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HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinance 11630a '; ORDINANCE ~~CD ~D AN ORDINANCE AMENDING APPENDIX B OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF FORT WORTH (1986), AS AMENDED BY ADDING DEFINITIONS; BY ADDING ANEW DIVISION 3 IN ARTICLE II OF SAID APPENDIX; BY REDESIGNATION OF THE CURRENT DIVISION 3 OF SAID APPENDIX; CREATING THE OFFENSE OF FAILING TO REMOVE GRAFFITI; PROVIDING FOR NOTIFICATION OF VIOLATION; PROVIDING FOR THE ENFORCEMENT OF SUCH ORDINANCE; PROVIDING PENALTIES; REPEALING ALL ORDINANCES AND PROVISIONS IN CONFLICT ~iEREWITH AND MAKING THIS ORDINANCE CUMULATIVE OF PRIOR ORDINANCES NOT IN CONFLICT; PROVIDING A SEVERABILITY AND SAVINGS CLAUSE; PROVIDING FOR PUBLICATION; AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE. WHEREAS, the City of Fort Worth is a home rule municipal corporation organized and existing by virtue of the Constitution and laws of the State of Texas and by its Charter adopted in December of 1924, and WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Fort Worth finds that the use of "graffiti" by members of the populace has grown to such significant levels that entire areas of the community, both public and private, are blighted by its existence; and WHEREAS, the City Council further finds that graffiti serves as a method of communication for individuals who engage in criminal activities of all sorts, and therefore graffiti serves as an aid in the proliferation of criminal activity, and WHEREAS, the City of Fort Worth possesses all the rights, powers and authorities possessed by all home rule municipalities, including the police power, as recognized in Article 11, Section 5 of the Constitution of the State of Texas; and 1 WHEREAS, the City Council recognizes that the control of graffiti, and of the implements of graffiti are within the police power of the City of Fort Worth; BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT WORTH, TEXAS. Section 1. That Appendix B of the Code of the City of Fort Worth (1986), as amended, is hereby further amended by the addition of two new definitions to Section 11A-7 of that Appendix and by the addition of the new Article III, "Graffiti", to that Appendix, which amendment and new article shall read and be as follows: "Sec 11A-7 - Definitions. "Graffiti" means any unauthorized inscription, word, signature, symbol, design or other marking of any sort which is etched, written, painted, drawn or applied in any other way to any structure, building or property of any sort or to any portion or element thereof, whether the property is public or private "Unauthorized" means without the permission of the owner or person in control of property, whether public or private." "DIVISION 3 GRAFFITI Sec. 11A-90 - Failure to Remove Graffiti An owner of property commits a violation if he or she fails to remove any and all graffiti from his or her property, when said graffiti is visible from public property, public right-of- way or any private property other than that on which the graffiti 2 ,, exists. It shall be a defense to prosecution under this section that no offer of free paint and/or labor to assist in abating the graffiti was made to the owner by any City official Sec. 11A-91 - Notification Prior to Issuance of Citation Prior to issuance of a citation issued for failure of a person to remove graffiti from property under his or her control, the owner must be given notice of the violation Notice may be made personally to the owner in writing, by certified mail, return receipt requested, addressed to the owner's post office address, or by publication in the official newspaper at least twice within ten (10) consecutive days, if personal service cannot be obtained or the owner's post office address is unknown Citation for a violation of 11A-90 above may be issued fourteen (14) calendar days after notification of the violation. Notice will be deemed to have occurred as of the day the notice was given personally to the owner, or three (3) days after written notice was mailed to the owner, or, if notice is by publication, on the date that the second or last notice is published in the official newspaper An owner shall be granted a seven (7) day extension of time to complete abatement of the graffiti, if he or she notifies the Code Enforcement Officer assigned to the case, in writing, that more time is required The request for an extension of time must be received prior to the expiration of the fourteen (14) day period. Sec 11A-92 - Penalty Any person violating the provisions of this article shall be 3 guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00) Each day that a violation is permitted to exist constitutes a separate offense " Section 2. That Appendix B of the Code of the City of Fort Worth (1986), as amended, is hereby further amended by the redesignation of the current Division 3 of Article 11 of Appendix B of said Code as "Division 4.", to read and be as follows "DIVISION 4 NUISANCES" Section 3. This ordinance shall be cumulative of all provisions of ordinances and of the Code of the City of Fort Worth, Texas (1986), as amended, except where the provisions of this ordinance are in direct conflict with the provisions of such ordinances and such Code, in which event conflicting provisions of such ordinances and such Code are hereby repealed Section 4. Any person, firm or corporation who violates, disobeys, omits, neglects or refuses to comply with or who resists the enforcement of any of the provisions of this ordinance shall be fined not more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500 00) for each offense Each day that a violation is permitted to exist constitutes a separate offense. Section 5. It is hereby declared to be the intention of the City Council that the sections, paragraphs, sentences, clauses and 4 Y s phrases of this ordinance are severable, and, if any phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section of this ordinance shall be declared unconstitutional by the valid judgment or decree of any court of competent jurisdiction, such unconstitutionality shall not affect any of the remaining phrases, clauses, sentences, paragraphs and sections of this ordinance, since the same would have been enacted by the City Council without the incorporation in this ordinance of any such unconstitutional phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section Section 6. The City Secretary of the City of Fort Worth, Texas, is hereby authorized to publish this ordinance in pamphlet form for general distribution among the public, and the operative provisions of this ordinance as so published shall be admissible in evidence in all courts without further proof other than the production thereof, as provided in Chapter XXV, Section 3, of the Charter of the City of Fort Worth, Texas. Section 7. This ordinance shall be in full force and effect from after the date of August 1, 1994 and thereafter, and publication as required by law, and it is so ordained 5 APPROVED AS TO FORM~A~NDp LEGALITY ~~11J~!~ Assistant City Attorney Date. ~' ~- ~~ ADOPTED : n/" ~ C~,L/~ EFFECTIVE. "/~'~~-~Y" City of Fort Worth, Texas Mayor and Couuncil Communication DATE REFERENCE NIIMBER LOG NAME PAGE 06/28/94 G1071® 02GRAF 1 of 4 svsJECT SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATION AND ADOPTION OF TWO ORDINANCES FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF THE FORT WORTH GRAFFITI PROGRAM RECOMMENDATION It is recommended that the City Council 1 Adopt the attached supplemental appropriations ordinance increasing appropriations in the General Fund by 519,862 and decreasing the unreserved, undesignated fund balance of the General Fund by the same amount, and 2 Adopt the attached ordinance amending Chapter 23 of the Code of the City of Fort Worth by creating the offense of possession of aerosol paint by minors, providing defenses and penalties, and providing an effective date of August 1, 1994, and 3 Adopt the attached ordinance amending Appendix B of the Code of the City of Fort Worth by creating the offense of failing to remove graffiti, providing for notification of violation, providing for the enforcement of such ordinance, providing penalties, and providing an effective date of August 1, 1994, and 4 Authorize the City Manager to implement the Fort Worth Graffiti Program for the remainder of fiscal year 1993-94 at a cost of 519,862 DISCUSSION The City Council at its February 1 5, 1994 Pre-Council meeting discussed the graffiti problem in Fort Worth, and as a result, the City Manager formed a task force to address this issue The Graffiti Task Force met weekly in an effort to develop a workable and equitable graffiti program for Fort Worth Representation on the Graffiti Task Force included the Mayor's Anti-Graffiti Inner-city Cleanup (MAGIC), the Police Department, Code Enforcement, the City Attorney's Office, the Parks and Community Services Department, the Environmental Management Department, the Transportation/Public Works Department, and the City Manager's Office On April 5, 1994 the Graffiti Task Force presented an interim report to the City Council concerning the direction that the Task Force was taking in developing a graffiti program for Fort Worth, and on May 3, 1994 (I R 7825) the Task Force presented for the City Council's consideration its final program recommendations At that time, the City Council requested that ~~ City of Fort Worth, ~'exas Mayor and Council Communication DATE REFERENCE NUMBER LOG NAME PAGE 06/28/94 G10710 02GRAF 2 of 4 SUBJECT SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATION AND ADOPTION OF TWO ORDINANCES FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF THE FORT WORTH GRAFFITI PROGRAM the Task Force develop aless-costly program for its consideration, and on June 14, 1994 (I R 7842) the Task Force presented its less-costly graffiti program The Task Force was then directed to prepare an action item for the implementation of the program for the City Council's consideration The Fort Worth Graffiti Program provides the following initiatives in the areas of education, abatement, and compliance Education Development by the FWISD of a curriculum module for implementation and use in schools 2 Development of information packets for distribution to the public, such as neighborhood associations and youth serving agencies (i e Scout troops) Abatement Establishment of a graffiti abatement crew in the Parks and Community Services Department, consisting of City staff and probationers, to abate graffiti both on City-owned property and private property with the consent of the owner 2 Use of volunteer organizations, such as Scout troops, Boys and Girls Clubs, neighborhood associations and CODE BLUE volunteers to abate graffiti 3 Enlargement of the current paint bank to provide paint to the graffiti abatement crew, volunteer groups, and citizens to be used to abate graffiti 4 Coordination of an inaugural Graffiti Abatement Day in an effort to promote the abatement of graffiti to the extent possible, conducted annually thereafter in line with similar awareness programs, such as Earth Day and Cowtown Brush-Up 5 Solicitation of contributions from businesses and foundations, in conjunction with MAGIC, to offset the cost of the graffiti program •- ~ Printed on recycled paper City o,~' Fort worth, Texas Mayor and Council Communication DATE I REFERENCE NUMBER I LOG NAME I PAGE 06/28/94 G-10710 02GRAF 3 of 4 SUBJECT SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATION AND ADOPTION OF TWO ORDINANCES FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF THE FORT WORTH GRAFFITI PROGRAM 6 Establishment of a Graffiti Hotline in the Action Center Compliance -Voluntary Establishment of a "Responsible Retailer Program" requesting voluntary cooperation on the part of spray paint retailers to locate spray paint in areas of stores less accessible to minors, and donate non-marketable paint 2 Establishment of a "Retailer Sponsorship Program", whereby the retailer's name appears on the graffiti abatement crew vehicle in exchange for free paint, or other in-kind or monetary contributions, for a designated period of time Compliance -Legal 1 Adoption of two ordinances to make the possession of spray paint unlawful for minors, create penalties and fines not to exceed 5500 00 for miriors .possessing spray paint, and, as a last resort, establish citations/penalty fines not to exceed 5500 00 for property owners who refuse to abate graffiti on their property following offers of paint and/or labor 2 Encouragement of legislative changes at the State level, failing voluntary cooperation by paint retailers, to a) allow cities to require that retailers display spray paint in such a manner that the products are accessible only with the assistance of a store representative b) require that spray paint be maintained under lock and key c) outlaw the possession of spray paint by minors 3 Establishment of a cash reward system in the Police Department for the reporting of graffiti offenders 4 Increased enforcement of the current laws by the Police Department, through the use of "sting" operations, use of Citizens on Patrol for surveillance in neighborhoods, and the occasional undercover monitoring of "hot" spots that experience recurring graffiti problems ~~ Printed on recycled paper City of Fort Worth, Texas Mayor and Council ~;ommunication DATE 06/28/94 REFERENCE NUMBER G10710 LOG NAME 02GRAF PAGE 4 of 4 svBJECT SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATION AND ADOPTION OF TWO ORDINANCES FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF THE FORT WORTH GRAFFITI PROGRAM Responsibility for the Graffiti Program will be established in four departments the Parks and Community Services Department, the Code Enforcement Division of the City Services Department, the Police Department, and the City Manager's Office/Action Center The 519,862 00 cost for the remainder of fiscal year 1993-94 will be expended in the Parks and Community Services Department and the Code Enforcement Division Funding for the Parks and Community Services Department totals 517,757 for the establishment of the graffiti abatement crew and related supplies and operating costs Funding for the Code Enforcement Division totals 52,105 00 for part-time temporary help and supplies relative to the enforcement of the ordinance that establishes citations/penalty fines not to exceed 5500 00 for property owners who refuse to abate graffiti on their property following offers of paint and/or labor This ordinance allows fourteen days from notification by Code Enforcement before a citation may be written to the property owner Citations would only be written upon failure of the property owner to comply with the ordinance, following offers of free paint from the paint bank and free labor, if needed Code Enforcement would notify the property owner of the availability of the free paint and labor as part of its notification letter FISCAL INFORMATION/CERTIFICATION The Director of Fiscal Services certifies that upon adoption of the attached appropriations ordinance, sufficient funds will be available in the current operating budget of the General Fund After adoption of this appropriations ordinance, the unreserved, undesignated fund balance of the General Fund will be 524,859,796 BT q Submitted for Ciri Manager's FL7~ ACCOLI-T CE~'I'ER ;~110li~'T CITl SECRETARI Office bc: ,to, 1 GGO1 ~ ARIOCS 0214002 52 105 00 I ~ GGOi ~.~RIOL-S 0808010 517 7;7 00 APPr10VED Originating Department Head: ^~~ C~UNCt~ ~from~ JUL 2s ~q94 ~ ~ GGO1 ~ .-~RIOt-S 0214002 52.105 00 For :additional Information ~~~ GGO1 ~ ~RIOCS 0808010 S17 757 00 ~~ ~.~.1,tiAtr(,/ Contact Ciq ~o>tary o< 1M Cit f F rt W tl lM y o o or r<, a~1 -,; i ~dupt8t~ Irl~i~~::lil.V i\l1•/JZ-~ ~~1~^ I~v~~.i C.ii.a~?~ ~vL 5Vo~• _ v f _ ' ~_~_i Prin;ea on recyciea apes City of Fort worth, Texas Mayor and Council Communication DATE REFERENCE NUMBER LOG NAME PAGE 06/28/94 G10710 02GRAF 4 of 4 svBJECT SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATION AND ADOPTION OF TWO ORDINANCES .FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF THE FORT WORTH GRAFFITI PROGRAM Responsibility for the Graffiti Program will be established in four departments the Parks and Community Services Department, the Code Enforcement Division of the City Services Department, the Police Department, and the City Manager's Office/Action Center The 519,862 00 cost for the remainder of fiscal year 1993-94 will be expended in the Parks and Community Services Department and the Code Enforcement Division Funding for the Parks and Community Services Department totals 517,757 for the establishment of the graffiti abatement crew and related supplies and operating costs Funding for the Code Enforcement Division totals 52,105 00 for part-time temporary help and supplies relative to the enforcement of the ordinance that establishes citations/penalty fines not to exceed 5500 00 for property owners who refuse to abate graffiti on their property following offers of paint and/or labor This ordinance allows fourteen days from notification by Code Enforcement before a citation may be written to the property owner Citations would only be written upon failure of the property owner to comply with the ordinance, following offers of free paint from the paint bank and free labor, if needed Code Enforcement would notify the property owner of the availability of the free paint and labor as part of its notification letter FISCAL INFORMATION/CERTIFICATION The Director of Fiscal Services certifies that upon adoption of the attached appropriations ordinance, sufficient funds will be available in the current operating budget of the General Fund After adoption of this appropriations ordinance, the unreserved, undesignated fund balance of the General Fund will be 524,859,796 BT q Submitted for Cite Manager's FL7~ ACCOLI-I CE`TER :~1fOL~T CTI'I' SECRETaRI Office b~ : ~ to ~ 1 ~ GGO1 ~ ARIOC S 0314003 53.105 00 i. GGOi ~:~xloLS o8osolo 517 ;;~ oo APPS®VE~. Originating Department Head. ^~~ ~lO~~j/~! from' JUl 26 1994 4 ~ GGO 1 ~ aRIOt S 0'_ 14003 53 105 00 For additional Information ~4~ GGO1 ~ ARIOL'S 0808010 S17 757 00 ~J C~L.ttAt~~ Contact: CIh Eoc:titat7 ~ ~ Clt f F W ~ l+ y o ort ottt , ea~ - - ~9 ;doped ~i~,~~~,~c,, ;,o./~ ~.~;; ~~ .3, ,_ ..~ ~, ~~ '~ i ~_~_i Prin;e~ on re/~y_ ie~o oaTpe~ ,-.-,.,. ..~n l (f/ ~-(~