It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to maintain, permit or allow any nuisance within the City.

(a)   “Nuisance” is defined to be an annoyance; any use of property by one which gives offense to or endangers the life or health of another, violates the laws of decency, unreasonably pollutes the air with foul, noxious odors or smoke, or obstructs the reasonable and comfortable use and enjoyment of the property of another and includes, but is not limited to, the following:

(1)   Stagnant ponds or pools of water;

(2)   Rank vegetation;

(3)   Dead animals allowed to remain twenty-four (24) hours or more after death;

(4)   Any junked, wrecked or inoperable vehicle;

(5)   Any accumulation of filth, excrement, lumber, rocks, dirt, or any open pit from which rocks, or dirt, or both have been removed, and any accumulation of refuse or garbage contrary to Section 15-1208;

(6)   Any icebox, refrigerator, or other container, the keeping of which is declared unlawful by Section 11-213;

(7)   Trees, shrubs, or other growths kept or maintained contrary to Section 13-407;

(8)   Structures, temporary or otherwise, stationary or moveable, which are situated upon any public way contrary to Section 12-501; and

(9)   Any other condition which is specifically declared to be a nuisance by any other provision now or hereinafter enacted and incorporated into the Garnett Municipal Code; which is, or in combination are, a menace and dangerous to the health of the inhabitants of the City or of any neighborhood, family, or resident of the City.

(b)   In determining whether or not a vehicle is “junked, wrecked, or inoperable” the following factors shall be taken into account, but shall not in and of themselves be conclusive:

(1)   The vehicle, if of the class permitted or required to be registered or tagged pursuant to the provisions of K.S.A. 8-126, et seq., either is not currently registered or tagged under those sections; or in the alternative is not covered by a nonhighway title certificate or an antique title.

(2)   The vehicle has for a period of thirty (30) consecutive days or longer been placed upon jacks, blocks, or other supports or allowed to lie on its side or top.

(3)   Absence of one or more parts of the vehicle necessary for the lawful operation of the vehicle upon street or highway.

However, no vehicle shall be considered to constitute a nuisance if the same is enclosed in a garage or other building; is screened with a structure or a natural screen of sufficient size, strength, and density so as to preclude such vehicle or the silhouette thereof from ready and easy view by other persons or access to the same by children; or is possessed or held by any person conducting a business enterprise in compliance with existing City zoning regulations and applicable Federal or Kansas laws. Any screen which constitutes a structure shall be erected or installed in conformity with all applicable zoning and building regulations of the City.

(Code 1961, 8-7-1; Ord. 2922; Code 2023)

The City Manager shall make inquiry and inspection of premises reported or believed to be a nuisance upon receiving a complaint or complaints in writing signed in the aggregate by two (2) or more persons stating that a nuisance exists and describing the same and where located; or when the City Manager is informed that a nuisance may exist by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, the Southeast Kansas Multi-County Health District, or other health board having jurisdiction in the area, the Chief of Police, or the Fire Chief. The City Manager may make such inquiry and inspection when he or she observes conditions which appear to constitute a nuisance and shall make such an inspection upon being directed to do so by resolution of the City Commission of Garnett. Upon making any inquiry and inspection, the City Manager shall make a written report of his findings and file such report with the City Clerk. All complaints shall be investigated without unnecessary delay. The City Manager may (and shall upon request of the Governing Body) make an interim report on the status of any investigation underway, but not resolved, if it has been thirty (30) days or longer since the complaint was made.

(Code 1961, 8-7-2; Ord. 2899; Code 2023)

(a)   Whenever necessary to make an inspection of any building, structure or premises to determine if a nuisance exists, or whenever the public officer has cause to believe that there exists therein any condition which endangers the public health, the public officer is authorized to enter such building, structure or premises at all reasonable times to inspect the same and to exercise any power or authority or to perform any duty imposed upon the public officer under this code.

(b)   The authority granted to the public officer by subsection (a) of this section is subject to the following:

(1)   If the building, structure or premises is occupied, the public officer shall first present proper credentials, explain the purpose for which admittance is desired and demand entry.

(2)   If such property is unoccupied, the public officer shall first make a reasonable effort to locate the owner or other person having charge or control of the property, present proper credentials, explain the purpose for which admittance is desired and demand entry.

(3)   If the public officer is refused admission or cannot locate the owner or occupant, the public officer shall refrain from entering until authorized to do so by proper judicial authority.

 (Code 1961, 8-7-3; Code 2023)

Any person, corporation, partnership, or association owning or otherwise in possession of or in charge of the premises which after inquiry and inspection appear to be in violation of this article shall be served with a notice requiring such owner or agent to remove and abate from the premises the thing or things therein described as a nuisance within a fixed period of time not to exceed ten (10) days, which time shall be specified in the notice and such notice shall also state that before the expiration of such time period the recipient thereof may request a hearing before the City Manager, who is hereby designated the official representative of the Governing Body for such purpose.

(Code 1961, 8-7-4; Code 2023)

This notice shall be served upon the owner or agent of such property by certified mail or by personal service; or if the premises is unoccupied and the owner is a nonresident, then by mailing a notice by certified mail to the last known address of the owner.

(Code 1961, 8-7-5; Code 2023)

Should the owner or agent of the owner of such property fail to comply with the requirements of the notice for a period longer than that named in the notice or fails within such period to request a hearing before the City Manager, the City Manager may file a complaint in the Municipal Court against such owner or agent of the owner alleging a violation of the provisions of this article and upon conviction such person shall be fined in an amount not to exceed one hundred dollars ($100.00) or be imprisoned for a period of not to exceed thirty (30) days, or by both such fine and imprisonment. Each day during which the condition continues after notice has been served shall constitute an additional or separate offense.

(Code 1961, 8-7-6; Code 2023)

(a)   In addition to, or as an alternative to prosecution as provided in section 8-206, the City Manager may seek to remedy violations of this article in the following manner. If a person to whom an order has been served pursuant to section 8-204 has neither alleviated the conditions causing the alleged violation nor requested a hearing before the Governing Body within the time periods specified in section 8-204, the City Manager may present a resolution to the Governing Body for adoption authorizing the public officer or other agents of the city to abate the conditions causing the violation at the end of 10 days after passage of the resolution. The resolution shall further provide that the costs incurred by the city shall be charged against the lot or parcel of ground on which the nuisance was located as provided in section 8-208. A copy of the resolution shall be served upon the person in violation in one of the following ways:

(1)   Personal service upon the person in violation;

(2)   Certified mail, return receipt requested; or

(3)   In the event the whereabouts of such person are unknown and the same cannot be ascertained in the exercise of reasonable diligence, an affidavit to that effect shall be made by the City Manager and filed with the City Clerk, and the serving of the resolution shall be made by publishing the same once each week for two consecutive weeks in the official city newspaper and by posting a copy of the resolution on the premises where such condition exists.

(b)   If the owner or the agent of the owner of the property has failed to accept delivery or otherwise failed to effectuate receipt of a notice or order sent pursuant to this section during the preceding 24 month period, the Governing Body of the city may provide notice of the issuance of any further orders to abate or remove a nuisance from such property or provide notice of the order by such methods including, but not limited to, door hangers, conspicuously posting notice of such order on the property, personal notification, telephone communication or first class mail. If the property is unoccupied and the owner is a nonresident, notice provided by this section shall be given by telephone communication or first class mail.

(Code 1961, 8-7-7; Code 2023)

If the cost of such removal or abatement and notice is not paid within the thirty (30) day period so provided, the cost shall be collected in the manner provided by K.S.A. 12-1,115 and any amendments thereto or shall be assessed and charged against the lot or parcel of ground on which the nuisance was located. The cost is to be assessed against the lot or parcel by the City Clerk, at the time of certifying other City taxes to the County Clerk, shall certify the aforesaid costs and the County Clerk shall extend the same on the tax roll of the county against the lot or parcel of ground and it shall be collected by the County Treasurer and paid to the city as other taxes are collected and paid as provided by law. The City may pursue collection both by levying a special assessment and in the manner provided by K.S.A. 12-1,115 and any amendments thereto, but only until the full cost and any applicable interest has been paid in full.

(Code 1961, 8-7-8; Code 2023)

If a hearing is requested within the ten (10) day period as provided in Section 8-204, such request shall be made in writing to the City Clerk. Failure to make a timely request for a hearing shall constitute a waiver of the owner or agent of the owner’s right to contest the findings of the public officer before the City. The hearing shall be convened by the City Manager as soon as possible after the filing of the request and the person shall be advised by the City of the time and place of such hearing, not less than five (5) days in advance thereof. At such a hearing the owner or agent of the owner may be represented by an attorney and the City, acting through the City Manager and the City Attorney, may introduce such witnesses or documentary evidence as is necessary. The hearing need not be conducted following formal rules of evidence. Upon conclusion of the hearing, the City Manager shall either ratify his earlier findings; modify them as appears appropriate based upon the evidence adduced at the hearing, including, if appropriate, to set them aside. If the owner or agent of the owner remains aggrieved, he shall be entitled to appeal the City Manager’s decision but until such appeal is actually filed the City Manager’s findings, either originally or as modified after the hearing, shall be in full force and effect and entitle the City to proceed with prosecution or abatement.

(Code 1961, 8-7-9; Ord. 2876; Code 2023)