§ 6-143. Minimum standards for use and occupancy of buildings; substandard buildings defined and deemed.

(a)

Minimum standards for continued use and occupancy of all buildings, structures or premises located within the city are as follows:

(1)

Foundations .

a.

Concrete . The slab must be structurally sound and free of cracks;

b.

Pier and beams . Floor joists, floors and subfloors must be structurally sound, level, and free from decay, rot and termites.

(2)

Walls . All walls, inside and outside, must be in good repair, in place and free of defects or openings.

(3)

Roof .

a.

All supporting beams, rafters, joists and other supports must be structurally sound and free of decay and rot, and must not be sagging;

b.

The roof must be structurally sound, all shingles or roofing material must be in place, and the roof must be in place, and the roof must be free from leaks and sags. There must not be any more than two (2) layers of shingles on any one (1) roof.

(4)

Windows and doors .

a.

All movable windows must be screened and in good and workable condition. This also includes the window frames and sash;

b.

All doors, door jambs and hardware must be in good and workable condition.

(5)

Cabinets and countertops .

a.

All cabinets and hardware must be in good and workable condition;

b.

All countertops must be in good condition.

(6)

Floor covering . All floor coverings must be cleanable and in good condition.

(7)

Drives and parking areas . All drives and parking areas must be an approved hard surface and structurally sound and in good condition.

(8)

Yards . The yard must be adequately drained and free of high grass, trash and rubbish.

(9)

Plumbing .

a.

All plumbing must comply with City Codes.

b.

Any plumbing equipment of fixtures condemned by the plumbing official because of wear, damage, defect or sanitary hazards must not be reused for plumbing purposes.

c.

Gas line minimum requirements must be one (1) inch, and all valves must be A.G.A. approved;

d.

Water heaters must be in good working order. Vents must be double-walled through the roof. Pop-off valves must be vented to the outside. Gas regulators must be in good working order.

e.

All heat-producing vents must be of double-walled construction;

f.

All vents and traps must be in good working order;

g.

All homes must be plumbed with a washing machine connection and also an electric or gas dryer connection;

h.

Hot and cold water lines serving sink, lavatories, washing machines and water closets must have individual shutoff valves;

i.

All fixtures must be of good quality with no need of repair;

j.

All faucets must be repairable;

k.

Yard sewer lines of concrete must be replaced with Schedule 40 ABS or PVC;

l.

Septic tanks must be backfilled and left open for inspection.

(10)

Electrical .

a.

All electrical wiring and facilities must comply with the electrical code of the city;

b.

Concealed wiring must be made available for inspection as the electrical inspector deems necessary.

(b)

Any building, structure or premise that does not meet one (1) or more of the minimum standards as set out in subsection (a) of this section may be declared dilapidated, substandard or unfit for human habitation and a hazard to the public health, safety and welfare in accordance with the provisions of this article.

(c)

In addition to and notwithstanding the foregoing minimum standards, all buildings, and structures, regardless of their date of construction, that have any or all of the following defects or lack of facilities are deemed to be dilapidated, substandard or unfit for human habitation and a danger to the public health, safety and welfare:

(1)

Walls or other vertical structural members that list, lean or buckle in excess of one-quarter inch of horizontal measurement for each foot of vertical measurement;

(2)

Thirty-three (33) percent or more damage or deterioration of the supporting member, or fifty (50) percent or more damage or deterioration of the non-supporting members or outside walls or coverings;

(3)

Roofs or walls that are not weathertight and waterproof;

(4)

Improperly distributed loads upon the floors or roofs or in which the floors are overloaded, or which floors or roofs have insufficient strength to be reasonably safe for the purpose used;

(5)

Parts that are not properly attached so that they may fall or injure members of the public or property;

(6)

Light, air or sanitation facilities that are inadequate to protect the life, safety or the general health and welfare of the structure's occupants or inhabitants of the city;

(7)

Unsafe or defective electrical wiring, devices or equipment, or unsafe or defective gas piping or appliances that are liable to cause or promote fires;

(8)

Damage by fire, explosion, wind, vandalism, elements of nature or otherwise so as to be hazardous to the life, safety or the general health and welfare of the structure's occupants or inhabitants of the city;

(9)

Dilapidated, decayed, unsafe, unsanitary or substandard conditions or any conditions that fail to provide amenities essential to decent living so that the premises are unfit for human habitation or are likely to cause sickness or disease so as to cause injury to the public health, safety, and welfare;

(10)

Conditions that violate any provision of this article to such an extent as to be a danger to the public health, safety, and welfare, including but not limited to the following:

a.

Buildings or structures that have become deteriorated through natural causes or by damages through exposure to the elements, especially wind, hail, rain or damage through fire to the extent that the roof, windows or doors or portions of the building or structure that protect the interior from the weather, no longer reasonably protect from the weather;

b.

Buildings or structures that are so structurally deteriorated that they are in danger of collapse, or which cannot be expected to withstand the forces of nature;

c.

Buildings or structures not wired so as to provide in operating condition electrical circuits sufficient to safely carry a load imposed by normal use of appliances and fixtures;

d.

Buildings or structures of which the floors, walls, ceilings, and all supporting members are not capable of bearing imposed loads safely;

e.

Buildings or structures so deteriorated or constructed or permitted to be constructed as to constitute a menace to the health or safety, including all conditions conducive to the harboring of rats or mice or other disease-carrying animals or insects, reasonably calculated to spread disease, and including such conditions hazardous to safety as inadequate bracing or use of deteriorated materials;

f.

Buildings or structures that constitute or in which are maintained fire hazards as that term is defined by the ordinances of the city;

g.

Buildings or structures substantially in noncompliance with the requirements of the city's building code, electrical code, plumbing code, fire code, or other applicable codes of the city such that said building or structures constitute a menace or hazard to the public health, safety and welfare;

h.

Buildings or structures so dilapidated or substandard as to be unfit for human habitation; or

i.

Buildings or structures that, because of activities involving the sale, use or abuse on said premises or illicit drugs or alcohol or other similar activities as certified to by the chief of police, a city health officer or a designee of any of the foregoing individuals, constitute a fire hazard or a menace to the health, safety, and welfare of the citizens of the city. Or—

(11)

Buildings and structures, regardless of their structural condition, that have during times that they were not actually occupied by their owners, lessees or other legal invitees, been left unsecured from unauthorized entry to the extent that they may be entered by vagrants or other uninvited persons as a place of harborage or could be entered by children.

(d)

A building that is boarded up, fenced or otherwise secured in any manner is nevertheless declared to be a substandard building under the foregoing criteria of Subsection (c) if:

(1)

The building constitutes a danger to the public even though secured from entry;

(2)

The building's roof, walls or floor contains holes that would allow insects, ectoparasites, rodents or other pests to gain access to the building for harborage to the extent constituting a present hazard to health or safety; or

(3)

It is found that the means used to secure the building are inadequate to prevent unauthorized entry or use of the building.

(e)

A building that does not meet the minimum standards of subsection (a) or that is determined to be a substandard building under subsections (c) and (d) above is referred to in this article as a "Substandard Building".

(Ord. No. 17-121 , 11-14-17)