09-28-2016 Workshop Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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STAFF REPORT TO: Mayor Keis and Members of the City Council FROM: Jessica Jagoe, Associate Planner DATE: September 22, 2016 RE: Nuisance Ordinance One of our 2016 goals to address was vacant commercial property maintenance, upkeep, and enforcement. From that goal, the Council held a workshop in May to discuss with staff provisions of the city code which could either be added or amended to address these concerns. The ordinance which covered most of the items expressed was our City Nuisance code. However, there were areas of the code which needed to be amended to meet current standards and timeliness of enforcement, plus a few new provisions. Staff has reviewed several other city ordinances and found that the City of Minnetonka had an ordinance that encompassed several of the situations the group had identified. The League of Minnesota Cities also has a sample nuisance ordinance that staff has referenced and modified some of our ordinance language based on their recommended text. I’ve highlighted below some of the more significant changes made -  Addition of more detailed Lawn Maintenance Standards (i.e. types of grass, length of tall grasses, noxious weeds)  Addition of Building Maintenance Standards (not an adoption of the International Building Code standards, but addresses upkeep and lack of maintenance)  Abatement Actions (i.e. timing of notice, repeat violations, and quick abatements for grass)  Created subsection within ordinance specific to Inoperable Vehicles (Note: 601.050 j & k which were previously for junk vehicles has been moved to this new section. The provisions being added are new to the nuisance ordinance using the existing lettering format.)  Adding Graffiti Ordinance (separate ordinance with reference in nuisance section)  Including Section 903-General Provisions of Zoning Code as a Nuisance if in violation (i.e. outdoor storage, signage, fence, off-street parking, glare which give us the ability to abate) I’ve included with this memo, staff’s revised Nuisance Ordinance, new Graffiti Ordinance and Section 903 of the Zoning Code for your review. If time in the workshop allows for another topic, staff would like to have a general discussion about the square foot allowance for outdoor storage in the I-P Zoning District. At the inception of the I-P District, the area allowed for outdoor storage was greater than today’s standard. Staff would like to review outdoor storage in this district, the square footage allowed, and if the current allowance is satisfactory or if changes should be considered. This was a late discussion topic so staff will have more information available at the workshop.