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ITEM: ORDINANCE NO. 2014-23 (ARTICLE 14)
AN ORDINANCE OF WELLINGTON, FLORIDA'S COUNCIL AMENDING ARTICLE 14, ENFORCEMENT PROCEEDINGS AND PENALTIES OF THE LAND DEVELOPMENT REGULATIONS OF THE VILLAGE OF WELLINGTON; TO PROHIBIT THE ISSUANCE OF BUILDING PERMITS AND ALLOW SUSPENSION OF ISSUED PERMITS, ALLOW SUSPENSION OF THE CONDUCTING OF INSPECTIONS AND/OR THE GRANTING OF CERTIFICATES OF COMPLETION OR OCCUPANCY FOR PROPERTIES WITH OPEN CODE VIOLATION CASES OR OUTSTANDING CODE ENFORCEMENT LIENS OR FINES; TO PROHIBIT THE PROCESSING AND CONSIDERATION OF LAND DEVELOPMENT AND/OR USE APPROVAL APPLICATIONS FOR PROPERTIES WITH OPEN CODES ENFORCEMENT CASES AND/OR OUTSTANDING CODE ENFORCEMENT LIENS AND/OR FINES; PROVIDING A CONFLICTS CLAUSE; PROVIDING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
REQUEST: Approval of Ordinance No. 2014-23 amending Article 14 of the Land Development Regulations; expanding potential administrative penalties, other than fine amounts, for outstanding violations, fines and liens.
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EXPLANATION: Currently Article 14 simply provides that no building permits or certificates of occupancy may be issued unless compliant with this Code or other ordinances and laws, and consistent with a decision of the Planning, Zoning and Adjustment Board or court decision. The proposed amendments make the following changes:
· Adds the Village Council to the list of entities whose decisions must be complied with, since most final land use decisions are made by Council.
· No building permit or certificate of occupancy shall be issued on property that has an open code enforcement case (a case which has been found by the Special Magistrate to be a violation of a Wellington Code, and which has not been corrected by the property owner), except where such permit is necessary to resolve said violation or to make emergency repairs.
· No land development/use approval related application(s) such as Comprehensive Plan amendment, rezoning, conditional use, subdivision or special use permits shall be processed or approved on property that has an open code enforcement case and/or unpaid code enforcement liens or fines until all have been resolved.
Further, the Ordinance eliminates reference to the Code Enforcement Board (since none has existed for over 10 years), changes reference from Special Master to Special Magistrate to reflect the language used in Chapter 162 F.S., and changes references from Planning, Zoning and Building Department to the Planning and Development Services Department.
The Planning, Zoning and Adjustment Board unanimously recommended approval of the Ordinance (5-1). A provision was added to the proposed Ordinance after the PZAB action to also allow permits for emergency repairs (shown as highlighted text in the attached Ordinance).
BUDGET AMENDMENT REQUIRED: NO
PUBLIC HEARING: YES QUASI-JUDICIAL: NO
FIRST READING: YES SECOND READING:
LEGAL SUFFICIENCY: YES
FISCAL IMPACT: N/A
WELLINGTON FUNDAMENTAL: Protecting our Investment
RECOMMENDATION: Approval of Ordinance No. 2014-23 amending Article 14 of the Land Development Regulations; expanding potential administrative penalties, other than fine amounts, for outstanding violations, fines and liens.