Code Enforcement - problem correction
We first determine who has legal responsibility for the property where the violation or problem is occurring. We gain this information by referring to the latest records provided by the San Mateo County Assessors Office. We then contact the property owner, usually in writing, to advise him/her of the problem and work out a schedule for correction that is both feasible for the owner and considerate of the surrounding community.
Should voluntary cooperation prove ineffective or impossible, the property owner is subject to one or more of the following remedies:
Fines/Penalties - Administrative citation may be issued by the City to address any violation of the San Bruno Municipal Code or state law, which are in addition to all other legal remedies, criminal or civil. These fines range from $500.00 to $1,000.00, and can add up to $2,250.00 if the violation is not corrected in a timely manner.
Abatement - This remedy is used when the City needs to take action on its own to correct a nuisance. Typically, this includes towing inoperable vehicles, boarding up dangerous properties, or removing overgrowth and rodent harborage. Abatement can either be "summary," which requires an immediate threat to life and can be accomplished within 24 hours, or "general abatement" in which the violations constitute a threat to health or safety but where there is no immediate threat to life.
Administrative Remedies - These involve hearings before either City Commissions or Boards, or before a designate of the City Manager. They must be duly noticed so that the public has the opportunity to present their views, as well as the property owner and City staff. Generally, because of the time involved in the noticing requirements, administrative remedies take four to six months.
Injunctive Relief - In the most serious cases where all administrative remedies have been exhausted and citations have not brought compliance, the City can obtain an injunction against the property owner requiring that s/he fulfill requirements of the City code. Failure to fulfill the conditions of the injunction (assuming it is granted) results in the judge finding that the property owner is in Contempt of Court and imposing sanctions.
