Procedure to Mitigate Demolition by Neglect. Demolition by Neglect refers to the gradual deterioration of a property when routine or minimum maintenance is not performed. The Historic Preservation Officer and various City departments work together in an effort to reduce Demolition by Neglect involving Landmarks or properties located within Districts within the City. A Demolition by Neglect citation as determined by the Historic Preservation Commission may be issued against the owner of the property for failure to comply with the minimum maintenance standards (F above) by permitting the subject property to exhibit serious disrepair or significant deterioration as outlined in this Section.
1. Due to the time consuming nature of pursuing enforcement under this section, no more than one property will be under consideration during each of the following quarters (January-March, April-June, July-September, and October-December).
2. While the Historic Preservation Officer will act as the point of contact, appropriate City staff shall, when needed, assist with inspections.
3. The procedure for citing a property for Demolition by Neglect shall be as follows:
a. Initial identification is made by visual inspection of the area by the Historic Preservation Officer or a Historic Preservation Commission member or by referral from someone in the area. All referrals shall be made in writing and shall be submitted to the Historic Preservation Officer.
b. Once the initial identification is made, followed by a preliminary determination by the Historic Preservation Officer, the property owner shall be notified by US mail of the defects of the building and informed of various incentive programs that may be available for repair. The owner is given thirty (30) days in which to respond to the preliminary determination by submitting a stabilization proposal to Historic Preservation Officer. The stabilization proposal will be presented to the Historic Preservation Commission at the next available meeting. If the Historic Preservation Commission approves the proposal, a Certificate of Appropriateness (if necessary) may be issued administratively by the Historic Preservation Officer. The approval will detail the specific work which is necessary to correct the Demolition by Neglect conditions, as well as a time period to begin and complete the work. The Historic Preservation Officer shall update the Historic Preservation Commission on the status of the property every thirty (30) days once work begins on the property.
c. If the property owner receives the letter regarding the preliminary determination, but fails to respond, a second notice shall be sent in the same manner as described above.
d. If the property owner fails to receive and/or respond to the letter regarding the preliminary determination after two (2) attempts, the matter returns to the Historic Preservation Commission for a citation hearing. The Historic Preservation Officer shall send a third notice via certified mail informing the owner of the hearing, the property is posted with a notice of the violation in accordance with the provisions of this Section, and a public hearing on the citation is scheduled.
e. At the public hearing the owner is invited to address the Historic Preservation Commission concerns and to show cause why a citation should not be issued. The Historic Preservation Commission may take action to approve any proposed work, defer the matter to give the owner more time either to correct the deficiencies or make a proposal for stabilization, or issue a citation to the owner of the property for failure to correct the Demolition by Neglect conditions.
f. If the owner is cited for the condition of Demolition by Neglect of the property, he is given fourteen (14) days to submit a stabilization proposal to the Historic Preservation Officer, and at the discretion of the Historic Preservation Commission, up to one (1) year to correct the defects. The Historic Preservation Officer shall update the Historic Preservation Commission on the status of the property every thirty (30) days once work begins on the property.
g. If the owner does respond with a stabilization proposal, the matter is turned over to the City Attorney’s office for action in Municipal Court.
