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Staff Report To: Mike Mornson From: John Malenick, Fire Chief Date: May 15, 2007 Re: Ordinance Review /Changes Background: After the 2007 Goal Setting session, staff was directed to explore and propose possible improvements to current city ordinances as they pertain to property maintenance. Of particular concern was how the current code addressed rental property fees and inspections. To this end, staff began researching the ordinances of various neighboring cities as well as state and federal law regarding property maintenance. In addition, the city attorney's office (Foster and Brever) was contacted for legal considerations of implementing an enforceable property inspection program. Findings: Staff has found that several of our neighbors have adopted the use of the International Property Maintenance Code (IPMC) to enforce their property maintenance requirements. The IPMC was developed by the International Code Council and is compatible with all other International Codes. St. Anthony currently enforces the International Building Code, Electrical Code and the International Fire Code. The IPMC is a comprehensive document covering the exterior property areas as well as the exterior and interior of all city structures. This includes occupancy limitations and safety requirements for existing residential and nonresidential structures. The administrative chapter provides for the duties and powers of the code official with respect to the formation of an inspection program. Provisions have been made in the code for the insertion of local preferences such as the maximum height of vegetation. The IPMC is also superseded by local ordinance and as such can be amended by St. Anthony to more closely reflect our needs. Staff has also prepared a sample ordinance pertaining specifically to rental property including licensing and new fee structure proposals, something not addressed in the IPMC. The sample ordinance also includes an appeals process that would include a hearing before the City Council prior to any misdemeanor charges being pursued. We have also begun research into granting code officials authority to issue citations for misdemeanor noncompliance violations and will further pursue this at council/ manager direction. More research is needed into legal ramifications and where the citation fits into the process, before or after appeals. In addition, we have explored the possible costs that would be incurred with a more formal property inspection program. This includes an estimated 15 to 20 hours per week of