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HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrd 1078-1990ORDINANCE NO. 1078-90 AN ORDINANCE ADDING CHAPTER 10.20 TO TITLE 10 OF THE SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO MUNICIPAL CODE PERTAINING TO LOUD OR UNRULY GATHERINGS THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO DOES ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. A new chapter, Chapter 10.20, "Loud or Unruly Gatherings", is hereby added to read: CHAPTER 10.20 LOUD OR UNRULY GATHERINGS Sections: 10.20.010 10.20.020 10.20.030 10.20.040 10.20.050 10.20.060 10.20.070 10.20.080 10.20.090 10.20.100 10.20.110 Authority and purpose. Definition. Nuisance declared. Notification of liability for costs of subsequent response. Persons liable for costs of subsequent response. Subsequent response deemed to be special assignment. Cost limit; remedies. Recovery of costs. Billing. Appeals. Nonpayment. Section 10.20.010 Authority and purpose. This chapter is enacted pursuant to the authority of Government Code Sections 38771 through 38773.5 and pursuant to the police powers of the City of South San Francisco. The purpose of this chapter is to identify activity which constitutes a public nuisance, to provide for the summary abatement of such a nuisance at the expense of persons creating, causing, committing or maintaining it, and to promote the public peace, health, safety and welfare by minimizing the frequency of occurrences necessitating calls for service to loud or unruly gatherings which disturb the public peace and threaten the general welfare. Section 10.20.020 Definition. For the purposes of this chapter, a "loud or unruly gathering" shall mean a social gathering of three or more people, such as a party, where persons are engaged in activities which a police officer at the scene determines is a threat to the peace, health, safety or general welfare of the public, in accord with Penal Code Section 415, or which constitute an obstruction to the free use of property so as to interfere with the comfortable enjoyment of life or property of any other person, as proscribed by Penal Code Section 370. Section 10.20.030 Nuisance declared. It is hereby declared that loud or unruly gatherings which create a threat to the public peace, health, safety or welfare constitute a public nuisance. No person, firm, corportion, association or other legal entity owning, leasing, renting or occupying real property in the city shall create, cause, commit, maintain or permit such a public nuisance to occur on such property. Section 10.20.040 Notification of liability for costs of subsequent response. When a police officer at the scene determines that there is a loud or unruly gathering, the police officer shall notify the owner of the premises, the tenants of the premises, the person in lawful custody of the premises, or the person responsible for committing, creating, causing, or maintaining the gathering, that the gathering constitutes a public nuisance and that such persons shall be held jointly and severally liable for the costs incurred for providing police personnel for a subsequent response to the same premises due to a continuation of the same conduct. In addition, the police officer shall notify the responsible person that the gathering shall be dispersed upon the second response. If, after a good faith effort, no such responsible person can be determined, the warning may be given to any person in attendance. Section 10.20.050 Persons liable for costs of subsequent response. The costs incurred by the police department for a subsequent response to a loud or unruly gathering shall be a personal obligation of the persons who created, caused, committed, maintained or engaged in the activity requiring a response. If any person responsible for, or engaged in, such activities is a minor, the minor's parents or guardians also shall be liable for costs. Section 10.20.060 Subsequent response deemed to be special assignment. The first response and warning shall be deemed to be normal police service. Personnel utilized on a subsequent response shall be deemed to be on special assignment. The costs incurred from such special assignment are declared to be beyond normal services provided by the police department. Section 10.20.070 Cost limit; remedies. The costs of such special assignment include all personnel and equipment costs, and administrative overhead costs. The police department will determine the reasonable cost of such special assignment, which shall not exceed $1,000.00 for a single response. Any damage to city property and any injuries to city personnel may be recovered separately. The remedy provided by this chapter shall be in addition to any other remedy provided by law, and shall not be construed to limit or replace any other remedies, civil or criminal, which may be available. -2- Section 10.20.080 Recovery of costs. The costs of such a special assignment shall be a personal obligation of the persons deemed liable under Section 10.20.050 for such costs. In addition, the costs of such special assignment may be made a special assessment against the property on which the nuisance was maintained and shall be a personal obligation against the property owner as herein set forth. Section 10.20.090 Billing. When the city has incurred response costs as set forth in this chapter, the actual cost thereof, plus accrued interest at the rate of ten percent (10%) per annum from the date of billing, shall be charged to the person or persons responsible. The person or persons responsible under this chapter shall be billed by mail and the bill shall apprise them that failure to pay the bill may result in a special assessment on the involved property. Section 10.20.100 Appeals. (a) Any person who has been notified by the city that he or she is liable for response costs in accordance with this chapter may appeal to the city manager for a hearing. The appeal shall be in writing, shall be signed by the appellant, and shall set forth the facts and reasons upon which the appeal is based. The appeal shall be filed within ten (10) days following the date of official written notice to the appellant that he or she will be held liable for such costs. (b) The city manager, or the manager's designee, will schedule a hearing. The appellant shall be notified in writing at least five (5) days in advance of the hearing. (c) The city manager, or the manager's designee, shall hear the appeal and determine whether to allow the relief being sought or to deny the appeal. The manager has the authority to reduce or compromise the debt as in the manager's judgment appears to be in the best interests of the city. (d) If the city manager denies the appeal, that decision may be appealed to the city council by filing a written notice of appeal, signed by the appellant, with the city clerk within ten (10) days following the date of the manager's written decision. The appeal shall be scheduled for a hearing before the council and the appellant shall be notified in writing at least five (5) days in advance of the hearing. (e) Upon denial of an appeal, the appellant shall have thirty (30) days to pay the applicable response costs, or the city may commence proceedings to collect such sums as are due as provided by law and, where applicable, to place a special assessment upon the involved property. -3- Section 10.20.110 Nonpayment. When the full amount due to the city for subsequent response costs as set forth in this chapter is not paid by the person or persons responsible within thirty (30) days of the date of the billing for such costs, the finance director may file with the office of the tax collector of the county of San Mateo a declaration that payment was not received along with a request that the amount be imposed as a special assessment on the property pursuant to Government Code Section 38773.5. The remedy provided in this section shall not constitute an election of remedies by the city. SECTION 2. SEVERABILITY. In the event any section or portion of this ordinance, or the application thereof in a given circumstance, is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by the decision of any court of competent jurisdiction, such section or portion shall be deemed severable and such decision shall not affect the validity of all remaining sections or portions hereof, which shall remain in full force and effect. SECTION 3. PUBLICATION AND EFFECTIVE DATE This ordinance shall be published once, with the names of those City Council members voting for or against it, in the Enterprise-Journal, a newspaper of general circulation in the City of South San Francisco, as required by law, and shall become effective thirty (30) days from and after its adoption. Introduced at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of South San Francisco, held the 14th day of March , 1990. Adopted as an Ordinance of the City of South San Francisco at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of South San Francisco, held the 28th day of March , 1990, by the following vote: AYES: Councilmembers Jack Drago, Gus Nicolopulos, John R. Penna Roberta Cerri Teglia, and Mayor Richard A. Haffey NOES: None ABSTAIN: None ABSENT: None ~dATTEST: ~ty Clerk~~ . As Mayor of the City of South San Francisco, I do hereby approve the foregoing Ordinance this 28th day of-4- March ~~"t ~~