Chapter 15

NUISANCES

[HISTORY: Adopted by the Common Council of the City of Gillett as Ch. IX of the former Municipal Code. Amendments noted where applicable.]

GENERAL REFERENCES

Adult-oriented establishments and clubs — See Ch. 5.

Animals — See Ch. 6.

Fire prevention — See Ch. 12.

Housing standards — See Ch. 13, Art. I.

Peace and good order — See Ch. 16.

§ 15-1.  Prohibited acts.

No person shall erect, contrive, cause, continue, maintain or permit to exist any public nuisance within the City.

§ 15-2.  Public nuisances generally.

A public nuisance is a thing, act, occupation, condition or use of property which shall continue for such length of time as to:

A.     Substantially annoy, injure or endanger the comfort, health, repose or safety of the public.

B.     In any way render the public insecure in life or in the use of property.

C.     Greatly offend the public morals or decency.

D.     Unlawfully and substantially interfere with, obstruct or tend to obstruct or render dangerous for passage any street, alley, highway, navigable body of water or other public way or the use of public property.

§ 15-3.  Public nuisances affecting health.

The following acts, omission, places, conditions and things are hereby specifically declared to be public health nuisances, but such enumeration shall not be construed to exclude other health nuisances coming within the definition of § 15-2 of this chapter:

A.     All decayed, harmfully adulterated or unwholesome food or drink sold or offered for sale to the public.

B.     Carcasses or animals, birds or fowl not intended for human consumption or food which are not buried or otherwise disposed of in a sanitary manner within 24 hours after death.

C.     Accumulations of decayed animal or vegetable matter, trash, rubbish, rotting lumber, bedding, packing material, scrap metal or any material whatsoever in which flies, mosquitoes, disease-carrying insects, rats or other vermin may breed.

D.     All stagnant water in which mosquitoes, flies or other insects can multiply, unless a wetland as determined by the Department of Natural Resources.

E.      Privy vaults and garbage cans which are not flytight.

F.      All noxious weeds and other growth of vegetation in excess of eight inches.

G.     All animals running at large.

H.     The escape of smoke, soot, cinders, noxious acids, fumes, gases, fly ash, industrial dust or other atmospheric pollutants within the City limits or within one mile thereof in such quantities as to endanger the health of persons of ordinary sensitivities or to threaten or cause substantial injury to property in the City.

I.       The pollution of any public well or cistern, stream, lake, canal or other body of water by sewage, creamery or industrial wastes or other substances.

J.       Any use of property, substances or things within the City emitting or causing any foul, offensive, noisome, nauseous, noxious or disagreeable odors, gases, effluvia or stenches extremely repulsive to the physical senses of ordinary persons which annoy, discomfort, injure or inconvenience the health of any appreciable number of persons within the City.

K.     All abandoned wells not securely covered or secured from public use.

L.      Any use of property which shall cause any nauseous or unwholesome liquid or substance to flow into or upon any street, gutter, alley, sidewalk or public place within the City.

§ 15-4.  Public nuisances offending morals and decency.

The following acts, omissions, places, conditions and things are hereby specifically declared to be public nuisances offending public morals and decency, but such enumeration shall not be construed to exclude other nuisances offending public morals and decency coming within the definition of § 15-2 of this chapter:

A.     All disorderly houses, bawdy houses, houses of ill fame, gambling houses and buildings or structures kept or resorted to for the purpose of prostitution, promiscuous sexual intercourse or gambling.

B.     All gambling devices and slot machines.

C.     All places where intoxicating liquor or fermented malt beverages are sold, possessed, stored, brewed, bottled, manufactured or rectified without a permit or license as provided for by this Code.[1]

D.     Any place or premises within the City where City ordinances or state laws relating to public health, safety, peace, morals or welfare are openly, continuously, repeatedly and intentionally violated.

E.      Any place of premises resorted to for the purpose of drinking intoxicating liquor or fermented malt beverages in violation of the laws of the State of Wisconsin or ordinances of the City.

§ 15-5.  Public nuisances affecting peace and safety.

The following acts, omissions, places, conditions and things are hereby declared to be public nuisances affecting peace and safety, but such enumeration shall not be construed to exclude other nuisances affecting public peace or safety coming within the provisions of § 15-2 of this chapter:

A.     All signs and billboards, awnings and other similar structures over or near streets, sidewalks, public grounds or places frequented by the public, so situated or constructed as to endanger the public safety.

B.     All buildings erected, repaired or altered within the City in violation of the provisions of the ordinances of the City relating to materials and manner of construction of buildings and structures within said district.

C.     All unauthorized signs, signals, markings or devices placed or maintained upon or in view of any public highway or railway crossing which purport to be or may be mistaken as an official traffic control device, railroad sign or signal or which, because of its color, location, brilliance or manner of operation, interferes with the effectiveness of any such device, sign or signal.

D.     All trees, hedges, billboards or other obstructions which prevent persons driving vehicles on public streets, alleys, or highways from obtaining a clear view of traffic when approaching an intersection or pedestrian crosswalk. Any such obstruction which falls within a vision clearance of six feet shall be presumed to be a violation of this subsection. Despite such presumption, the Chief of Police may except trees from the requirements of this subsection when such trees have been defoliated to provide a vertical clearance of six feet and when, in the discretion of the Chief of Police, such trees by their size or number do not constitute an obstruction which would affect traffic safety to a point where removal would be advisable.

E.      All limbs of trees which project over and less than eight feet above the surface of a public sidewalk or 14 feet above the surface of the portion of the street or alley traveled by vehicles.

F.      All use or display of fireworks except as provided by the laws of the State of Wisconsin and ordinances of the City.

G.     All buildings or structures so dilapidated or out of repair as to be dangerous, unsafe, unsanitary or otherwise unfit for human use.

H.     All wires over streets, alleys or public grounds which are strung less than 15 feet above the surface thereof.

I.       All loud, discordant and unnecessary noises or vibrations of any kind.

J.       All obstructions of streets, alleys, sidewalks or crosswalks and all excavations in or under the same, except as permitted by the ordinances of the City, or which, although made in accordance with such ordinances, are kept or maintained for an unreasonable or illegal length of time after the purpose thereof has been accomplished.

K.     All open and unguarded pits, wells, excavations or unused basements freely accessible from any public street, alley or sidewalk.

L.      All abandoned refrigerators or iceboxes from which the doors and other covers have not been removed or which are not equipped with a device for opening from the inside.

M.     Any unauthorized or unlawful use of property abutting on a public street, alley or sidewalk or of a public street, alley or sidewalk which causes large crowds of people to gather, obstructing traffic and free use of the streets or sidewalks.

N.     Repeated or continuous violations of the ordinances of the City or laws of the State of Wisconsin relating to the storage of flammable liquids.

O.     All snow and ice not removed or sprinkled with ashes, sawdust or sand as provided in Chapter 16, § 16-20 of this Code.

§ 15-6.  Other public nuisances.

A.     The following acts, omissions, places, conditions and things are hereby specifically declared to be public nuisances offending the comfort, health, repose or safety of the public, but such enumeration shall not be construed to exclude other nuisances within the definition of § 15-2 of this chapter:

(1)    All owners of property located within the City who fail to keep their premises free of litter, trash or rubbish.

B.     Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:

LITTER — Includes, but is not limited to, trash and wastepaper lying scattered about and an untidy accumulation of objects of any kind.

RUBBISH — Includes, but is not limited to, waste materials and refuse of every character and kind, collected or accumulated.

TRASH — Includes, but is not limited to, something or object(s) worth little or nothing, and something or object(s) in a crumbled, broken or inoperable condition.

§ 15-7.  Placement of garbage for pickup.

Garbage and trash placed out for pickup shall be placed by the curb no earlier than 24 hours prior to normal pickup.

§ 15-8.  Barking dogs and crying cats. [2]

It shall be unlawful for any person knowingly to keep or harbor any dog which habitually barks, howls or yelps or any cat which habitually cries or howls to the great discomfort of the peace and quiet of the neighborhood or in such manner as to materially disturb or annoy persons in the neighborhood who are of ordinary sensibilities. Such dogs and cats are hereby declared to be a public nuisance.

§ 15-9.  Enforcement and abatement.

A.     Enforcement. It shall be the duty of the Chief of Police and Building Inspector to enforce those provisions of this chapter that come within the jurisdiction of their offices, and they shall make periodic inspections and inspections upon complaint to ensure that such provisions are not violated. No action shall be taken under this section to abate a public nuisance unless the officer shall have inspected or caused to be inspected the premises where the nuisance is alleged to exist and have satisfied himself that a nuisance does in fact exist.

B.     Summary abatement.

(1)    Notice to owner. If the inspecting officer shall determine that a public nuisance exists within the City and that there is great and immediate danger to the public health, safety, peace, morals or decency, the Mayor may direct the Chief of Police to serve notice on the person causing, permitting or maintaining such nuisance or upon the owner or occupant of the premises where such nuisance is caused, permitted or maintained and to post a copy of said notice on the premises. Such notice shall direct the person causing, permitting or maintaining such nuisance or the owner or occupant of the premises to abate or remove such nuisance within 24 hours and shall state that unless such nuisance is so abated, the City will cause the same to be abated and will charge the cost thereof to the owner, occupant or person causing, permitting or maintaining the nuisance, as the case may be.

(2)    Abatement by City. If the nuisance is not abated within the time provided or if the owner, occupant or person causing the nuisance cannot be found, the officer having the duty of enforcement shall cause the abatement or removal of such public nuisance.

C.     Abatement by court action. If the inspecting officer shall determine that a public nuisance exists on private premises but that the nature of such nuisance is not such as to threaten great and immediate danger to the public health, safety, peace, morals or decency, he/she shall discuss this situation with the Mayor and City Attorney, and said persons shall then decide what course of action to take in handling the matter.

D.     Other methods not excluded. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as prohibiting the abatement of public nuisances by the City or its officials in accordance with the laws of the State of Wisconsin nor as prohibiting an action to be commenced in the Circuit Court for Oconto County seeking a forfeiture as provided in § 15-13 of this chapter.

§ 15-10.  Recovery of abatement costs.

In addition to any other penalty imposed by this chapter for the erection, contrivance, creation, continuance or maintenance of a public nuisance, the cost of abating a public nuisance by the City shall be collected as a debt from the owner, occupant or person causing, permitting or maintaining the nuisance, and if notice to abate the nuisance has been given to the owner, such cost shall be assessed against the real estate as a special charge.

§ 15-11.  Junked vehicles and appliances.

A.     Storage of automobiles restricted.

(1)    No disassembled, inoperable, unlicensed, junked or wrecked motor vehicles, truck bodies, tractors, trailers, Recreational Vehicles, ATV's, snowmobiles, boats, or appliances shall be stored or be allowed to remain in the open upon public or private property within the City for a period exceeding five days, if upon public property, or for a period exceeding 30 days if upon private property.

(2)    Any business engaged in automotive sales or repair may retain such vehicles in the open, on private property, for a period not to exceed one year, after which such vehicles must be enclosed by a screening or live planting to be approved by the Planning Committee.

B.     Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:

APPLIANCE — Any stove, washer or refrigerator which is no longer operable in the sense for which it was manufactured.

DISASSEMBLED, INOPERABLE, VEHICLE IN PROGRESS, JUNKED OR WRECKED MOTOR VEHICLES, TRUCK BODIES, TRACTORS OR TRAILERS — Motor vehicles, truck bodies, tractors, or trailers in such state of physical or mechanical ruin as to be incapable of propulsion or being operated upon the public streets or highways.

MOTOR VEHICLE — As defined in § 340.01(35), Wis. Stats.

UNLICENSED MOTOR VEHICLES, TRUCK BODIES, TRACTORS OR TRAILERS — Motor vehicles, truck bodies, tractors or trailers which do not bear lawful current license plates.

C.     Whenever the Police Department shall find any such vehicles or appliances placed or stored in the open upon public property within the City, it shall cause such vehicle or appliance to be removed by a junk or salvage yard and stored in such junk or salvage yard, subject to reclamation by the owner, for a period of 30 days, at the end of which time such junk or salvage yard shall dispose of such vehicle or appliance.

D.     Whenever the Police Department shall find any vehicles or appliances as described herein placed or stored in the open upon private property within the City, it shall notify the owner of said property on which said vehicle or appliance is stored of the violation of this section. If said vehicle or appliance is not removed within 30 days, the Police Department shall cause to be issued a warrant for the arrest of the property owner of the property upon which said vehicle or appliance is stored.

E.      Any person who shall be adjudicated to have violated any of the provisions of this section shall be subject to a forfeiture as provided in Chapter 1, Article II of this Code, plus the costs of said prosecution, and upon default of payment of such forfeiture and costs shall be imprisoned in the Oconto County Jail until such forfeiture and costs are paid, but not to exceed 10 days. Each day that a violation of this section continues shall be deemed a separate offense.

§ 15-12.  Outdoor solid fuel heating devices. [Added 11-4-2004 by Ord. No. 2004-21]

A.     Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:

SOLID FUEL HEATING DEVICE — An outdoor device or structure designed for solid fuel combustion and for the purpose of providing indoor heat, including but not limited to combination fuel furnaces or boilers which burn solid fuel.

STACK or CHIMNEY — Any vertical structure enclosing a flue or flues that carry off smoke or exhaust from a solid fuel fired heating device or structure, including that part of the structure extending above a roof.

B.     Allowed materials to burn. Only the following materials may be burned in the outdoor solid fuel heating devices: brush, personal papers, pellets, and clean, unpainted wood products.

C.     Building permit required prior to installation. No outdoor solid fuel heating device shall be erected within a fifty-foot radius of the property lines.

D.     Public nuisance. All solid fuel fired heating devices without a stack or chimney extending four feet above the highest point of any structure within a fifty-foot radius of the heating device and a minimum of 17 feet in height measured from the ground at and on which the device is located shall be considered a public nuisance within the City of Gillett and are banned.

§ 15-13.  Violations and penalties.

Except as otherwise provided, any person who shall violate the provisions of this chapter shall, upon conviction, be subject to a forfeiture as provided in Chapter 1, Article II of this Code for each offense; provided, however, that such person shall not be so fined if such nuisance is abated in accordance with the provisions for the same as set out in this chapter.