§ 15-18.2. Revocations

(a) Grounds. An approved containment plan may be revoked by the city upon any of the following grounds:

(i) The owner of any retail establishment is operating, or is permitting operation of, the retail establishment in violation of one or more of the provisions of the approved plan, and has failed to correct the violation(s) for a period of at least fifteen (15) calendar days following the date of receipt of written notice of such violation(s) from the city; or

(ii) The owner of a retail establishment with an approved plan is operating, or is permitting the operation of the retail establishment, in violation of one or more of the requirements of this article, and has failed to correct the violation(s) for a period of at least fifteen (15) calendar days following the date of receipt of written notice of such violation(s) from the city; or

(iii) The mandatory cart containment plan, as approved, is inadequate to reasonably prevent the removal of shopping carts from the premises of the retail establishment.

(b) Order to show cause. If at any time following the approval of a plan the chief of code enforcement obtains information or evidence that any of the grounds for revocation in section 15-18.2(a) may exist, the chief of code enforcement shall issue a written order to the owner of the retail establishment to show cause as to why the approved plan should not be revoked. The chief of code enforcement shall schedule a hearing thereon, which hearing shall not be less than fifteen (15) calendar days nor more than thirty (30) calendar days following the date such order to show cause is provided to the owner of the retail establishment. The order shall identify the date, time and place for the hearing. The order shall state the grounds upon which it is proposed to revoke the approved plan, and shall include the information and evidence, or a summary thereof, upon which such order was issued.

(c) Notice. The order to show cause shall be delivered pursuant to the requirements of section 15-20 of this article.

(d) Conduct of hearing. The hearing shall be conducted informally and the formal rules of evidence shall not be applicable. The owner and the city shall each have the opportunity to present relevant evidence and witnesses. The parties may each be represented by legal counsel or other representatives of their choice. The city shall bear the burden of proof to establish, by a preponderance of the evidence, that grounds exist to revoke the plan. The chief of code enforcement, at his or her discretion, and as an alternative to revocation, may consider amendment of the plan if the grounds for the order to show cause are solely the inadequacy of the approved plan.

(e) Decision of chief of code enforcement. Within fifteen (15) calendar days following conclusion of the hearing, the chief of code enforcement shall render his or her decision in writing either dismissing the proceedings, revoking the plan, or amending the plan. If the plan is revoked or amended, the decision shall specify the findings of fact and the reasons for such action. If the plan is amended, the decision shall also specify the details of the amendment(s) to the plan.

(f) Notice of decision. Notice of the decision shall be given as provided in section 15-20

(G) Appeal of decision. The decision of the chief of code enforcement shall be subject to appeal by the owner within the time and manner specified in section 15-19 of this article. In the absence of a timely appeal, the decision of the chief of code enforcement shall be final and conclusive.

(Ord. No. 09-8, § 1, 7-21-09 )