08-21-07 Item 77
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3 ORDINANCE NO. _
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7 AN ORDINANCE OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF
8 THE CITY OF SOUTH MIAMI, FLORIDA, RELATING TO
9 GRAFFITI; AMENDING CHAPTER 15 ENTITLED "OFFENSES
10 AND MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS" IN ORDER TO CREATE
11 SECTION 15 -100 ENTITLED "MALICIOUS DEFACEMENT,
12 MARKING OF REAL PROPERTY;" PROVIDING FOR
13 ENFORCEMENT AND REVOCATION PROVISIONS;
14 PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY, ORDINANCES IN
15 CONFLICT, AND AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
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18 WHEREAS, graffiti on public and private property is a blighting factor, which
19 not only depreciates the value of the property that has been the target of such malicious
20 vandalism, but also depreciates the value of adjacent and surrounding properties; and in
21 doing so negatively impacts the entire community; and,
22 WHEREAS, the Mayor and City Commission finds and determines that graffiti is
23 a nuisance, and unless it and other inscribed materials are removed from public and
24 private property, it tends to remain; and other properties are then the target of graffiti with
25 the result that entire neighborhoods and, indeed, the community at large suffers and
26 experiences a depreciation in value and is made a less desirable place to be; and,
27 WHEREAS, the Mayor and the City Commission, therefore, finds and
28 determines that it is appropriate that the City of South Miami provide an Ordinance for
29 removal of graffiti and other inscribed materials from both public and private property.
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31 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE MAYOR AND CITY
32 COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF SOUTH MIAMI, FLORIDA:
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34 Section 1. Chapter 15 of the City's Code of Ordinances entitled "OFFENSES
35 AND MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS" is hereby amended, by creating Section 15-
36 100 to state as follows:
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38 15 -100. Malicious defacement, marking of real property.
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40 (a) Notwithstanding any City Code provision to the contrary, it shall be
41 unlawful for any person to maliciously, wantonly or without the knowledge and consent
42 of the owner to mark, deface, damage or destroy by writing, painting or drawing any
43 inscription, figure or mark of any type on the exterior or interior, including walls and
I appurtenances, of any public or private building, telephone booth, bus bench, public way,
2 church, synagogue, or school.
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4 (b) Notwithstanding any City Code provision to the contrary, it shall be
5 unlawful for any person to willfully or maliciously affix or attach by any means
6 whatsoever upon or in any place of abode, municipal recreational area or facility, office,
7 telephone booth, bus bench, store, public; building or way, church, synagogue, school or
8 other building constructed or used for religious or educational purposes; or upon any wall
9 or appurtenance thereof, any paint, felt -tip, indelible marker, crayon, chalk, ink, sign,
10 poster placard, adhesive stickers, or any implement containing non - water- soluble fluid
11 with unlawful intent. Unlawful intent shall mean:
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13 (1) To damage, deface, design, mark or defile such place of abode, municipal
14 recreational area or facility, telephone booth, bus bench, office, store, public building or
15 way, church, synagogue, school or other building constructed or used for religious
16 educational purposes; or
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18 (2) To defame with words or symbols any person occupying or using same.
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20 (c) Notwithstanding any City Code provision to the contrary, no person shall
21 intentionally deface without authorization of the owner or tenant any private or public
22 premises or property primarily used for religious, educational, residential, memorial,
23 recreational, charitable, cemetery or utilitarian purposes, or for assembly by persons of a
24 particular race, color, creed, sexual orientation or religion, by placing material thereon,
25 including symbols, objects, caricatures, an appellation, a burning cross or a Nazi
26 swastika, or graffiti thereby exposing or tending to expose another to risk of violence,
27 contempt or hatred on the basis of race, color, sexual orientation, creed, or religion.
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29 (d) Notwithstanding any City Code provision to the contrary, violation of
30 subsections (a), (b), and (c) of this section shall be punishable by a fine of not more than
31 $250.00 for a first offense and a fine not to exceed $500.00 for a second or each
32 subsequent offense.
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34 (e) Whenever the City becomes aware of the existence of graffiti on any
35 property, including structures or improvements within the City, a code enforcement
36 officer is authorized, upon such discovery, to give, or cause to be given, notice to remove
37 or effectively obscure such graffiti within the time period enumerated in the notice, to the
38 owner, agent or manager who shall cause the graffiti to be removed or effectively
39 obscured by any means so long as it is completely obliterated, painted or touched up with
40 the same or similar color of existing paint and /or texture of the original wall, fence,
41 siding or part of the structure afflicted. Persons needing information and/or assistance in
42 curing a graffiti violation may contact the Metropolitan Dade County "graffiti hotline."
43 Persons not responsible for causing graffiti but responsible for curing it, who cannot
44 afford to obliterate, paint or touch up such graffiti with the same color of existing paint of
45 the original wall, fence, siding or part of the structure affected and who receive paint or
46 assistance from the Metropolitan Dade County agency known as "graffiti hotline" shall
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obliterate, paint or touch up graffiti on the property with paint as similar in color as can
be provided to the wall, fence, siding or part of the structure afflicted.
(f) It shall be unlawful for any person or firm owning property, acting as
manager or agent for the owner of property, or in possession or control of property to fail
to remove or effectively obscure any graffiti from such property within 30 days from
receipt of the notice described in paragraph (e) or within the time period enumerated in
the notice, whichever is later. If the person or firm owning such property, acting as
manager or agent for the owner of such property, or in possession or control of such
property, fails to remove or effectively obscure the graffiti within the time period
enumerated above, the City shall issue a citation pursuant to Section 2 -25 of the Code of
Ordinances and fines shall be assessed against the property until it comes into
compliance.
(g) Any person or firm owning property, acting as agent or manager for the
owner of such property, or in possession or control of such property, who commits a
violation of paragraph (e) above, shall be punished by a fine of $250.00 for a first
offense, and $500.00 per offense, thereafter.
(h) In an appeal to the Special Master, the Special Master may take into
consideration, when deciding to mitigate the fine amount, the efforts taken by the
violator, if any, to remove or effectively obscure the subject graffiti in a timely manner
and how often the violator has been victimized by graffiti during the preceding calendar
year. The provisions of this section shall not apply to a property owner, manager, agent,
or possessor of property if, in the sole determination of the Special Master, such property
owner, agent, manager, or possessor has been victimized two or more times by graffiti
within any calendar year, and, during such time, has removed or effectively obscured
such graffiti from the property in a timely manner.
(i) The City may institute a civil action in a court of competent jurisdiction to
recover compensatory and punitive damages, including .reasonable costs and expenses,
for any damage caused to City -owned property located ,within the City limits of South
Miami as a result of violations of subsection (a), (b) or (c) of this section.
PASSED AND ADOPTED this
ATTEST:
CITY CLERK
day of , 2007.
APPROVED:
MAYOR
l st Reading —
2" d Reading —
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3 READ AND APPROVED AS TO FORM:
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6 Luis R. Figueredo,
7 Nagin Gallop Figueredo, P.A.
8 Office of City Attorney
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COMMISSION VOTE:
Mayor Feliu:
Vice Mayor Wiscombe:
Commissioner Birts:
Commissioner Palmer:
Commissioner Beckman:
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