Chapter 8.01
PUBLIC NUISANCES*
Sections:
8.01.010 Definitions.
8.01.020 Prohibited conduct.
8.01.030 Types of nuisances.
8.01.040 Authorized act not a public nuisance.
8.01.050 Violation – Penalty.
*Editor’s note – Ord. No. 3111, § 4, adopted May 18, 1993, repealed former ch. 8.01 in its entirety, which pertained to similar subject matter. Section 5 of said Ord. No. 3111 added a new ch. 8.01 to read as herein set out.
Cross reference(s) – Environmental policy, Ch. 11.03; buildings, Ch. 14.01; dangerous buildings, § 14.01.080; performance standards, § 15.08.050.
State law reference(s) – Nuisances, RCW 9.66.010 et seq.; public health authority, RCW 35A.70.070; abandoned or unclaimed property, RCW 63.32.010 et seq.; disposition of certain unclaimed property, RCW 63.21.010 et seq.; local health departments, RCW 70.05.010 et seq.; mosquito control, RCW 70.22.010 et seq.
8.01.010 Definitions.
The following words, terms and phrases, when used in this chapter, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:
Abate means to repair, replace, remove, destroy, or otherwise remedy a condition which constitutes violation of this chapter by such means and in such a manner and to such an extent as the applicable department director determines is necessary in the interest of the general health, safety, and welfare of the community.
Building materials means and includes lumber, plumbing materials, wallboard, sheet metal, plaster, brick, cement, asphalt, concrete block, roofing material, cans of paint, and similar materials.
Director means the director of the department in charge of code enforcement or his or her designee or any designated alternate who is empowered by ordinance or by the mayor to enforce this chapter including assigned code enforcement officials.
Person means any individual firm, association, partnership, corporation, or any other entity, public or private.
Premises means any building, lot, parcel, real estate, or land or portion of land whether improved or unimproved, including adjacent sidewalks, public rights-of-way, and parking strips and any lake, river, stream, drainage way, or wetland.
(Ord. No. 3111, § 5, 5-18-93)
8.01.020 Prohibited conduct.
It is a violation of this chapter for any person to permit, create, maintain, or allow, upon any premises, any of the acts or things declared in KCC 8.01.030 to be a public nuisance.
(Ord. No. 3111, § 5, 5-18-93)
8.01.030 Types of nuisances.
Each of the following conditions, unless otherwise permitted by law, is declared to constitute a public nuisance, and whenever the director determines that any of these conditions exist upon any premises, the director may provide for the abatement thereof and monetary penalties may be assessed pursuant to Ch. 1.04 KCC, Code Enforcement:
1. The existence of any trash, dirt, filth, the carcass of any animal, manure or rubbish, accumulation of yard trimmings, excluding properly maintained yard compost, or other matter which is offensive to a reasonable person; except for such yard debris that is properly contained and concealed as not to affect the health, safety, or depreciation of adjoining property for the purpose of composting.
2. Erecting, maintaining, using, placing, depositing, leaving, or permitting to be or remain in or upon any premises, which may be viewed or smelled from without the premises, or in or upon any street, alley, sidewalk, park, parkway, or other public or private place in the city, any one (1) or more of the following disorderly, disturbing, unsanitary, fly-producing, rat-harboring, disease-causing places, conditions, or things:
a. Any putrid, unhealthy, or unwholesome bones, meat, hides, skins, the whole or any part of any dead animal, fish, or fowl, or waste parts of fish, vegetable, or animal matter in any quantity; but nothing herein shall prevent the temporary retention of waste in approved covered receptacles; or
b. Any privies, vaults, cesspools, open containers of stagnant water, sumps, pits, or like places which are not securely protected from flies and rats, or which are malodorous; or
c. An accumulation of material including but not limited to bottles, cans, glass, plastic, ashes, scrap metal, wire bric-a-brac, broken stone or cement, broken crockery, broken glass, broken plaster, litter, rags, empty barrels, boxes, crates, packing cases, mattresses, bedding, packing hay, straw, or other packing material or building materials on any premises which not properly stored or neatly piled or is offensive to a reasonable person or in which flies or rats may breed or multiply; or
d. Accumulation of any litter, garbage, trash, refuse, and/or rubbish; or
e. The keeping, using, or maintaining of any pen, stable, lot, place, or premises in which any hog, cattle, or fowl may be confined or kept in such a manner as to be nauseous, foul, or offensive.
3. The existence of any fence or other structure on private property abutting or fronting upon any public street, sidewalk, or place which is in a sagging, leaning, fallen, decayed, or other dilapidated or unsafe condition.
4. The existence of wrecked or disassembled trailers, house trailers, boats, tractors, or other vehicle, appliance, or machinery of any kind, or any major parts thereof.
5. The existence on any premises of any abandoned or unused well, pit, shaft, cistern, or storage tank without first demolishing or removing from the premises such storage tank, or securely closing and barring any entrance or trapdoor thereto or without filling any well, pit, shaft, or cistern or capping the same with sufficient security to prevent access thereto.
6. The existence in a place accessible to children of any attractive nuisance dangerous to children, including but not limited to any abandoned, broken, or neglected equipment, machinery, refrigerator, freezer, or other large appliance.
7. Dense smoke, noxious fumes, gas, and soot, or cinders, in unreasonable quantities.
8. All snow and ice not removed from public sidewalks within a reasonable time after the snow and ice have ceased to be deposited thereon.
9. All trees, hedges, billboards, fences, or other obstructions which prevent persons from having a clear view of traffic approaching an intersection from cross streets in sufficient time to bring a motor vehicle driven at a legal speed to a full stop before the intersection is reached.
10. Any use of property abutting on a public street or sidewalk or any use of a public street or sidewalk which causes large crowds of people to gather, obstructing traffic and the free use of the streets or sidewalks. This subsection shall not apply to events, programs, or parades authorized by the city council.
11. Any poisonous or harmful substance which is reasonably accessible to persons or to animals.
12. The keeping or harboring of any animal which by frequent or habitual howling, yelping, barking, or the making of other noises, or the keeping or harboring of any fowl which by frequent habitual crowing or the making of other noises shall annoy or disturb a neighborhood or any considerable number of persons.
13. Every building or unit within a building used for the purpose of unlawfully manufacturing, delivering, selling, storing, or giving away any controlled substance as defined in Chapter 69.50 RCW, legend drug as defined in Chapter 69.41 RCW, or imitation controlled substance as defined in Chapter 69.52 RCW, and every building or unit within a building wherein or upon which such acts take place.
14. Soils contaminated by dangerous waste, hazardous substances, or hazardous wastes as those terms are defined in RCW 70.105.010.
15. The existence of graffiti on public property or on private property where the graffiti is visible from any vantage point located on public property, a railway, or any property open for business to the public. As used in this subsection, graffiti shall mean any unauthorized inscription, word, figure, picture, graphics, or design that is sprayed, painted, posted, pasted, drawn, or otherwise affixed to or upon any surface of public or private property. Signs regulated by Ch. 15.06 KCC shall not constitute graffiti under this section.
(Ord. No. 3111, § 5, 5-18-93; Ord. No. 3849, § 1, 8‑7-07)
8.01.040 Authorized act not a public nuisance.
No act which is done or maintained under the express authority of a statute or ordinance can be deemed a public nuisance.
(Ord. No. 3111, § 5, 5-18-93)
8.01.050 Violation – Penalty.
A. Any violation of any provision of this chapter constitutes a civil violation under Ch. 1.04 KCC for which a monetary penalty may be assessed and abatement may be required as provided therein.
B. In addition to or as an alternative to any other penalty provided in this chapter or by law, any person who violates any provision of this chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor pursuant to KCC 1.01.140.
C. As an alternative to any other penalty provided in this chapter, pursuant to a violation of KCC 8.01.030(13), abatement proceedings may be instituted under Chapter 7.43 RCW.
(Ord. No. 3111, § 5, 5-18-93)