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Seattle |
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Municipal Code |
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Title 22. BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION CODES |
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SubTitle II. Housing Code |
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Chapter 22.206. HABITABLE BUILDINGS |
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SubChapter VII. Alternative Materials and Design, Variances and Enforcement |
§ 22.206.260. Emergency order.
A.
Whenever the Director finds that any building, housing unit or premises is an imminent threat to the health or safety of the occupants or the public, an emergency order may be issued directing that the building, housing unit or premises be restored to a condition of safety and specifying the time for compliance. In the alternative, the order may require that the building, housing unit or premises be immediately vacated and closed to entry.
B.
The emergency order shall be posted on the building, housing unit or premises, and shall be mailed by regular, first class mail to the last known address of the property owners and, if applicable, to the occupants. All property owners and occupants of such building, housing unit or premises are deemed to have notice of any emergency order so posted and mailed.
C.
It shall be unlawful for any person to fail to comply with an emergency order issued by the Director requiring that the building, housing unit or premises be restored to a condition of safety by a specified time.
D.
It shall be unlawful for any person to use or occupy, or to cause or permit any person to use or occupy the building, housing unit or premises after the date provided in an emergency order requiring the building, housing unit or premises to be vacated and closed until the Director certifies that the conditions described in the emergency order have been corrected and the building, housing unit or premises have been restored to a safe condition.
E.
Any building, housing unit or premises subject to an emergency order that is not repaired within the time specified in the order is found and declared to be a public nuisance that the Director is hereby authorized to abate summarily by such means and with such assistance as may be available to the Director, and the costs thereof shall be recovered by the Director in the manner provided by law.
F.
1.
Any tenant who is required to vacate and actually vacates a housing unit as a result of an emergency order shall be paid relocation assistance pursuant to and contingent upon compliance with the provisions of subsections G and H of SMC Section 22.206.260 and SMC Section 22.206.265 at the rate of Two Thousand Eight Hundred Dollars ($2,800.00) for each tenant household with income during the preceding twelve (12) months at or below fifty (50) percent of the median family income for the Seattle-Bellevue-Everett Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area, adjusted for family size ("median family income"), and two (2) months' rent for each tenant household with income during the preceding twelve (12) months above fifty (50) percent of the median family income, provided all of the following conditions are met:
a.
The emergency order requires the housing unit occupied by the tenant to be vacated and closed;
b.
The conditions that create the emergency arise from circumstances within the control of the property owner, including, but not limited to, conditions arising from failure to perform maintenance on the premises, affirmative acts of the property owner, or termination of water or utility services provided by the property owner;
c.
The conditions that create the emergency do not arise from an act of God or from the affirmative actions of a person or persons beyond the control of the property owner; and
d.
The conditions that create the emergency are not caused solely by the actions of the tenant.
2.
The amount of relocation assistance to be paid pursuant to subsection F1 of SMC Section 22.206.260 to a tenant household with income during the preceding twelve (12) months at or below fifty (50) percent of the median family income may be adjusted annually by the percentage change in the housing component of the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for the Seattle-Bellevue-Everett Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area as published by the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. Such adjustments are authorized to be made by Director's Rule.
G.
The property owner is required to deposit with the Director the relocation assistance provided in subsection F in a form acceptable to the Director no later than the deadline specified in the emergency order to vacate and close the building, housing unit or premises.
H.
No relocation assistance may be paid pursuant to subsection F1 of SMC Section 22.206.260 to tenants with household incomes during the preceding twelve (12) months greater than fifty (50) percent of the median family income unless the property owner has deposited the required assistance pursuant to subsection G of SMC Section 22.206.260.