Ord 297ORDINANCE NO. 297
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF POWAY, CALIFORNIA
ESTABLISHING SECTION 8.90
OF THE POWAY MUNICIPAL CODE
REGARDING RENTAL OF HOUSING
USED FOR DRUG ACTIVITY
WHEREAS, Health and Safety Code Section 11570 provides that it is a nuisance
for a building to be used for the purposes of unlawfully selling, serving,
storing, keeping, manufacturing, or giving away any controlled substance; and
WHEREAS, Health and Safety Code Section 11366 provides that it is a criminal
act for any person to use a building for the purpose of unlawfully selling,
giving away, or using a controlled substance; and
WHEREAS, Health and Safety Code Section 11366.5 provides that it is a
criminal act for any person knowingly to rent, lease, or otherwise make
available any building or portion thereof for the purpose of unlawfully manu-
facturing, storing, or distributing any controlled substance; and
WHEREAS, Code of Civil Procedure 1161{4) provides that a tenant of real pro-
perty is guilty of unlawful detainer and the rental or lease may be terminated
in the event that the tenant maintains, commits, or permits the maintenance or
commission of a nuisance upon the demised premises or uses such premises for any
unlawful purpose; and
WHEREAS, Code of Civil Procedure 1161(4) further provides that the landlord
shall be entitled to possession of such premises after three {3} days notice to
quit is served upon a tenant who commits a nuisance or uses such premises for an
unlawful purpose and shall be entitled thereafter to commence a civil action in
unlawful detainer; and
WHEREAS, the City Attorney of the City of Poway is authorized by Health and
Safety Code Section 11571 to maintain an action to abate any drug related
nuisance described therein and is authorized by state and local law to prosecute
criminal violation of the Poway Municipal Code but not of state statutes; and
WHEREAS, the City Council wishes to enact local legislation complementary to
and in aid and furtherance of the hereinabove recited state law in order to:
1} encourage landlords to take action to eliminate the use of rental housing in
Poway for illegal drug related purposes; 2) assist landlords in their efforts to
eliminate the use of rental housing in Poway for illegal drug related purposes
through the unlawful detainer process described in Civil Code Section 1159 et.
seq.; and 3) enable the City Attorney to take action against landlords in Po~-~y
who refuse to take any action to eliminate the use of their rental premises for
drug related purposes.
Ordinance No. 297
Page 2
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF POWAY DOES ORDAIN AS
FOLLOWS:
Chapter 8.90 of the Poway Municipal Code is hereby added to read as follows:
Section 8.90.010 DEFINITIONS.
A®
"LANDLORD" means an owner, lessor, or sublessor (including any person,
firm, corporation, partnership, or other entity) who receives or is
entitled to receive rent for the use of any rental unit, or the agent,
representative or successor of any of the foregoing.
"TENANT" means a tenant, subtenant, lessee, sublessee, any person
entitled to use or occupancy of a rental unit, or any other person who
is using or occupying a rental unit.
"RENTAL UNIT" means any dwelling unit, efficiency dwellings unit, guest
room, and suite, as defined in Chapter 17.D4 of this Code, including
any single family residence, duplex, and condominium in the City of
Poway, the land and buildings appurtenant thereto, including common
areas, garage facilities, alleyways, stairwells, and elevators. This
term shall also include mobile homes, whether rent is paid for the
mobile home and the land upon which the mobile home is located, or the
rent is paid for the land alone. Further it shall include recreational
vehicles, as defined in California Civil Code Section 799.24, if
located in a mobile home park, whether rent is paid for the
recreational vehicle and the land upon which it is located, or rent is
paid for the land alone.
D®
"CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE" means a drug, substance, or immediate precursor,
as listed in the Uniform Controlled Substance Act, Health and Safety
Code Section 11054 et seq.
Ee
"DRUG RELATED USE" means any use in a rental unit of a controlled
substance.
Fe
"ILLEGAL DRUG DEALING ACTIVITY" means any possession for sale, any
sale, storage, possession, or manufacturing of a controlled substance
from or in a rental unit.
Go
"DRUG-RELATED NUISANCE" means the holding, maintenance, or use of a
rental unit for the purpose of unlawfully selling, serving, storing,
keeping, manufacturing, or giving away any controlled substance.
Ordinance No. 297
Page 3
Section 8.90.020 PROHIBITION.
A landlord shall not knowingly cause or permit any rental unit to be
used or maintained for any drug-related use, illegal drug dealing activity,
or drug-related nuisance.
Section 8.g0.030 NOTICE OF VIOLATION.
If the City Attorney determines that a rental unit is being used or
maintained in violation of Section 8.90.020, then the City Attorney or any
law enforcement agency may order the landlord to comply with said section.
This order shall be presented to the landlord either by personal service or
by a letter sent certified mail with a return receipt requested. The order
shall contain as enclosures sufficient documentation to establish that the
premises are being used or maintained for any drug-related use, illegal
drug dealing activity or drug-related nuisance. Nothing herein shall be
interpreted as authorizing the release of documentation which would violate
an individual's rights to privacy or any other applicable provision of law
that precludes the release of public records. Nothing herein shall
authorize a search of any rental unit or siezure of any property by a
landlord under color of authority of the City of Poway or any employee or
official thereof.
Section 8.90.040 FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH NOTICE OF VIOLATION.
A landlord shall in good faith comply with the Notice prescribed by
Section 8.90.030. If the landlord fails to comply with the Notice, then the
City Attorney or any law enforcement agency may take any lawful action to
enforce Section 8.90.020 hereof. Good faith compliance may be shown by the
landlord's obtaining the voluntary surrender of the premises by the tenant;
or the landlord's commencement and prosecution of unlawful detainer pro-
ceedings; or the landlord's demonstration in writing to the satisfaction of
the City Attorney that coFFi, lencement of unlawful detainer proceedings is not
supported by the evidence received by the City and by the landlord, taken as
a whole.
Section 8.90.050 DECLARATION OF PUBLIC NUISANCE.
In addition to any other enforcement action, the City Attorney may
declare an alleged violation of Section 8.90.D2D or the activities described
therein to constitute a public nuisance and may commence abatement of the
conditions giving rise thereto in accordance with Health and Safety Code
Section 11570 et. seq
Section 8.90.060 CONSTRUCTION.
Nothing contained in this Chapter shall be construed or interpreted in
such a way as to create a principal-agent relationship between the City and
the landlord.
..... Ordinance No. 297
Page 4
Section 8.90.070 SEVERABILITY.
If any section, sentence, clause, phrase, part, or portion of this
Chapter is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by any
court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity
of the remaining portions of this Chapter. It is hereby declared that this
Chapter and each section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase, part, or
portion thereof, would have been adopted or passed irrespective of the fact
that any one or more sections, sentences, clauses, phrases, parts, or por-
tions be declared invalid or unconstitutional.
EFFECTIVE DATE: This ordinance shall take effect and be in force thirty
{30} days after the date of its passage; and before the expiration of fifteen
{15} days after its passage, it shall be published once with the names and mem-
bers voting for and against the same in the Poway News Chieftain, a newspaper of
general circulation published in the City of Poway.
Introduced and first read at a regular meeting of the City Council of the
City of Poway held the 2gth day of August, 1989, and thereafter PASSED AND
ADOPTED at a regular meeting of said City Council held the19thday ofSeptember ,
1989, by the following roll call vote:
AYES: COUNCILMEMBERS: BRANNON, EMERY, GOLDSMITH, HIGGINSON, KRUSE
NOES:
ABSENT:
COUNCILMEMBERS:NONE
COUNCILMEMBERS: NONE
Carl R. Kruse, Mayor
Marjorie K.' Wahlsten, City Clerk