Sec. 518.306. - Lien for costs of termination, Demolition Lien Record and notice.

The total expense, including administrative fee and title search, incurred by the City in causing a public nuisance to be terminated under this Chapter shall be a special assessment and lien upon the property upon which the public nuisance was terminated. The Chief shall have a statement of cost and invoice thereof prepared. The Chief may, at his discretion, mail the invoice or furnish to the Tax Collector the statement and invoice. The Tax Collector, shall, upon receipt of the statement: (a) Cause the lien to be entered in a record which shall be prepared and kept for that purpose and kept open for public inspection during reasonable office hours in the office of the Tax Collector, labeled Demolition Lien Record, showing the amount of the cost, the date, of completion of the work and a legal description of the property and real estate appraiser number upon which the lied is placed. (b) Upon the entry of the lien in the Demolition Lien Record, cause a copy of the lien statement and invoice, if provided by the Chief, to be mailed to the owner, custodian, agent, lessee, trustee or occupant of the property and a notice of assessment and lien to be published one time in a daily newspaper regularly published and in general circulation in the City, which notice shall show the nature of the assessment and lien, the amount thereof and a legal description of the property affected thereby. (c) The owner or mortgagee or lessee of record of the real property affected by a notice of assessment and lien shall have the right, at any time within 30 days after the publication of the notice, to present to the Chief a sworn petition stating his interest in the property and alleging that, in the opinion of the petitioner, the amount of the lien exceeds the actual cost incurred by the City or is otherwise erroneously entered and to be heard upon such petition. If it shall appear to the Chief from a consideration of the petition and inquiry into the facts that the cost as entered is erroneously stated or exceeds the actual cost incurred by the City, then the Chief shall certify these findings to the Director of Finance and Administration. After receiving this certification, the Director of Finance and Administration shall cause the entry of the notice of assessment and lien in the Demolition Lien Record to be corrected by the Tax Collector and shall fix such amount to be charged against the real property as may be just and proper; and the amount as fixed shall stand as the amount of such lien. (d) In all cases where no petition shall have been filed as herein provided within the 30 days after the publication of the notice by the Tax Collector, the cost of work as entered in the Demolition Lien Record shall become a fixed lien on the real property. The lien shall be effective against the real property upon which the work has been done from the time of the entry in the Demolition Lien Record, and shall not become final until the amount thereof has been fixed as aforesaid. Liens in the Demolition Lien Record shall be superior to all other liens except liens for taxes, and other special assessment liens imposed by the City. (Ord. 96-458-297, § 1; Ord. 2016-140-E , § 16) Editor's note— Ordinance 2007-839-E, § 18, authorized updated department/division names pursuant to reorganization.