Deer Park City Zoning Code

The procedures identified herein are not listed in any particular order and any of them may be applied or implemented, as the city determines appropriate, when a zoning violation has been identified by the city.

In order to discourage public nuisances and otherwise promote compliance with applicable zoning title provisions, the city may, in response to field observations, complaints, witness statements, relevant documents and data systems for tracking violations, and applicable city zoning provisions, determine that a zoning violation has occurred or is occurring, and may:

The procedures set forth in this chapter are not exclusive. These procedures shall not in any manner limit or restrict the city from remedying or abating zoning violations in any other manner authorized by law.

In addition to, or as an alternative to, utilizing the procedures set forth in this chapter, the city may seek legal or equitable relief to abate any conditions or enjoin any acts or practices which constitute a zoning violation.

In addition to, or as an alternative to, utilizing the procedures set forth in this chapter, the city may assess or recover civil penalties accruing under this chapter by legal action.

The provisions of this chapter shall in no way adversely affect the rights of the owner, lessee, or occupant of any property to recover all costs and expenses incurred and required by this chapter from any person responsible for the zoning violation on or affecting the property.

In administering the provisions for zoning title enforcement, the city shall have the authority to waive any one or more such provisions, including assessment of penalties, so as to avoid substantial injustice by application thereof to the acts or omissions of any person, or acts or omissions on public or private property including, for example, property belonging to public or private utilities, where no apparent benefit has accrued to such entity or individual from a zoning violation. Any determination of substantial injustice shall be made by the city in its sole discretion on a case-by-case basis.

The provisions of this chapter detailing the administration of zoning title compliance procedures are intended only for the purpose of providing guidance to city employees and are not jurisdictional, and are not to be construed as creating a basis for appeal or a defense of any kind to an alleged zoning title violation.

The city may, upon presentation of proper credentials, with the consent of the owner or occupier of a building or premises, or pursuant to a lawfully issued court order or inspection warrant, enter at reasonable times any building or premises, subject to the consent, order, or warrant, to perform the duties imposed by this chapter.

The city may request that the county sheriff, local fire district, Spokane Regional Health District, or other appropriate city department or other non-city agency assist in enforcement.

The city shall determine, based upon information derived from sources including but not limited to field observations, complaints, statements of witnesses, relevant documents and data systems for tracking violations, and applicable city zoning code provisions, ordinances, resolutions, regulations, policies, permit conditions, stop work orders, administrative provisions, or other rules, whether or not a zoning violation has occurred. In the event the city determines that a zoning violation has occurred, the city's code enforcement officer shall document the zoning violation and promptly notify the person(s) responsible for the zoning violation of the violation and attempt to gain voluntary compliance by the person responsible for the zoning violation to promptly abate, remediate, mitigate, and otherwise correct the zoning violation as deemed appropriate by the enforcement officer.

If the zoning violation is not abated, remediated, mitigated or otherwise corrected, or a voluntary compliance agreement is not executed within a reasonable time, as determined by the city, following notification by the city, or if the violation qualifies for an exemption from the requirement to pursue voluntary compliance pursuant to other provisions of this chapter, a notice of civil violation and/or stop work order may be issued. Stop work orders may also be issued promptly upon discovery of a zoning violation in progress.

It shall be the responsibility of each person responsible for the zoning title violation, as identified by the city, to bring the property into a safe and reasonable condition to achieve zoning title compliance. Payment of civil penalties, applications for permits, acknowledgement of stop work orders, and compliance with other remedies does not substitute for performing the corrective work required by the city and having the property brought into compliance to the extent reasonably possible under the circumstances.

Any person(s) responsible for the zoning title violation pursuant to a notice of civil violation shall be liable for the payment of any civil penalties and abatement costs; provided, however, that if a property owner affirmatively demonstrates that the action which resulted in the zoning violation was taken without the owner's knowledge or consent by someone other than the owner or someone acting on the owner's behalf, that owner shall be responsible only for bringing the property into compliance to the extent reasonably feasible under the circumstances as determined by the city. Should the owner not abate or correct the violation as required by the city, only those abatement costs necessary to bring the property into a safe and reasonable condition, as determined by the city, shall be assessed by the city.

Whenever the city determines that a zoning title violation has occurred or is occurring, the city shall make reasonable efforts to secure voluntary compliance from the person(s) responsible for the zoning violation. Upon contacting the person(s) responsible for the zoning violation, the city may enter into a voluntary compliance agreement as provided for in this chapter.

A voluntary compliance agreement may be entered into at any time after the city determines that a zoning violation exists.

Upon entering into a voluntary compliance agreement, the person responsible for the zoning violation waives the right to administratively appeal the zoning violation and/or the corrective action set forth in the voluntary compliance agreement.

The voluntary compliance agreement shall incorporate the shortest reasonable time period for compliance, as determined by the city. An extension of the time limit for compliance or a modification of the required corrective action may be granted by the city if the person responsible for the zoning violation has shown due diligence or substantial progress in correcting the violation, but circumstances render full and timely compliance, under the original conditions, unattainable. Any such extension or modification must be in writing and signed by the city enforcement officer and person(s) who signed the original voluntary compliance agreement.

The city shall have the right to inspect the subject property to determine compliance with the terms of the voluntary compliance agreement.

If the terms of the voluntary compliance agreement are not met, the city may abate the zoning violation and/or assess penalties to the person responsible for the zoning violation as authorized by the terms of the voluntary compliance agreement and/or this chapter.

The name and address of the person responsible for the zoning title violation;

The tax parcel number and street address or other identification or description of the location of the zoning violation;

A description of the zoning violation and a reference to the provision(s) of the ordinance (codified or not), resolution, regulation, rule, policy, permit condition, stop work order, or administrative decision that has been violated;

A description of the necessary abatement, mitigation, remediation, and/or other corrective action to be taken, and identification of the date or time by which such action must be completed and compliance achieved;

An agreement by the person responsible for the zoning violation that the city may inspect the property as may be necessary to determine compliance with the voluntary correction agreement;

The amount of civil penalties that will be imposed if the voluntary compliance agreement required corrective action does not timely occur;

An acknowledgement or agreement that, if the city determines that the terms of the voluntary compliance agreement are not met, the city may assess monetary penalties pursuant to this chapter to the person responsible for the zoning violation, and abate the zoning violation and recover its costs and expenses, including attorneys' fees from said person, all as additional civil monetary penalties;

An acknowledgement or agreement that if a penalty is assessed or cost is incurred by the city to abate the zoning violation, and if any assessed penalty, fee or cost is not paid, the city may charge the unpaid amount as a lien against the property where the zoning title violation occurred if the property is owned by the person responsible for the zoning title violation;

An acknowledgement or agreement that, by entering into the voluntary compliance agreement, the person responsible for the zoning violation waives the right to appeal the zoning violation and/or the required corrective action; and

An acknowledgement or agreement that, if the city determines that the terms of the voluntary compliance agreement are not met, the city may pursue any other remedy authorized by this chapter or by law.

Without court order, enter the real property and abate the violation and assess all costs of abatement, including attorneys' fees, to the person responsible for the zoning violation as further set forth in this chapter;

Without issuance of a notice of civil violation, assess civil penalties, as set forth in this chapter, to the person responsible for the zoning violation. Penalties imposed when a voluntary compliance agreement is not complied with shall accrue from the date that the abatement or corrective action was required to be completed in the voluntary compliance agreement;

Issue a notice of civil violation or stop work order for failure to comply with the terms of a voluntary compliance agreement; and

Pursue any other remedy authorized by this chapter or by law.

When an emergency exists; or

When a repeat zoning violation occurs; or

When the person responsible for the zoning violation knows or reasonably should have known that a zoning violation is occurring; or

When the code enforcement officer is unable to establish communication with the person responsible for the zoning violation as determined by the code enforcement officer.

A notice of civil violation represents a determination by the city that a zoning violation has occurred, that the party to whom the notice is issued is a person responsible for the zoning violation, that the zoning violation identified in the notice of civil violation requires abatement, mitigation, remediation or other correction, and that failure to take such corrective action may further subject the person(s) responsible for the violation to the assessment of penalties and other remedies authorized by this chapter and specified in the notice.

Upon a determination by the enforcement officer that a violation has occurred pursuant to a notice of civil violation, the city is authorized to order abatement, mitigation, remediation, and/or other correction of the zoning violation and to impose civil penalties on the person(s) responsible for the zoning violation if correction of the zoning violation is not timely achieved as directed by the city.

Any person responsible for the zoning violation, as determined by the city and identified in the notice of civil violation, shall have the opportunity to appeal the notice of civil violation to the hearing examiner as set forth in DPMC § 18.108.215. Failure to appeal the notice of civil violation shall render the notice of civil violation a final determination that the conditions described in the notice of civil violation exist and constitute a zoning violation, and that the named party is liable as a person responsible for the zoning violation.

Issuance of a notice of civil violation in no way limits the city's authority to issue a stop work order or to enter into a voluntary compliance agreement with the person responsible for the zoning violation.

The notice of civil violation shall contain the following information:

The enforcement officer shall cause the notice of civil violation to be served upon those persons identified in subsection (A)(1) of this section, either personally or by mailing, certified, return receipt requested, a copy of the notice of civil violation to such person at his/her last known address. If the person to whom the notice is issued cannot, after due diligence, be personally served within Spokane County, and if an address for mailed service cannot, after due diligence, be ascertained, notice shall be served by posting a copy of the notice of civil violation conspicuously on the affected premises or structure. Proof of service shall be made by a written declaration under penalty of perjury executed by the person effecting the service, declaring the time and date of service, the manner by which the service was made, and if by posting, the facts showing that due diligence was used in attempting to serve the person personally or by mail.

In the event the person responsible for the zoning violation fails to timely abate, remediate, mitigate, or otherwise correct the zoning violation as required by the notice of civil violation, the city may assess civil penalties to the person responsible for the zoning violation in the monetary amounts authorized in other provisions of this chapter. In addition, the city may enforce the notice of civil violation by filing an action in the Spokane County superior court and recover civil monetary penalties imposed by the city and all related expenses incurred by the city, including attorneys' fees, court costs, and abatement costs, which shall collectively be considered civil monetary penalties ordered to be paid by the court.

When a notice of civil violation is served on a person responsible for the zoning violation, the city may elect to record a copy of the same with the Spokane County auditor's office.

If the city elects to record a copy of the notice of civil violation with the Spokane County auditor's office, when all violations specified in the notice of civil violation have been abated, remediated, mitigated, or otherwise corrected to the satisfaction of the city, the city shall record a certificate of compliance with the Spokane County auditor's office.

The city may add to, revoke in whole or in part, or otherwise modify a notice of civil violation by issuing a written supplemental notice of civil violation. The supplemental notice of civil violation shall be governed by the same procedures and time limits applicable to all notices of civil violation contained in this chapter.

The city may issue a supplemental/modified notice of civil violation, or revoke a notice of civil violation issued under this chapter:

Such supplementation, modification or revocation shall identify the reasons and underlying facts for supplementation, modification or revocation, and shall be recorded with the Spokane County auditor's office, if the city recorded the original notice of civil violation.

A person to whom a notice of civil violation is issued may appeal the notice to the city hearing examiner. The appeal must be in writing and must be filed with the city clerk-treasurer within 15 days of the date of service of the notice of civil violation.

Any hearing on the appeal before the hearing examiner will be scheduled to occur no less than 10 days and no more than 40 days from the date of receipt of the written appeal by the city. The hearing examiner may continue the hearing beyond 40 days from the date of receipt of the appeal if reasonably required by the hearing examiner or agreed to by the city and person appealing the notice of civil violation.

The hearing examiner shall conduct a hearing on the notice of civil violation pursuant to the then-current applicable rules of proceeding before the hearing examiner. The enforcement officer and the person to whom the notice of civil violation was directed may participate as parties in the hearing and each party may call witnesses. The city shall have the burden of proof to demonstrate by a preponderance of the evidence that a zoning violation occurred or exists and that the city required corrective action (i.e., abatement, remediation, mitigation, or other corrective action) is reasonable under the circumstances. The determination of the enforcement officer as to the need for the required corrective action shall be accorded substantial weight by the hearing examiner in determining the reasonableness of the required corrective action.

Decision of the Hearing Examiner.

The city may enforce the hearing examiner's order and recover all related expenses incurred by the city, including attorneys' fees, costs of the hearing (including the fees paid to the hearing examiner), and any monetary penalty from that person, which shall collectively be considered civil monetary penalties ordered to be paid by the hearing examiner.

Any appeal of the hearing examiner's order shall be filed with the Spokane County superior court and served on the city clerk-treasurer within 21 calendar days from the date of the hearing examiner's order.

The city may suspend, revoke or modify any permit issued by the city for implementation of any corrective action required by a voluntary compliance agreement, notice of civil violation, stop work order, or otherwise issued, whenever:

Such suspension, revocation, or modification shall be carried out through the notice of civil violation provisions of this chapter and shall be effective upon the compliance date established by the notice of civil violation. Such suspension, revocation, or modification may be appealed to the hearing examiner using the appeal provisions of this chapter applicable to notices of civil violation.

Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, the city may immediately suspend operations under any permit by issuing a stop work order.

As further set forth herein, permits or approvals may be granted to the extent necessary to accomplish any abatement, remediation, mitigation or other correction of a zoning violation required by the city pursuant to this chapter. The city shall have sole discretion to determine whether the means or actions proposed in the permit application to correct the zoning violation are acceptable, or whether additional or alternative actions may be required for permit approval. The city will not issue a permit until the application sets forth means or actions to correct the zoning violation that are acceptable to the city. A permit for abatement, remediation, mitigation or other correction of a zoning violation may subsequently be suspended, revoked, or modified as authorized by DPMC § 18.108.230.

The city may deny a building or development permit when, with regard to the site or project for which the permit is submitted:

In the event a building or development permit is denied, such denial may continue until the violation is cured and accepted as complete by the city, and until payment in full of any civil penalty, if any, imposed by the city for the violation.

The city may abate a zoning violation when:

Whenever a zoning violation is occurring which constitutes an immediate and emergent threat to the public health, safety, or welfare, or to the environment, the city may summarily and without prior notice abate the condition. Notice of such abatement, including the reason for it, shall be given to the person responsible for the zoning violation and the property owner (if a different person) as soon as reasonably possible after the abatement.

Using any lawful means, the city may enter upon the subject property and may remove or correct the condition which is subject to abatement. The city may seek such judicial process as it deems necessary to effect the removal or correction of such condition.

The costs, including incidental expenses, of correcting the zoning violation shall be billed to the person responsible for the violation and/or the owner, lessor, tenant or other person entitled to control, use, and/or occupy the premises and shall become due and payable to the city within 20 calendar days following billing. In any action brought by the city in Spokane County superior court to enforce a voluntary compliance agreement, a notice of civil violation that was not the subject of an appeal to the city hearing examiner, or an order of a hearing examiner, the city shall be entitled to the entry of an order or orders awarding the city judgments for its costs and incidental expenses identified in this section as additional civil monetary penalties. The term "incidental expenses" includes but is not limited to:

Obstruction Violation. Any person who knowingly obstructs, impedes, or interferes with the city or its agents, or with a person responsible for the zoning violation in the performance of duties imposed by this chapter, or an order issued by the hearing examiner, or an agreement between the city and a person responsible for the zoning violation, shall be deemed to have committed a civil infraction and shall be subject to the penalties as set forth in DPMC § 1.16.020.

A stop work order represents a determination that a zoning title violation has occurred or is occurring, and that any work or activity that caused, is causing, or contributing to the violation on the property where the violation has occurred, or is occurring, must cease.

A stop work order requires the immediate cessation of the specified work or activity on the named property. Work activity may not resume unless specifically authorized in writing by the city.

A stop work order may be appealed according to the procedures prescribed in this chapter for appeals of notices of civil violations.

Failure to appeal the stop work order within the timelines established in this chapter for appeals of civil violations to the hearing examiner renders the stop work order a final determination that the civil zoning title violation occurred and that work was properly ordered to cease.

A stop work order will be enforced by the city's enforcement officer; however, the city may request the assistance of the county sheriff.

Service of a stop work order on any person responsible for the zoning title violation may be made by posting the stop work order in a conspicuous place on the property where the zoning violation occurred or by serving the stop work order in any other manner permitted for service of a notice of civil violation in this chapter.

The failure of the city to make or attempt service on any person named in the stop work order shall not invalidate any proceedings as to any other person duly served.

In addition to any other judicial or administrative remedy, the city may assess civil penalties for the violation of any stop work order according to the civil penalty schedule authorized in this chapter.

Civil penalties for the violation of any stop work order shall begin to accrue on the first day the stop work order is violated and shall cease accruing on the day the work is actually stopped.

Violation of a stop work order shall be a separate violation from any other zoning title violation.

Civil penalties for zoning title violations may be imposed for remedial purposes for each zoning violation identified in a voluntary compliance agreement, notice of violation, or stop work order. Monetary penalties may be assessed by the city for each day that a zoning violation occurs or continues following the date for compliance set forth in an applicable voluntary compliance agreement, notice of civil violation, and/or stop work order. Except as otherwise set forth in DPMC § 18.108.330 for zoning violations in critical areas, the monetary penalty for each day, or portion thereof, that the zoning violation is permitted to continue shall be as follows:

Payment of a monetary penalty pursuant to this chapter does not relieve the person to whom the voluntary correction agreement, notice of civil violation, or stop work order was issued of the duty to abate, remediate, mitigate, or otherwise correct the zoning violation.

The monetary penalty constitutes a personal obligation of the person to whom the voluntary compliance agreement, notice of civil violation, and/or stop work order is issued. Any monetary penalty assessed must be paid to the city within 20 calendar days from the date of the hearing examiner's order in the event of appeal, or, in absence of an appeal, the date of any notice from the city that penalties are due and payable. The city attorney or his/her designee is authorized to take appropriate action to collect the monetary penalty, plus reasonable attorneys' fees and costs incurred in collecting said monetary penalty, which shall be considered additional civil monetary penalties.

Payment of the civil penalties assessed under this chapter does not relieve the person(s) responsible for a zoning violation of the duty to correct the violation and/or pay any and all civil monetary penalties or other cost assessments issued pursuant to this chapter.

The city may suspend civil penalties if the person responsible for the zoning title violation has entered into a voluntary compliance agreement. Penalties shall begin to accrue again, pursuant to the terms of the voluntary compliance agreement, if any necessary permits applied for are denied, canceled, or not pursued, or if the corrective action identified in the voluntary compliance agreement is not completed as specified.

Civil penalties assessed create a joint and several personal obligation of all persons responsible for the zoning violation.

Persons responsible for violations of the critical areas provisions of the zoning title, as further defined below, will not only be required to abate violations and restore damaged critical areas, insofar as that is possible and beneficial, but will also be required to pay a civil monetary penalty for the redress of ecological, recreational, and economic values lost or damaged due to their unlawful actions.

The provisions of this section are in addition to, and not in lieu of, any other penalty, sanction, or right of action provided by law for other related violations.

Where feasible, the owner of the land on which the zoning violation within critical areas occurred shall be named as a party to the voluntary compliance agreement (if any), notice of civil violation, and/or stop work order. In addition to any other persons who may be responsible for a zoning violation, and subject to the exception provided in DPMC § 18.108.070(B), the owner shall be jointly and severally liable for the restoration of a site and payment of any civil penalties imposed.

Violation of critical areas provisions of the zoning title means:

Any person in violation of Chapter 18.70 DPMC, Resource Land and Critical Areas Regulations, may be subject to civil monetary penalties, costs, and fees as follows: