Sec. 6-155.1. - Building standards board established and authority.

(a)

The building standards board (BSB) is hereby established, and shall consist of fourteen (14) members. Ten (10) members of the board shall be district appointments. One member shall be appointed by the mayor. Three (3) members of the board shall be appointed at large by the city council.

The mayor and city council at large shall appoint to the BSB:

(1)

One professional manager of single family rental properties;

(2)

One professional manager of multifamily rental property;

(3)

One professional manager of retail/office/commercial rental property;

(4)

One professional in one of the following disciplines: Architecture (licensed in the state), history, architectural history, archaeology, or planning, all having demonstrated experience addressing adaptive reuse of existing and historic buildings.

Appointments shall be governed by chapter 2, article IX entitled "Boards and commission rules."

(b)

A panel of the BSB shall consist of seven (7) members.

(c)

All cases to be heard by the BSB may be heard by a panel of the BSB.

(d)

The BSB shall adopt rules of procedure in accordance with the Texas Local Government Code. City Code chapter 2, article IX entitled "Boards and commissions rules" shall apply to the BSB to the extent that it does not conflict with this article and state law. The BSB shall render all decisions and findings in writing to the citizen with copies to the code official.

(e)

Authority of the BSB is described below in divisions 2 "Dangerous buildings procedures" and 3, "Quasi-judicial enforcement of the San Antonio Property Maintenance Code."

(f)

A quorum of the BSB shall be required to call a hearing or meeting to order. For cases to be heard by the full membership of the board and advisory meetings, a quorum shall require a majority of the board's membership. For cases to be heard by a panel of the board, a quorum shall require a majority of the panel's membership. Lacking a quorum, the BSB or a panel of the BSB may not take any action.

(g)

A majority vote of the members voting on a matter is necessary for the BSB to take any action.

(h)

Under guidance of and subject to applicable statutes and laws, the BSB shall devise its administrative procedures, review and adjust such procedures annually, and make available to any interested person, a copy of such procedures.

(Ord. No. 2011-05-05-0354, § 3, 5-5-11; Ord. No. 2011-12-15-1048, § 1, 12-15-11)

Sec. 6-155.2. - Building standards board administration.

(a)

Chairman. Each panel of the BSB shall select one of its members to serve as chairman.

(b)

Disqualification of member. A member shall not hear a case in which that member has a personal, professional or financial interest. Where charges are initiated against a member of the BSB, such member shall not sit as a member of the BSB during the hearing of the case. The BSB shall abide by the city ethics code.

(c)

Secretary. The code official shall designate a qualified clerk from the department to serve as secretary to the BSB. The secretary shall file the minutes and any records of all BSB proceedings in the office of the BSB as public records. The minutes must show the vote of each member on each question or the fact that a member is absent or fails to vote.

(d)

Meetings and open hearing. Meetings of the panels shall be held at predetermined times. All hearings before any panel of the BSB shall be open to the public. The appellant, the appellant's representative, the code official and any person whose interests are affected shall be given an opportunity to be heard. Each chairman may administer oaths and compel witness attendance.

(e)

Postponed hearing. If there is no quorum, either the citizen or the citizen's representative, and the code official or designee shall have the right to request a postponement of the hearing.

(f)

Terms. Appointment shall be for terms of two (2) years. A member may serve no more than two (2) consecutive two-year terms for a total of four (4) years.

(Ord. No. 2011-05-05-0354, § 3, 5-5-11)

Sec. 6-155.3. - Administrative liability.

No officer, attorney, agent, or employee of the city shall render himself or herself personally liable for any damage that may accrue to persons or property as a result of any act required or permitted and performed in good faith in the discharge of his or her duties under this article so long as such officer, agent, or employee is acting within the scope of his or her official capacity. Any suit brought against any attorney, officer, agent, or employee of the city acting within his or her official capacity and scope, as a result of any act required or permitted and performed in good faith in the discharge of duties under this article shall be defended by the city attorney until the final determination of the proceedings therein.

(Ord. No. 2011-05-05-0354, § 3, 5-5-11)

Sec. 6-155.4. - Severance.

Should any section, clause, sentence, or provision of this article be held illegal, invalid, or unenforceable in whole or part by a final judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction, such judgment shall not affect or invalidate the remaining provisions of this article which shall be treated as having been duly legislated without inclusion of such illegal, invalid, or unenforceable section, clause, sentence, or provision.

(Ord. No. 2011-05-05-0354, § 3, 5-5-11)

Sec. 6-156. - Definitions.

BSB: Building standards board is constituted as prescribed by the Texas Local Government Code. Authority of the BSB is described in division 2 and division 3.

Business days: Work days excluding weekends, and city, state and federal holidays.

Code official: The director of code enforcement services or his designee who is charged with the administration and enforcement of this chapter.

Dangerous building: Any building or structure which has any or all of the conditions or defects hereinafter described shall be deemed to be a dangerous building and a hazard to the public health, safety, and welfare, provided that such conditions or defects of dilapidation, substandardness, or unfitness for human habitation, pose a threat or potential threat to life, health, property, or human safety.

(1)

Whenever any door, aisle, passageway, stairway or other means of exit is not of sufficient width or size or is not so arranged as to provide safe and adequate means of exit in case of fire or panic.

(2)

Whenever the walking surface of any aisle, passageway, stairway, or other means of exit is so warped, worn, loose, torn, or otherwise unsafe as to not provide safe and adequate means of exit in case of fire or panic.

(3)

Whenever the stress in any materials, member or portion thereof, due to all dead and live loads, is more than one and one-half (1½) times the working stress or stresses allowed in the Building Code for new buildings of similar structure, purpose, or location.

(4)

Whenever any portion thereof has been damaged by fire, earthquake, wind, flood, or by any other cause, to such an extent that the structural strength or stability thereof is materially less than it was before such catastrophe and is less than the minimum requirements of the Building Code for new buildings of similar structure, purpose, or location.

(5)

Whenever any portion, member, or appurtenance thereof is likely to fail, or to become detached or dislodged, or to collapse and thereby injure persons or damage property.

(6)

Whenever any portion of a building, any member, appurtenance, or ornamentation on the exterior thereof is not of sufficient strength or stability, or is not so anchored, attached or fastened in place so as to be capable of resisting a wind pressure of one-half (½) of that specified in the Building Code for new buildings of similar structure, purpose, or location without exceeding the working stresses permitted in the Building Code for such buildings.

(7)

Whenever the building or structure, or any portion thereof, because of: (i) dilapidation, deterioration, or decay; (ii) faulty construction; (iii) the removal, movement, or instability of any portion of the ground necessary to support such building; (iv) the deterioration, decay, or inadequacy of its foundation; or (v) any other cause, is likely to partially or completely collapse.

(8)

Whenever, for any reason, the building or structure, or any portion thereof, is manifestly unsafe for the purpose for which it is being used.

(9)

Whenever the exterior walls or other vertical structural members list, lean, or buckle to such an extent that a plumb line passing through the center of gravity does not fail inside the middle one-third (1/3) of the base.

(10)

Whenever the building or structure, exclusive of the foundation, shows thirty-three (33) percent or more damage or deterioration of its supporting member or members, or fifty (50) percent damage or deterioration of its nonsupporting members, or fifty (50) percent damage or deterioration of enclosing or outside walls or coverings.

(11)

Whenever the building or structure has been so damaged by fire, wind, earthquake or flood, or has become so dilapidated or deteriorated or neglected as to become a harbor for vagrants or criminals.

(12)

Whenever any building or structure has been constructed, exists, or is maintained in violation of the city's minimum housing standards or technical building codes, to the extent violation poses a threat or potential threat to life, health, safety, or property.

(13)

Whenever a building or structure is used for dwelling purposes, because of inadequate maintenance, dilapidation, decay, damage, faulty construction, arrangement, inadequate light, air, or sanitation facilities, is determined by the health director to be unsanitary, unfit for human habitation, or in such a condition that is likely to cause sickness or disease.

(14)

Whenever any building or structure, because of obsolescence, dilapidated condition, deterioration, damage, inadequate exits, lack of sufficient fire-resistive construction, faulty electric wiring, gas connections, or heating apparatus, or other mechanical, structural, or social cause, is determined by the fire chief to be a fire hazard.

(15)

Whenever any building or structure is in such a condition as to constitute a public nuisance known to the common law or in equity jurisprudence.

(16)

Whenever any portion of a building or structure remains for any period of time on a site after the demolition or destruction of the building or structure, unless such structure has been approved for partial demolition by the BSB or the department of development services in its permitting process.

(17)

Whenever any building or structure, regardless of its structural condition, is unoccupied by its owners, lessees, or other invitees and is unsecured from unauthorized entry to the extent that it could be entered or used by vagrants or other uninvited persons as a place of harborage or could be entered by children.

(18)

Whenever any building or structure is secured by a means inadequate to prevent unauthorized entry or use in the manner described in condition subsection (17) above.

Distressed property: A property or premises on which there is located a building or structure believed, by an appropriate city official, to suffer from one or more of the conditions or defects described in this section and to be deserving of consideration by the BSB.

(Ord. No. 85915, § 2, 4-17-97; Ord. No. 96273, § 1, 8-29-02; Ord. No. 2011-05-05-0354, §§ 3, 5, 5-5-11)

Sec. 6-157. - Declaration of nuisance.

Any building or structure which has any or all of the conditions or defects described above in section 6-156, where such condition or conditions pose a threat or potential threat to life, health, property, or human safety, is hereby declared to be a public nuisance, is prohibited as unlawful, and shall be abated according to provisions of this article VIII.

It is an offense for an owner or occupant or other person having control of the building or structure to fail to abate such public nuisance.

Therefore failure to abate such condition may also be prosecuted as a criminal misdemeanor offense. It is a further offense and unlawful for any person to cause, permit, or allow a dangerous building after the thirtieth (30th) day after the date on which the building standards board finds a condition of nuisance and orders abatement, or after such extended date as may be lawfully permitted by the building standards board.

(Ord. No. 85915, § 2, 4-17-97; Ord. No. 2011-05-05-0354, § 5, 5-5-11)