Columbia Operation and maintenance standards ordinance (§ 29-4.9)

(a) Maintenance requirement.

(1) General. When the standards and procedures of this chapter or by conditions attached to any permit, approval, or variance require that any building or site feature be constructed or installed, the property owner is responsible for maintaining those building or site features in good repair, and for

replacing them if they are damaged or destroyed or, in the case of living materials, if they become diseased or die after installation. In addition, property owners shall be responsible for each of the additional maintenance, replacement, and operating standards set forth in this section 29-4.9.

(2) Landscape maintenance.

(i) The trees, shrubs, fences, walls and other landscaping materials depicted on approved plans shall be considered as elements of the project in the same manner as parking, building materials and other elements. The property owner and any agents who are authorized to maintain the property shall be responsible for the continued maintenance of those items. Plant material that exhibits evidence of insect pest disease or damage shall be appropriately treated, and dead plants promptly removed and replaced within the next planting season. All landscaping will be subject to periodic inspection by the city to ensure compliance.

(ii) Any trees required to be installed by this chapter that are lost to damage or disease within two (2) years after installation, shall be replaced by the property owner within six (6) months at a ratio of one tree per one inch of DBH lost. Replacement trees must be at least two (2) inch in caliper size. Shrubbery or other plantings that die within eighteen (18) months of installation shall be replaced in kind within six (6) months.

(3) Parking area maintenance. All surface parking areas and parking structures shall be maintained in clean and neat condition. Potholes, surface damage, and other hazardous conditions shall be promptly repaired, and litter and debris shall be removed on a regular basis.

(4) Sign maintenance.

(i) Any private sign that has become damaged, dilapidated, or dangerous shall be immediately, or within the time frame mandated by the director, repaired or removed. If the paint on any sign has checked, peeled, or flaked to the extent that the sign cannot be read in whole or in part, the sign shall be repainted or removed. Signs that contain messages that have become obsolete because of the termination of the use or business or product advertised, or for some other reason, shall have such message removed within sixty (60) days of its becoming obsolete.

(ii) If maintenance to meet the standards in subsections (i) is neglected, the city shall notify the sign owner in writing of the type of maintenance required. If the maintenance is not provided within sixty (60) days, the city may revoke the permit and, confiscate the sign face, or take any other action authorized by section 29-6.6 (violations, enforcement, and penalties).

(b) Operating standards. All structures, uses, and activities in all districts shall be used or occupied so as to avoid creating any dangerous, injurious, noxious or otherwise objectionable condition that would create adverse impacts on the residents, employees, or visitors on the property itself or on neighboring properties. Uses and activities that operate in violation of applicable state or federal statutes or this chapter are presumed to be a violation of this section 29-4.90. Property owner responsibilities under this section shall include, but shall not be limited to, the following standards:

(1)

Glare. Direct or reflected glare, including glare from exterior lighting, shall not be visible at the property line.

(2) Noise. All activities shall comply with state statutes and be conducted so as to avoid the creation of any noise that would create a public nuisance or a nuisance interfering with the use and enjoyment of adjacent properties. Any amplified sound equipment shall be mounted so as to direct sounds inward from properties, rather than outward towards property boundaries. Amplified sounds shall not be allowed to cross property lines unless a temporary use permit has been issued for that purpose in connection with a special event.

(3) Odors. All activities shall comply with state statutes and regulations. No operation shall cause or allow the emission of any odorous air contaminant that is a nuisance, hazard or exceeds applicable federal or state regulations. Detailed plans for the prevention of odors crossing property lines may be required before the issuance of a development or building permit.

(4) Smoke. All activities shall comply with state statutes and regulations. No operation shall discharged into the atmosphere any contaminant for which threshold limit values are listed for working atmosphere by the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists in such quantity that the concentration of the contaminant at ground level at any point beyond the boundary of the property shall at any time exceed the threshold limit established by such conference or by any state or federal law or regulation. Visible emissions of any kind at ground level past the lot line of the property on which the source of the emissions is located are prohibited.

(5) Vibration. No use or activity shall cause inherent and recurring generated vibration perceptible without instruments at any point along the property line. Temporary construction is excluded from this restriction.

(6) Hazardous materials. All uses and activities shall comply with state statutes and regulations regarding the use, storage, handling, and transportation of flammable liquids, liquefied petroleum, gases, explosives, hazardous materials, hazardous wastes, toxic materials and solid wastes, as those terms are defined by applicable statutes, rules, regulations, or ordinances.

(7) Materials and waste handling. All materials or wastes that might cause fumes or dust or that constitute a fire hazard or that may be edible by or otherwise be attractive to rodents or insects shall be stored outdoors only in closed, impermeable trash containers that are screened in accordance with the requirements of this Code. Lubrication and fuel substances shall be prevented from leaking and/or draining onto the ground. All sewage and industrial wastes shall be treated and disposed of in compliance with the water quality standards applicable of the state and federal government. (8)

Electromagnetic radiation. No use or activity shall create or operate an intentional source of electromagnetic radiation that does not comply with the then current regulations of the Federal Communications Commission regarding that type of electromagnetic radiation source. In case of governmental communications facilities, governmental agencies, and government owned plants, the regulations of the interdepartmental radio advisory committee shall take precedence over the regulations of the Federal Communications Commission, regarding such sources of electromagnetic radiation.

(9) Nuclear radiation. No use or activity shall cause radiation at any property line that violates any regulation of the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

(10) Nuisance prohibited. All structures and land uses within the city shall be constructed, used, operated, and maintained in such a manner so as to be free of nuisances, as defined in state law and by City Code.