Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutLL-1980 #05LOCAL LAW NO, 1980 A local law to provide for the removal or repair of unsafe buildings and collapsed structures. BE IT ENACTED by the Town Board of the Town of Southold as follows: The Code of the Town of Southold is hereby amended by adding a new Chapter there- to, to be Chapter 90, to read as follows: 590-1 Title. This chapter shall be known as the "Unsafe Buildings and Collapsed Structures Law of the Town of Southold". 590-2 Purpose The purpose of this chapter is to promote the public health, safety and general welfare of the residents of the Town of Southold and the conservation of property and property values and to eliminate safety and health hazards. 590-3 Unsafe buildings prohibited. Ail buildings or structures which arc structurally unsafe, dangerous, unsanitary or not provided with adequate egress or which in relaliori-t<y'existing use constitute a hazard to safety or health by rcason of inadequate maintenance, dilapidation, obsolescence or abandonment are, severally, for the purpose of this chapter, unsafe buildings. All such buildings and structures arc hereby declared to be illegal and are prohibited and shall be abated by repair and rehabilitation or by demolition and removal in accordanc~ with the procedures of this chapter. 590-4 Inspection and report When in the opinion of the Building Inspector, any structure locatcd in the town shall be deemed to be unsafe or dangerous to the public, he shall make a formal inspec- tion thereof and thereafter prepare a written report thereof and file the same in his office. ~90-5 Service of notice. When it shall be de~termined by the Building Inspector that a building or structure is dangef"ous or unsafe to the public, he shall promptly serve or cause to be served~.a notice on the owner or other persons having an interest in such property or,~ structure as hereinafter provided. The aforementioned notice shall be 'served on the owner of the premises or some one of the o~her's executors, legal representatives, agents, lessees qr other person ha~ing a vested or contingent interest in same, as shown by the last completedlassessment roll of the town, either personally or by regustered mail, ~idressed to the person intended to be served at the last f '~ known place o buszness. If the notice is served by registered mail, the Building Inspector !shall cause a copy of such notice to be posted on the premises. 90-6 Contents of notice. The notice referred to in §90-5 hereof shall contain the following: A. A description of the premises. B. A statement of the particulars in which the building or structure is unsafe or dangerous. C. An order requiring the building or structure to be made safe and secure or removed. A statement that the securing or removal of the building or structure shall commence within ten (10) days from the date of the service of the notice and shall be completed within thirty (30) days thereafter. The Building Inspector may extend the time of compliance specified in the notice where there is evidence of intent t~ comply within the time specified and conditions exist which prevent immediate compliance. In granting any such extension of time, the Building Inspector may impose such conditions as he may deem appropriate. A statement that in the event of the neglect or refusal of the person served with notice to comp'.ly with same, that a hearing will be held before the Southold Town Boa~,d, notice of which and the time and place thereof to be specified in the notice to the owner referred to in Sec. 90-5 hereof. A statement that in the event that the town board, after the hearing specified in Sec. 90-6E hereof, shall[ determine that the building or structure is unsafe or dangerous to thei:public, that the town board may order the building or structure to be repaired and secured or taken down and removed. A statement that in.the event that the building or structure shall be determined by the town to be 'unsai,'e or dangerous, and in the event of the neglect or refusal of the owner to repair! or remove the same within the time provided, the town may remove such bmld~.ng or structure by whatever means tt deems appropriate and assess all costs an~l expenses incurred by the town in connection wi{h the pro- ceedings to removei or secttre, including.the cost of actually removing said building or structur, e, against the land on which said buildings or structures are located. §90-7 Filing of copy of notice. A copy of the notice referred to in Sec. 90-6 hereof may be filed in the county clerk of the county within which such building or structure is located, which notice shall be filed by such clerk in the same manner as a notice of pendency pursuant toArticle 65 of the Civil Practice Law and 1-1'ules, and shall haw the same effect as a notice of pendency as therein provided, except as otherwise hereinafter provided in this' paragraph. A notice so filed shall be effective for a period of one year from the date of filing, pro vided, however, that it may be vacated upon the order of a judge or justice of a court of record or upon the consent of the town attorney. The clerk of the county where such notice is filed shall mark such notice and any record or docket thereof as cancelled of record upon the presentation and filing of such consent or of a certified copy of such order. ,590-8 Emergency measures to vacate. If the Building Inspector determines in his inspection of any building or structure that there is actual and immediate danger of failure or collapse so as to endanger life, he shall promptly require the building, structure or portion thereof to be vacated forth- with and not to be reoccupied until the specified repairs are completed, inspected and approved by the Building Inspector. For this purpose he may enter such building or structure or land on which it stands or adjoining land or structures~'with such assistance and at such cost as may be necessary. He may also order adjacent structures to be vacated and protect the public by appropriate barricades or such other means as may be necessary and for this purpose may close a private or public right-of-way. The Building Inspector shall cause to be posted at each entrance to such building or structure a notice stating, "This building is unsafe and its 'use or occupancy has been prohibited by the Building Inspector." Such notice shall remain posted 'until the required repairs are made or demolition is completed. It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation or their agents or other persons to remove such notice without written permission of the Building Inspector or for any person to enter the building except for the purpose of making the required repairs or the demolition thereof. §90-9 Costs and expenses All costs and expenses incurred by the Town of Southold in connection with any proceeding or any work done to remove the danger, or in connection with the demolition and removal of any such building or structure shall be assessed against the land on which such building or structure is located, and a statement of such expenses shall be presented to the owner of the property, or if the owner can not be ascertained' or located, then such statement shall be posted in a conspicuous place on the premises. Such assessment shall be and constitute a lien upon such land. If the owner shall fail to pay such expenses within ten days after the statement is presented or posted, a legal action may be brought to collect such assessment or to foreclose such lien. As an alternative to the maintenance of any such action, the Building Inspector may file a certificate of the aq:tua] expenses incurred as aforesaid, together with a statement identifying the property in connection with which the expenses were incurred, and the owner thereof, with the assessors, who shall in the preparation of the next assessment roll, assess such amount upon such property. Such amount shall be included in the levy against such property, shall constitute a lien and shall be collected and enforced in the same manner, by the same proceedings, at the same time, and under the same penalties as is provided by law for the collection and enforcement of real property taxes in the Town of Southold. -3- ~90-10 A. Penalties for offenses. Any person who neglects, refuses or fails to comply with any order or notice issued hereunder shall be guilty of an offense punishable by a fine not to exceed two Hundred fifty do]!ars ($250.), or by imprisonment for a term not to exceed fifteen (15) days, or both such fine and imprisonment. ]Each week's continued violation shall constitute a separate additional offense or violation. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as depriving the town of any other available remedy relevant to a violation of this chapter. ~90-11 Sever ability. The invalidity of any section, subsection or provision of this chapter shall not invalidate any other section, subsection or provision thereof. ~90-12 When effective. This chapter shall take effect immediately. -4- STATE OF NEW YORK DEPARTMENT OF AUDIT AND CONTROL ALBANY ! 2236 December 16, 1980 Robert W. Tasker, Esq. Town of Southold 425 Main St. Greenport, NY 11944 O£C 2 21! 0 WILLIAM C. WALSH Deputy Comptroller In Replying Refer TO Dear Sir/Madam: This is to advise that Local Law(s) No. ~ of 1980 for the Town of Southold _ was received and filed on September %6~ l__qSO Very truly yours, EDWARD V. REG~N State C~nkqL:~oller~ Kendall R. Pirro Associate Attorney Charters Unit FJ~: dl cc: Secretary of State (~lease Use this Form for Filing your Local Law with the Secretary of State) Text of law should be given as amended. Do not include matt'er being eliminated and do not use italics or underlining to indicate new matter. f.4.4 of .............................. .s..p..u..t..h..9.!.d. .......................................................................... TOwn Local Law No ............. ..S. .......................................... of the year 19 _8...0. .... structure s. (In~e~t title) Be it enacted by the ....................................... .T...Q.~..~..9..a...z?..ct ...................................................................... of the (Hame d Legisl~tive Bo&l) :(~it9'c Southold 6f .................................................... : .......................................................... : .............................................. as follows: Town The Code of the Town of Southold is hereby amended by adding a new Chapter thereto, to be Chapter 90, to read as follows: §90-1 Title This chapter shall be known as the "Unsafe Buildings and Collapsed Structures Law of the Town of Southold". ~90-2 Purpose The purpose of this chapter is to promote the public health, safety and,general welfare of the residents of the Town of Southold and the conservation of property and property values and to eliminate safety and health hazards. §90-3 Unsafe buildings prohibited. All buildings or structures which are structurally unsafe, dangerous, unsanitary or not provided with adequate egress or which in relation to existing use constitute 'a hazard to safety or health by reason of inadequate maintenance, dilapidation, obsol- escence or abandonment are, severally, for the purpose of this chapter, unsafe build- ings. All such buildings and structures are hereby declared to be illegal and are prohibited and shall b~e abated by repair and rehabilitation or by demolition and removal in accordance with the procedures of this chapter. §90-4 Inspection and report When in the opinion of the Building Inspector, any structure located in the town shall be deemed to be unsafe or dangerous to the public, he shall make a formal inspection thereof and thereafter prepare a written report thereof and file the same in his office. ,,~ig~(If additional space is needed, please attach sheets of the same size as this and number each)"~ Page 1 §90-5 Service of notice. Ao When it shall be determined by the Building Inspector that a building or structure i~ dangerous or unsafe to the public, he shall promptly serve or cause to be served a notice on the owner or other persons having an interest in such property or structure as hereinafter provided. The aforementioned notice shall be served on the owner of the premises or some one of the owner's executors, legal representatives, agents, lessees or other person having a vested or contingent interest in same, as shown by the last completed assessment roll of the town, either personally or by regustered mail, addressed to the person intended to be served at the last known place of business. If the notice is served by registered mail, the ]Building Inspector shall cause a c6py of such notice to be posted on the premises. 90-6 Contents of notice. The notice referred to in §90-5 hereof shall contain the following: A. A description of the premises. B. A statement of the particulars in which the building or structure is unsafe or dangerous. C. An order requiring~ the bui!di'ng or structure to be made safe and secure or removed. A statement that the securing or removal of the building or structure shall commence within ten (10) days from the date of ~he service of the notice and shall be completed within thirty (30) days thereafter. The Building Inspector may extend the time of compliance specified in the notice where there is evidence of intent to comply within the time specified and conditions exist which prevent immediate compliance. In granting any such extension of time, the Building Inspector may impose such concitions as he may deem appropriate. A statement that in the event of the neglect or refusal of the person served with notice to comply with same, that a hearing will be held before the Southotd Town Board, notice of which and the time and place thereof to be specified in the notice to the owner referred to in Sec. 90-5 hereof. A statement that in the event that the town board, after the hearing specified in Sec. 90-6E hereof, shall determine that the building or structure is unsafe or dangerous to the public, that the town board may order the building or structure to be repaired and secured or taken down and removed. A statement that in the event that the building or structure shall be determined by - the town to be unsafe or dangerous, and in the event of the neglect or refusal of the owner to repair or remove the same within the time provided, the to~vn may remove such building or structure by whatever means it deems appropriate and assess all costs and expenses incurred by the town in connection with the pro- ceedings to remove or secure, including the cost of actually removing said building or structure, against the land on which said buildings or structures are located. 590-7 ~ .... ~'~-ng of copy oi notice. A copy of the notice referred to in Sec. 90-6 hereof may be filed in the county clerk of the county within which such building or structure is located, which notice shall be filed by such clerk in the same manner as a notice of pendendy pursuant toArticle 65 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules, and shall have the same effect as a notice of pendency as therein provided, except as otherwise hereinafter provided in this paragraph. A notice so filed shall be effective for a period of one year from the date of filing, pro- vided, however, that it may be vacated upon the order of a judge or justice of a court of record or upon the consent of the town attorney. The clerk of the county where such notice is filed shall mark such notice and any record or docket thereof as cancelled of record upon the presentation and filing of such consent or of a certified copy of such order. ~90-8 Emergency measures to vacate. If the Building Inspector determines in his inspection of any building or structure that there is actual and immediate danger of failure or collapse so as to endanger life, he shall promptly require the building, structure or portion thereof to be vacated forth- with and not to be reoccupied until the specified repairs are completed, inspected and approved by the Building Inspector. For this purpose he may enter such building or structure or land on which it stands or adjoining land or structures ~vith such assistance and at such cost as may be necessary. He may also order adjacem struczures to be vacated and protect the public by appropriate barric~ades or such other means as may be necessary and for this purpose may close a private or public right-of-way. The Building Inspector shall cause to be posted at each entrance to such building or structure a notice stating, "This building is unsafe and its use or occupancy has been prohibited by the Building Inspector." Such notice shall remain posted until the required repairs are made or demolition is completed. It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation or their ggents or other persons to remove such notice without written permission of the Building Inspector or for any person to enter the building except for the purpose of making the required repairs or the demolition thereof. §90-9 Costs and expenses Ail costs and expenses incurred by the Town of Southold in connection with any proceeding or any work done to remove the danger, or in connection with the demolition and removal of any such building or structure shall be assessed against the land on which such building or structure is located, and a statement of such expenses shall be presented to the owner of the property, or if the owner can not be ascertained or located, then such statement shall be posted in a conspicuous place on the premises. Such assessment shall be and constitute a lien upon such land. If the owner shall fail to pay such expenses within ten days after the statement is presented or poste~l, a legal action may be brought to collect such assessment or to foreclose such lien. As an alternative to the maintenance of any such action, the Building Inspector may file a certificate of the actual expenses incurred as aforesaid, together with a statement identifying the property in connection with which the expenses were incurred, and the owner thereof, with the assessors, who shall in the preparation of the next assessment roll, assess such amount upon such property. Such amount shall be included in the levy against such property, shall constitute a lien and shall be collected and enforced in the same manner, by the same proceedings, at the same time, and under the same penalties as is provided by law for the collection and enforcemen~ of real property taxes in the Town of Southold. ---3- ~90-10 Penalties for offenses. Any person who neglects, refuses or fails to comply with any order or notice issued hereunder shall be guilty of an offense punishable by a fine not to exceed two Hundred fifty dollars ($250.), or by imprisonment 'for a term not to exceed fifteen (15) days, or both such fine and imprisonment. Each week's continued violation shall co~istitute a separate additional offense or violation. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as depriving the town of any other available remedy relevant to a violation of this chapter. §90-11 Severability. The invalidity of any section, subsection or provision of this chapter Shall not invalidate any other section, subsection or provision thereof. §90-12 ~vVhen effective. This chapter shall take effect immediately. -4- (Complete ~ matter therein ~nc," ' is not appiiea[ e.) (Final ado[~tion by lacal legislaUve body only.) I hereby certify that the local law annexed hereto, designated aslocal law No ..... ~ ............ of 19.~.~.. of the' xf'~Town of ...................................... Southold was duly passed by the ..................... T.~..Boar& ................................. X~ (Name of Legislative Body) on... 5~.P}~.~q~...~ ............. 19~.~... in accordance with the applicable pro4isions of law. (Passage by local legislative' body with approval or no disapproval by Elective Chief Executive officer or repassage after disapproval.) I hereby certify that the local [aw annexed h'ereto, designated as loca I law No ..................... of 1_9 ........ County City of the Town of ................................. was duly passed by the ................................................................................ Village (n .... f Legislative Body) not disapproved on .................................................. 19 ....... and was approved by the ..................................................... repassed after disapproval Elective Chief E .... tire Officer ~ and was deemed duly adopted on ........................................................ 19 ......... in accordance with the applicable provisions of law. (Final adoption by referendum.) I herebycertifythat thelocal law annexed hereto, designatedaslooal lawNo ................. of t.9 .......... County of the City of ...................................... was duly passed by the Town ...................................................................................... Village (n~ of Legislative Body) not disapproved on ................................................... 19 ........ and was approved by the .......... .i ................................................... repassed after disapproval Elective Chief Lxeeutive Offlce~ x on ...................................................................... 19. ........ Such local law was submitted to the people by reason of a mandatory permissive referendum, and received the affirmative vote of a majorky of the q,aalified electors voting generaI thereon at the special election held on ...................................................... 19 ......... in accordance with the appli- annual cable provisions of law. ' (Subject to ?ermissive referendum,and final adoption because no valid petition filed requesting referendum.) I hereby certify that the local law annexed hereto, designated as local law No ................... of 19. ......... County City of the Town of ...................................... ;vas duly passed by the ............................................................................... on (Name of Legislative Bod:,') Village not disapproved ...................................................... 19 ........ and was approved by the ..................................................... on repassed after disapproval Elective Chief Executive Officer '* .............................................................. 19 ......... Such local law being subject to a permissive referendum and no valid petition requesting such referendurr having been filed, said local law was deemed duly adopted on ...................................................................... 19 ........ , in accordance with the applicable provisions of law. *Elective Chief Executive Officer means or inelude~ the chef executh~e officer of a county elected on a county-wide basis or, ff ~here be none, the ch~Mrman of ~he count' l~gismA,:e body, ,he rc, ayor of a city or ~age or the supe~4sor of a ~o-.vn, whe~ s-ach ofF, car ~ vested wilh power to approve or veto local lav,~s or ordLnan~. Page 2 [ itereb) ce,,f ,qmt thc ~o of the City of ................................ ha~'ng been submitted to referendum pursuant to the provisions of ~ 3? of ~ilc },;unicipM IL. me [~uleLaw, and Laving received the affirmative vote of amajority special of the qualified electors of such city voting thereon at the general etection held on .................................. ................ ~9 ............ became operative. 6. (County local law concerning adoption of Charter.) I hereby certify that the local law annexed hereto, designated as Local Law No ....... of 19 ...... of the County of ......................................... St:rte of New York, having been submitted to the Electom at the General Election of November ........... 19 ........... pursuant to subdivisions 5 and 7 of Section 33 of the Muni- cipal Home Rule Law, and having received the affirmative vote of a majority of the qualified electors of the cities of said county as a mdt and of a majority of the qualified electors of the towns of said county considered as a unit voting at said general election, became operative. (If any other authorized form of final adoption has been followed, please provide an appropriate certification./ ~ I further certify that I have compared the preceding local law with the original on file in this office and that the same is a correct transcript therefrom and of the whole of such original local law, and ;vas finally adopted in the manner indicated in paragraph ........... .1. ............... above. Clerk~the County legislative body/City. Town or Village-~lerk (~ officer designated by local legislative body Elizabeth A~; Neville, Deputy Town Clerk Date: September 11, 1980 (Seal) (Certification to be executed by County Attorney, Corporation Counsel, Town Attorney, Village Attorney or other authorized Attorney of locality.) STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF ...S...U....F....F...O...L..IC .......................... I, the undersigned, hereby certify that the foregoing local law contains the correct text and that all proper proceedings have been had or taken for the enactmeut of the local law annexed hereto. . .R. 9.b.e.r.t..W....T .a.~.k.e.~. ,..T 9.w.n. .A.t.t.qr.n.e. y ....... Title Date: September 11, 1980 .q~4by of Southold Town Page 3 MINUTES OF PUBLIC HEARING HELD AUGUST 26, 1980 PROPOSED LOCAL LAW UNSAFE BUILDINGS AND COLLAPSED STRUCTURES A public hearing was held by the Southold Town.Board at the Southold Town Hall, Main Road, Southold, New York at 3:50 o'clock p.m. in relation to "A Local Law to Provide for the Removal of Unsafe Buildings and Collapsed Structures." Present were: Supervisor William R. Pell, III Councilman Henry W. Drum Councilman John J. Nickles Councilman Lawrence Murdock, Jr. Councilman George R. Sullivan Town Clerk Judith T. Terry Town Attorney Robert W. Tasker Absent was: Justice Francis T. Doyen SUPERVISOR PELL opened the hearing at 3:50 o'clock p.m. COUNCILMAN NICKLES: We have an affidavit from Joan Gustav- son of the Suffolk Times that the notice was printed on the 14th day of August, 1980. Also a notice from the Long Island Traveler, also on the 14th day of August, 1980. Certification from the Town Clerk that it was posted on'the 7th day of August on the Town Clerk's Bulletin Board. Legal notice, as follows: ...PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that a Local Law - 1980, entitled, "A Local Law to Provide for the Removal or Repair of Unsafe Buildings and Collapsed Structures," was intro- duced at a meeting of the Town Board of the Town of Southold held on .the 12th day of August, 1980. Said Local Law amends the Code of the Town of Southold by adding a new Chapter Thereto, to be Chapter 90 with respect to unsafe buildings and collapsed structures in the Town of Southold. Copies of said proposed Local Law are available for inspection and distribution at the Town Clerk's Office to any interested person during business hours. PLEASE TAKE FURTHER NOTICE that a public hearing with respect to said Local Law will be held at the Southold Town Hall, Main Road, Southold, New York on Page 2 Public Hearing 8/26/80 (Local Law - Unsafe Buildings) the 26th day of August,.1980 at 3:50 o'clock p.m., at which time and place all interested persons will be given an opportunity to be heard. DATED: August 12, 1980. JUDITH T. TERRY TOWN CLERK .... This is a local ordinance the Town Board has been working on since early in the year, and it became evident that the State is changing some enabling legislation in Albany, which finally did pass and becomes effective September 1st. We had to amend the law .and republish it, which is what the hearing is about today. SUPERVISOR PELL: BaSically, as John says, this is in relation to, we started on this and we started on the fire code, if a building was partly burned, down on the fire code, the fire code would protect the Town to have that building picked up so nobody could get hurt, walking through it or whatever. But the fire code did not pertain to a building that was not destroyed or hurt by fire. This will take care of abandoned buildings, or buildings just left to deteriorate. This is what this is -- the little part to make the fire code complete. This is another clean housekeeping chore designed by this group. At this time, I would ask if anybody would like to speak in opposition to the proposed local law? In opposition? (There was no response.) Does anybody wish to speak in favor of the proposed local law? Mr. Schriever? WILLIAM SCHRIEVER: I think the law is probably needed and I don't oppose the law, except that I have some comments that I would like to make about the.wording of the law, if I might. SUPERVISOR PELL: Go right ahead. MR. SCHRIEVER: I'm not going to read the pertinent parts of the law, but I want to comment about two areas of it. I think the important part of it is description of what an unsafe building is under the law, and I think that's where the main thrust of my comments would be. It refers to unsafe buildings with a whole lot.of adjectives, and one of those adjectives is unsanitary. Now, I looked that up to try to determine exactly what that word means; and the way I got it from the dictionary was, was that it means not conducive to health or healing. I think the original route is healing. It seems to me that to describe a building or structure as unsanitary, it makes things very difficult, and I, it just seems to me that that's going to leave problems. For example, you could describe a hospital as sanitary or unsanitary; or perhaps a grocery store. I don't know. What do you do about a horse barn? I mean that isn't Page 3 Public Hearing 8/26/80 (Local Law - Unsafe Buildings) very sanitary, She byre meaning of the word, and yet horse barns are necessary and that we shouldn't pro'hit horse barns. A horse is needed. And then when you have, suppose you have a sewage treatment plan~ and that isn't very sanitary either. And it seems to me that the word unsanitary is really, creates a problem in enforcing the law. I would suggest that that word be changed to something like contaminated with a hazardous substance, or something that is more specific to a structure rather than-meaning something were highly radioactive and you want .to dispose of it in order to remove a hazard, I mean, I can see that that might be a reason to destroy a building. But just because of, you know, there was some dirt on the floor or something doesn't seem to me to be an adequate reason. Another thing, it says that the Building, if the building isn't revised with adequate egress, now that seems to create a real problem, too, because let's say that you have a building that's not in use, the normal procedure would be to, if you couldn't be assured that people would not break into the building would be to board the building up. Do something to prevent entrance into the building. And doing so, you would destroy the egress. That is, the building would become unsafe for occupancy because if it caught fire you couldn't get out and so forth and so on. So it seems to me that, let's say, a bank, you know, is left with a house that somebody leaves town, they can't afford the taxes, or their job disappears or whatever. They leave town, they can't sell the house, the bank is left with a house and a mortgage. And they've got to do something to protect their property. They go and they board the property up, and the next thing you know the building inspector comes around and says, "Well you know it's not safe because it doesn't have adequate egress." And I don't see what that particular phrase is directed to in terms of the purposes of the ordinance. I don't see where that is supposed to protect us from. It seems to me that leaving it in there causes a problem. Another one is the word obsolescence in the ordinance, a building that's obsolescent. I looked that up, and it's pretty obvious what it means. It means going out of use or coming obsolete, which is of course the same route. And if you look up obsolets you find out that obsolete means that it is no longer in use, or that it's out of date, or that it's antiquated, or that it's old fashioned, or that it's out-worn. Now that seems to me hardly a reason to tear a building down. We have a lot of buildings that are obsolescent under that description. In fact there are alt areas of the town which you could say where obsolescent, and that they're antiquated or old-fashioned or what have you. Page 4 Public Heari~ 8/26/80 (Local Law - Unsafe Buildings) (Mr. Schriever continued) And another thing, of course, would be a lot of historical buildings would have been destroyed over the years if this ordinance had been in effect. A building gets out of use and'nobody comes along and wants to pour their hard-earned dollars into it for the moment, and the building would have been destroyed by the town or at the insistence of the town. Village'Lane in Orient, for example, in the years that I've lived here there have been several buildings that fell into quite poor condition there, were abandoned, and that are now restored and are very attractive buildings. And I'm concerned that the ordinance could create problems that we might not want. There are a couple of other comments, and you're requiring that demolition proceed within ten days of the service of the notice, and that is almost impractical. And by the time that a person were to get a contractor, and the contractor were to fix up his schedule and get the demo- lition'insurance as may be required by the contractor anyway, and you know, get tilled up and ready to go, I mean ten days I just don't think that's adequate. It seems to me that if a building has stood there long enough to meet the terms of this ordinance, it could stand another 10 or 20 days without hurting anything. It might be.appropriate to separate out the demolition aspects for maybe the securing of a building in case, let's say the building is boarded up and kids break ihto it, it now becomes a ha,za~d. Maybe you could have a much shorter term, you know, for re-securing the building as compared to, for example, demolition. One thing that concerns me also is that, what happens when housing is ~b~ndoned. Like, for example, in west of us here there was the last several years there has been a lot of housing that was abandoned up there because'of taxes, and I don't see how we can guarantee ourselves that we won't suffer that at some point. If a bank, let's say, has made a mortgage and a house is abandoned to the bank, as has happened up there in may cases, would the bank feel secure with the ordinance? In other words if the bank, let's say, intends to maintain its interest in the building, and maybe board it Up or something or protect it, would the bank feel threatened by/the ordinance? Would they be worried that the town might force them to tear the building down. I think this could be a very serious thing if they did so interpret the law, or if it were ever enforced that way, because then the bank would be extremely reluctant to loan money. Which would mean that our economic situation would 'only get worse. At the moment there is so little building if they pulled out of here completely we wouldn't notice it. There might come a time when things improved, and this ordinance might scare the Hanks away.. And of course, as I Page 5 Public Nearing 8/26/80 (Local Law - Unsafe Buildings) (Mr. Schriever continued:) said earlier, that we have to think about the historical build- ings and what effect this ordinance would have regarding that. SUPERVISOR PELL: Thank you. Your points will be considered by the Board. It raised a lot of questions. When we get the minutes back, we will read and go over them. Is there anybody else wishing to speak in favor of the application? MRS. ASHTON: I'm neither for or against. I would like to know, in reference to the bit about the historical buildings, does the Town of Southold in any way offer ta× exemption~for-'persons buying a historical building and fixing it up? In other words, keeping it from going from bad to worse. SUPERVISOR PELL: Mrs. Ashton, correct? I don't know of any at this time. No. MRS. ASHTON: Is it possible to hook up something like this that would even prevent many of the final buildings like those within the last ten years, you know, to just get run down, because nobody can take them on. Because they know they're going to get hit with taxes. SUPERVISOR PELL: I would say the Board could consider this. It has not since I have been on the Board in the two and one-half years. We have never discussed it. It's a good point you have raised, and I will put it down on my agenda for discussion with the Board at another date. It's something 'that the Board should properly-consider. Thank you very much. COUNCILMAN SULLIVAN: Bill, I think there is Federal money it's a landmarked building, a low-interest loan. MRS. ASHTON: Excuse me, Mr. Sullivan? They're not much of a help because once a person starts working on an old house, it usually takes 10 to 20 years if they're in the middle class and what happens is.they get hit with taxes when they get reassessed everytime they try to do anything to the home. And you end up paying taxes the same a~ if you had a brand new structure. SUPERVISOR PELL: Excuse me. ~You're talking two different points there. He is talking low-interest rate loans. You're talking tax assessment relief. Two different points. MRS. ASHTON: A person could be guaranteed to carry on their work. ' SUPERVISOR PELL: We appreciated your point and the Board Page 6 Public Hearing 8/26/80 (Local Law - Unsafe Buildings) will again discuss it; I know I never thought o£ it until now .whel~ you brought it up and I will discuss it with the Poard in the future. Is -there anybody else on the. proposed local law,unsafe buildings? Does anybody wish to be heard at all on this local law? (There was no response.) I£ not, I will de~clar.e ~he hearing adjourned, and we will return rD the Tow~ Board meeting. The hearing was declared ad,journed at 4'08 o'clock p.m. Respectfully submitted, Linda F. Kowalski EGAL NOTICE , ' NOTICEOF HEARING ~':~ha LEASE .,TAKE · NOTICE ~,. t a Local ?en,tltIcd '"'A.- L~ [~ ProvUe for the ~moval or and Cr, ilap!ed S[ruclure~' ~rl hd Tr, wo Boa rd o[ ~5oulho.d he~d ~ ~he I~lh .,La, ~end~ ~he Code ,.,I ~he ,~ne,v Chapter lhere-~ Io be ~ hapter 9~ u rh re~pecl I :,r~a c buildings ~nd coUapsed 'cai I,av are available for ih~O~([in~ rind dlslribuUoll ;!t~e Town Clerk's Officelo uny ~nieresied p&rson duri~ b~i: PLEASE TA~ NOTICE [hat a pubhc hear~g ~¥~ih respzct Iosa~n L~al Law will be held al ~he Soulhold To~n HoU, Main Road. Soulh. old ~{e~ York an bi .lugusL 19~ al J:b0 o'cl~ I P M . al which hme and place '.all mlere.sted persora ~dl be ~iven an ~por~ [o be .~heard. ., : .. [~ATED: Aunt 1~ ~19~ .' I J~ITH T. ~RRY ~. TOWN ~ERK COUNTY OF SUFFOLK, | STATE OF NEW YORK, ~ ss: ~.0.~..I~...~S..~.T..S.O?.'. ................... being duly Sworn, scrys that . ,S.~l~.. is Printer crud Publisher of the SUFFOLK WEEKLY TIMES, a newsl~per published at Greenport, in said county; and that the noti~, of which the annexed is a printed copy, has been published in the s~dd Sufblk WeeklT Times once in each week, for 0l~'W~ . . : ........................ weeks s~cc~ssiv~l¥ oommencing on the' .~.~t.~ ................... .... ......... Sw.o~n to betore me this . .~.4.~ .... I day of iN~.U.$. ?. lS!~)., l ..... HELEN K. BE V0E NOTARY PUBLIC, St:te of New York No. 47D7878, Sufielk C0un/~( ..' Term' E'xplr~s March 30, 19.~/ : NOTICE OF HEARING '".'~th~t' a Local Law ~ 1980, !'/'. ei~titled "~ Local Law to .~:. '/Prb~de for the Remove/ ot 'i',' 'eeP~-of Unsafe B-i]dtngs , and Collapsed Structures", w~ introduc~ed at a meeting of ' I, theTown Boardofthe Town of ]'. Southold h~lcl on the 12th day ,' of August 1980. Said Local '. Eaw amends the Code of the ~'. Town of Solenoid by;adding a ..1":'. new Chapter thereto, to be ['.'. Chapter 90 with respect to ~. uns~febulldin§s and collapsed [t' structureS'~:in ,the Town of ,,~i, Southold. . .,' Copies of said proposed I:~ Loee/ Law are available for ?'i' ins~ajo, n.a~d distribm, jon at '~~. _ J__ interested person during busi- n,f i i lll:"J'l '~ pi_EASE TAKE FL~RTHER NOi-](~E ,r, jI .', r...,bi~¢ qe~r',r.~ ,lllkl I'c~.l.'~ .'I IO '_' ~ld Local Lu,. .[.wd! be held at mc Soutllold :: Towa Hall, Main Road. South- i i!&!d, New ¥o£k onthe 26th ds.y "Of August, 1980 at 3:50 o~clock P.M.. at which time aud.place all interested persons w~ll. be given an. opportunity to be 'beard. .'. DATED: August ~2, 1980 JUDITH T. TERRY Towr~ Clerk · . ~T, 8/14/80 (10) COUNTY OF SUFFOLK SS; STATE OF NEW YORK Patricia Wood, being duly sworn, says that she is the Editor, of THE LONG ISLAND TRAVELER-WATCHMAN, a public newspaper printed at Southold, in Suffolk County; and that the notice of which the annexed is a printed copy, nas been published in said Long Island Traveler-Watch- man once each week for ................ [. .......... weeks successively, commencing on the .... ../.~.. ............................. Sworn to tmfore rn~ lt~is .................. day ot