared to be a public
nuisance and shall be abated by rehabilitation, removal, demolition, or repair, and shall be
subject to the enforcement mechanisms available under Chapter 1.12 of this Code and any other
applicable Code provisions or other laws. The election of enforcement mechanisms or remedies
shall be at the discretion of the City Attorney.
Section 2: Burlingame Municipal Code Title 18 is hereby modified and amended as follows
1. Current Chapter 18.07.065 Section 303.1 amended—Issuance is amended as
follows:
A fourth paragraph is added to Section 303.1 to read as follows:
Demolition perrnits will only be issued after all approvals required by Title 25 of this
code and the California Environmental Quality Act are granted for the overall project for which
the demolition is intended, and in any event, will only be issued simultaneously with the
construction permits for the project.
Exceptions:
a. If a property owner does not intend to construct anything on the property
following demolition in the foreseeable future, the property owner shall file a declaration under
penalty of perjury to that effect, and the building official may issue the demolition permit on the
condition that the property where the demolition is to occur will be properly secured and
landscaped.
b. If the city has ordered the demolition of the structure because it is an imminent
danger to public health or safety, the building official may issue the demolition permit on the
condition that the property where the demolition is to occur will be properly secured and
landscaped even though the property owner has not applied for any construction permits.
c. If a propert
y owner of anon -residential project:
1. Has been gran
ted all project approvals required under Title 25 of this code and
under the California Environmental Quality Act; and
2. Produces evidence, to the satisfaction of the Community Development Director,
that special circumstances exist to warrant early demolition; and
3. Produces evidence, to the satisfaction of the Community Development Director,
that he/she is preparing or is having prepared, plans for the project for which the demolition is
intended; and
4. Declares under penalty of perjury that he/she will submit said plan
s together with
a building permit application for the project to the City's building division no later than ninety
(90) days after obtaining a demolition permit;
then the Community Development Director may authorize the Building Official to issue the
demolition permit with appropriate terms and conditions to ensure safety, security and
cleanliness of the property.
In the event the property owner fails to obtain a building permit for the project within
sixty (60) days of submitting a building permit application to the building division, pursuant to
item (c)(4), the property owner shall, within thirty (30) days remove all debris from the site,
permanently secure the property and install landscaping to the satisfaction of the Community
Development Director. A decision to deny such a request for early demolition may be appealed
to the City Council within ten (10) calendar days of the date of the Community Development
Director's decision.
d. If a building or structure is declared a public nuisance under Section 1.16.015, the
Community Development Director may issue a demolition permit for said structure on the
condition that the property where the demolition is to occur will be properly secured and
landscaped. The owner of a building or structure which currently is or may be subject to
enforcement proceedings under Section 1.16.015. but which has not been formally declared a
nuisance under that provision, may apply to the Community Development Director to obtain a
demolition permit for the structure. If granted, such permit shall be conditioned on appropriate
securing and landscaping of the property. The decision whether to grant or deny a demolition
permit under this sub -paragraph (d) shall rest within the discretion of the Community
Development Director in light of the conditions present on the property in question.
DIVISION 2:
If any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason
held to be invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this
Ordinance. The Council hereby declares that it would have adopted the Ordinance and each
section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or
more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses or phrases be declared invalid.
DIVISION 3:
This Ordinance shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in accordance
with California Government Code Section 36933, published, and circulated in the City of
Burlingame, and shall be in full force and effect thirty (30) days after its final passage.
TERRY NAGEL, Mayor
I, MARY ELLEN KEARNEY, City Clerk of the City of Burlingame, do hereby certify that the
foregoing ordinance was introduced at a regular meeting of the City Council held on the 17th
day of
February
2015
and adopted
thereafter at a regular meeting of the City Council
held on the
2nOday of
March
2015,
by the following vote:
AYES: COUNCILMEMBERS: BROWNRIGG0 KEIGHRAN9 NAGEL1 ORTIZr ROOT
NOES: COUNCILMEMBERS: NONE
ABSENT: COUNCILMEMBERS: NONE
A EST:
MARY ELLEN KEARNEY, City Clerk
C1