Fairburn

officials decided Monday night to get a little tougher on unsafe building.

The council

passed an ordinance that gives city officials a bit more power to close

or demolish unfit buildings that could pose a health hazard to the citizens.

The ordinance

also applies to private property where an accumulation of weeds, trash,

junk, filth and other unsanitary or unsafe conditions creates a public

health hazard or a general nuisance to people living nearby.

If the city

receives a complaint on a building or notices property in disrepair,

a representative of the city will notify the owner of the property.

After examining

the property, the official will issue a statement advising that if the

required action as determined by the city is not commenced within or

completed by the time specified, the building will be ordered vacated

and posted to prevent further occupancy until the work is completed.

If the building

or structure is to be repaired, the notice will require that all necessary

permits be secured and the work started within 60 days and continued

to completion within such time as the city determines.

If the building

or structure is to be demolished, the notice will require that the premises

be vacated within 60 days, that all required permits for demolition

be secured and that the demolition be completed within such time as

determined reasonable by the city.

The city

also will have the power to post notices on the property stating that

the building is unsafe and occupancy has been prohibited by the city.

The notice

will remain posted until the required repairs are made or demolition

is completed.

Before posting

the building, the city has the option of repairing the building to the

extent required to render it safe. The cost of repair or demolition

would then constitute a lien on the property and be collected in a manner

provided by the law.

City Administrator

Tony Cox said the new ordinance allows property owners to appeal the

city's decision to the Planning Commission. If the owner does not agree

with the Planning Commission's decision, the next step would be Superior

Court.

"If

somebody's trying to fix the property, we'll definitely work with him,"

he said.