05-25-2005 Council Agenda - Laserfiche WebLink

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-8b- Section 12 -900. PURPOSE. It is the purpose of this section to assure that rental housing in the city is decent, safe and sanitary and is so operated and maintained as not to become a nuisance to the neighborhood or to become an influence that fosters blight and deterioration or creates a disincentive to reinvestment in the community. The operation of rental residential properties is a business enterprise that entails certain responsibilities. Operators are responsible to take such reasonable steps as are necessary to assure that the citizens of the city who occupy such units may pursue the quiet enjoyment of the normal activities of' life in surroundings that are: safe, secure and sanitary; free from noise, nuisances or annoyances; free from unreasonable fears about safety of persons and security of property; and suitable for raising children. Section 12 -901. LICENSING OF RENTAL UNITS. 1. License Required. No person shall operate a rental dwelling without first having obtained a license to do so from the City of Brooklyn Center as hereinafter provided. There shall be two types of licenses: regular and provisional. Provisional licenses are defined in Section 12 -913. 2. License Term. Regular licenses will be issued for a period of two years. Provisional licenses will be issued for a period of six months. All licenses, regular and provisional, will be reviewed every six months after the beginning of the license term to determine the license status. 3. License renewal. License renewals shall be filed at least 90 days prior to license expiration date. Within two weeks of receipt of a complete application and of the license fee required by Section 12 -902, the Compliance official shall schedule an inspection. No application for an initial or renewal license shall be submitted to the city council until the Compliance official has determined that all life, health safety violations or discrepancies have been corrected. 4. Condition of License. Prior to issuance or renewal of a license and at all times during the license term, a license holder must be current on the payment of all utility fees, taxes, and assessments due on the licensed property and any other rental real property in the city owned by the license holder. In the event a suit has been commenced under Minnesota Statutes, Section 278.01- 278.03, questioning the amount or validity of taxes, the City Council may on application waive strict compliance with this provision; no waiver may be granted, however, for taxes or any portion thereof which remain unpaid for a period exceeding one (1) year after becoming due. Section 12 -902. LICENSE FEES. License fees, as set forth by city council resolution, shall be due 90 days prior to the license expiration date; in the cases of new unlicensed dwellings, license fees shall be due upon issuance of the certificate of occupancy. A delinquency penalty of 5% of the license fee for each day of operation without a valid license shall be charged operators of rental dwellings. Once issued a license is nontransferable and the licensee shall not be entitled to a refund of any license fee upon revocation or suspension; however, the licensee shall be entitled to a license fee refund, prorated monthly, upon proof of transfer of legal control or ownership. City of Brooklyn Center 12 -14 City Ordinance