SECTION 535  NUISANCES

535.01  Public Nuisance Defined.  Whoever by his act or failure to perform a legal duty intentionally does any one or more of the following is guilty of maintaining a public nuisance, which is a misdemeanor:

(a) Maintains or permits a condition which unreasonably annoys or disrupts, injures, or endangers the safety, health, morals, comfort, or repose of any considerable number of members of the public.

(b) Interferes with, obstructs, or renders dangerous for passage, any public highway or right-of-way, or waters used by the public.

(c) Is guilty of any other act or omission declared by law or this Code to be a public nuisance and for which no sentence or subsection is specifically provided.

535.02  Public Nuisances Affecting Health.  The following are declared to be nuisances affecting health:

(a) Exposed accumulation of decayed or unwholesome food, vegetable matter, meat, fish, excrement, manure, refuse, debris or other offensive substance.

(b) All diseased animals running at large.

(c) All ponds or pools of stagnant water.

(d) Carcasses of animals not buried or destroyed within 24 hours after death.

(e) The pollution of any public well or cistern, stream or lake, canal or body of water by sewage, industrial waste, or other substances.

(f) All noxious weeds and other rank growths of vegetation upon public or private property.

(g) Dense smoke, noxious fumes, gas and soot, or cinders, in unreasonable quantities.

(h) All public exposure of persons having a contagious disease.

(i) Any offensive trade or business as defined by statute not operating under local license.

535.03  Public Nuisances Affecting Morals and Decency.  The following are declared to be nuisances affecting public morals and decency:

(a) Drinking of alcoholic beverages or drunkenness on public streets, parking lots or parks.

(b) Betting, bookmaking, and all apparatus used in such occupations.

(c) All houses kept for the purpose of prostitution.

(d) All places where intoxicating liquor is manufactured, kept or disposed of in violation of law.

(e) Public exposure by a person of his or her unclothed genital organs, or public exposure by a woman of her unclothed breasts.

535.04  Public Nuisances Affecting Peace and Safety.  The following are declared to be nuisances affecting public peace and safety:

(a) All snow and ice not removed from public sidewalks 12 hours after the snow or other precipitation causing the condition has stopped falling.

(b) Use of any railroad bridge or public or private street or easement for fishing.

(c) All wires and limbs or branches of trees which are so close to the surface of a sidewalk or street as to constitute a danger or obstruction to pedestrians or vehicles.

(d) All unnecessary noises and annoying vibrations.

(e) Obstructions and excavations affecting the ordinary use by the public of streets, alleys, sidewalks, or public grounds except under such conditions as are permitted by this Code or other applicable law.

(f) Radio aerials or television antennae erected or maintained in a dangerous manner.

(g) Any use of property abutting on a public street or sidewalk or any use of a public street or sidewalk which causes large crowds of people to gather, obstructing traffic and the free use of the street or sidewalk.

(h) All hanging signs, awnings, and other similar structures over streets and sidewalks, or so situated so as to endanger public safety, or not constructed and maintained as required by this Code.

(i) The allowing of rain water, ice, or snow to fall from any building or structure upon any street or sidewalk or to flow across any sidewalk.

(j) Any barbed wire fence.

(k) All dangerous, unguarded machinery in any public place, or so situated or operated on private property as to attract the public.

(l) Waste water cast upon or permitted to flow upon streets or other public property.

(m) Accumulations of discarded or disused machinery, household appliances, automobile bodies, furniture, toys, plastic bags, cardboard boxes, wood piles, brush piles, branches or other material or debris, in a manner conducive to the harboring of rats, mice, snakes, or vermin, or other rank growth of vegetation among the items accumulated, or in a manner creating fire, health or safety hazards from such accumulation, or in a manner adversely affecting the peaceful enjoyment of neighboring properties.

(n) The leaving of any unused ice box, refrigerator, or other box or appliance, with a door on it which will effectively exclude air when shut, in any public place or on any private property.

(o) Any well, hole, or similar excavation which is left uncovered or in such other condition as to constitute a hazard.  Any construction in or adjacent to any street or sidewalk must be secured by a metal or wooden fence at least 4–1/2 feet in height with posts no more than 6 feet apart, and must be illuminated with red or yellow lights from sunset to sunrise.

(p) Obstruction to the free flow of water in a natural waterway or a public street drain, gutter, or ditch with trash or other materials.

(q) The placing, throwing or runoff on any street, sidewalk, or other public property of any glass, tacks, nails, bottles, dirt, gravel, snow, leaves or other substance which may injure any person or animal, damage any pneumatic tire when passing over such substance, or adversely impact the walking or driving surface to pedestrians or vehicles.

(r) The depositing of garbage or refuse on a public right-of-way or on adjacent private property.

(s) Any gathering of people from which noise emanates of a sufficient volume so as to disturb the peace, quiet or repose of persons residing in any residential area.  No person may visit or remain in or about a residential dwelling wherein such a party or gathering is taking place, except persons who reside at that dwelling or have gone there for the sole purpose of abating the disturbance.

(t) The parking, storing, or keeping on any public or private property any motorized vehicle which (1) has a broken, missing or defective part that is necessary for normal operation thereof; (2) is stored on blocks, jacks or other supports; or (3) does not display a license or displays a license that is 60 days or more past its required renewal date, excluding those vehicles kept within a fully enclosed garage or other building and impounded vehicles held by the City.

(u) All other conditions or things which are likely to cause injury to the person or property of anyone.

(v) Use or possession of fireworks by any person under 18 years of age.

(w) Aiding, abetting, facilitating or causing the escape of a person by force or fraud from the custody of a police officer.

(x) Removal, damage or other interference with any barricade erected to protect any excavation, grading, paving, construction, or other work.

(y) Construction noise at any time other than the hours of 7:00 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. on weekdays and 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on weekends and Holidays.

(z) The length of grasses commonly used in lawn areas including blue grass, fescue or rye grass blends of similar grasses shall not exceed eight (8) inches in length, excluding grasses on steep slopes or adjoining ponds, wetlands and lakes.

 

535.05  Duties of City Officers.  The Chief of Police will enforce the provisions of this Section relating to nuisances affecting public safety.  The Police Department will enforce provisions relating to other nuisances and will assist the other designated officer in the enforcement of provisions relating to nuisances affecting public safety.  Such officers will have the power to inspect private premises and take all reasonable precautions to prevent the commission and maintenance of public nuisance.

535.06  Abatement.  Whenever the officer charged with enforcement determines that a public nuisance is being maintained or exists on premises in the City, the officer may issue a citation for the violation and/or may give written notice to the owner or occupant of the premises of that fact and order that the nuisance be terminated and abated.  The notice may be served in person or by mail.  If the premises are not occupied and the owner is unknown, the notice may be served by posting it on the premises.  If such order is given, it will specify the steps to be taken to abate the nuisance and the time within which the nuisance is to be abated.  If the notice is not complied with within the time specified, the enforcing officer will report that fact to the Council.  The Council may then, after notice to the owner or occupant and an opportunity to be heard, provide for abatement of the nuisance by the City.  The notice will be served in the same manner as notice by the enforcing officer is served and will be given at least 10 days before the date stated in the notice when the Council will consider the matter.  If notice is given by posting, at least 30 days will elapse between the day of posting and the hearing.  The giving of such notice and the abatement of the nuisance by the owner will have no effect on the City’s ability to prosecute the owner or occupant of the property for violation of this ordinance.

535.07  Recovery of Cost.

Subd. 1.  Personal liability.  The owner of premises on which a nuisance has been abated by the City is personally liable for the cost to the City of the abatement, including administrative costs.  As soon as the work has been completed and the cost determined, the Clerk or other official designated by the Council will prepare a bill for the cost and mail it to the owner.  The bill will be immediately due and payable at the office of the Clerk.

Subd. 2.  Assessment.  If the nuisance is a public health or safety hazard on private property, the accumulation of snow and ice on public sidewalks, the growth of weeds on private property or outside the traveled portion of streets, or unsound or insect-infected trees, the Clerk will, on or before September 1 next following abatement of the nuisance, list the total unpaid charges along with all other such charges as well as other charges for current services to be assessed under Minnesota Statutes, Section 429.101 against each separate lot or parcel to which the charges are attributable.  The Council may then spread the charges against such property under that statute and other pertinent statutes for certification to the County Auditor and collection along with current taxes the following year or in annual installments, not exceeding ten, as the Council may determine in each case.