Abatement: A process by which the City of Tacoma removes Nuisance conditions on a property. Abatement may be performed with a warrant if the Nuisance is on private property, or without a warrant if the Nuisance is on public right-of-way or an imminent threat to life safety.
Appeal: A request by the property owner to the NCS Director or Hearing Examiner to re-evaluate any part of a Notice of Violation, Civil Penalty, or Finding of Fact and Order.
Certificate of Complaint: A complaint filed with the Pierce County Tax Assessor that is attached to the property record at the violation address after Civil Penalties meet code requirements, which vary by violation type. Certificates of Complaint serve as an indicator to anyone investigating the property that there may be unmet obligations to be fulfilled by the property owner to the City of Tacoma.
Civil Penalties: A fine issued by the City of Tacoma to the property owner as a result of non-compliance with property corrections. Fines are generally issued in $250 increments and can be issued upon each re-inspection of the property where progress has not been made, and sent to collections after 60 days of non-payment.
Demolition Plan: An administrative process conducted by Code Compliance to assess the scope of the demolition project, outline and execute required environmental and safety testing, and execute the contract of the demolition.
Findings of Facts, Conclusions, and Order: A decision issued by the Hearing Examiner after a hearing to determine the next actions permitted by the property owner and the City to resolve the open case.
Hearing Process: The process in which the City pursues legal action to abate a property or remove a building in violation. The hearing is conducted by the Hearing Examiner who makes a decision about the course of resolution for the case.
Limitations due to Ownership Status: Describes a complication in which the City is unable to reach resolution by working directly with the owner because the owner is deceased, unreachable, or the property is in the foreclosure process.
Notice of Violation: Written communication to the property owner detailing code violations, the City process for pursuing compliance, and the property owner’s rights.
Plan of Action or Repair Plan: A plan submitted by the property owner to the Code Inspector outlining how and when the repairs noted in the Notice of Violation will be completed.
Public Disclosure of Records Request: A public record is any record containing information relating to the conduct of government business, which is prepared, owned, used, or retained by an agency. This includes, but is not limited to, electronic media, paper, email, microfilm audiotapes, videotapes, magnetic tapes, and disks (CDs/DVDs). Public records may be obtained from the City by request.
Provisional License: The provisional license is a three year license that the City requires of residential property owners if their property is found to be endangering the health or safety of tenants. One of the requirements of the provisional license is a certificate of inspection that will demonstrate that their property does not endanger the health and safety of tenants. The provisional license is based on Sate Legislation adopted in 2010 and consistent with the Landlord-Tenant Act.
Receivership: A process in which the City gains legal authority to take control of a private property in order to correct code violations.
Right-of-Way: Includes the area of land, the right of possession of which is secured by the City for right-of-way purposes and includes the traveled portion of the public streets and alleys, as well as boarder area, which includes, but is not limited to, any sidewalks, driveway approaches, planting strips, traffic circles, parkways, or medians, or area between the sidewalk and the curb line.
Warrant: The process in which a Superior Court Judge issues permission for the City to abate nuisance conditions on a property or demolish a building.
YARD Program: A program funded and administered by the City that connects low-income, elderly or disabled property owners with overgrown vegetation nuisance violations to a resource that will remove the overgrowth at no cost.