Sussex. The Sussex Borough Council crafted a way to deal with structures deemed unsafe or uninhabitable.
The council on March 2 unanimously passed an ordinance that, according to borough attorney Jonathan Frodello, gives Sussex an avenue to recover costs if it must step in and fix unsafe structures or place a lien on a building to cover its costs.
“It’s a fairly common ordinance, and the language is almost entirely from state statute,” Frodello said.
He said the borough’s code enforcement officer would make certain findings regarding the structures, with process built in not only for the owner or resident, but also for any interested party.
A proceeding would then go before the construction official, giving property owners the opportunity to be heard and to correct the problem.
“If it’s determined it’s unsafe and the owner doesn’t fix it, the borough can make the property safe or – in certain cases of imminent harm – there is the ability to order its destruction,” Frodello said. “We already have that in the ordinance.”