§ 20-2. Definitions

The following words and phrases shall, for the purposes of this title, be defined as follows, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning.

Building official means the Building Official of the City of Costa Mesa, and shall include his/her designee.

City shall mean the City of Costa Mesa, and shall include its agents and employees.

City clerk shall mean the City Clerk of the City of Costa Mesa, and shall include his/her designee.

City council shall mean the City Council of the City of Costa Mesa.

City manager shall have the same meaning as section 2-97 of this Code, and shall include his or her designee.

Collection of solid waste means the operation of gathering together and transporting of solid waste to the point of disposal by a solid waste hauler permittee pursuant to Title 8 of this Code.

Commercial vehicle means any motorized or non-motorized vehicle used or maintained to transport property or goods for profit or persons for hire or compensation.

Department means the Development Services Department of the City of Costa Mesa.

Director means the Director of Development Services of the City of Costa Mesa, and shall include his or her designee.

DMV means the California Department of Motor Vehicles.

Finance director shall mean the Director of Finance of the City of Costa Mesa, and shall include his/her designee.

Fire chief means the Chief of the Costa Mesa Fire Department, and shall include his or her designee.

Hoarding or hoarding conditions means the excessive collection of items, along with the inability to discard them. Hoarding often creates such cramped conditions that homes or yards may be filled to capacity, with only narrow pathways winding through stacks of clutter. Hoarding also includes the hoarding of animals, often resulting in dozens or hundreds of pets kept in unsanitary conditions.

Leaf blower means portable power equipment powered by fuel or electricity and used in any landscape maintenance, construction, property repair, or property maintenance for the purpose of blowing, dispersing or redistributing dust, dirt, leaves, grass clippings, cuttings, and trimmings from trees and shrubs and other debris.

Inoperable vehicle means a vehicle is "inoperable" if it is:

(1) Mechanically incapable of being driven; or

(2) Prohibited from being operated on a public street or highway pursuant to the provisions of Vehicle Code Sections 4000, 5202, 24002, or 40001, concerning license plates, registration, equipment, safety and related matters.

On or in front of real property includes all areas of the real property including but not limited to the rear, side, or front yard areas, parkways, sidewalks, or on abutting streets in all zones in the city except for items contained within a receptacle for collection of solid waste pursuant to Chapter IV of Title 8 of this Code.

Owner of the vehicle means the last registered owner and the legal owner of record.

Parkway means the area between any real property line and the edge of the pavement of a public street.

Person means an individual or entity, and includes but is not limited to associations, partnerships, corporations, nonprofit entities, groups, and governmental agencies.

Planning commissioner means a Planning Commissioner for the City of Costa Mesa.

Public property means land, buildings, structures, or fixtures that are owned by a public agency. For the purposes of this title, public property does not include streets.

Recreational vehicle means any travel trailer, camper, motor home, or trailer (as defined in State Vehicle Code Sections 242, 243, and 630, respectively), or any camper shell or boat.

Residential use means any property zoned for residential use as provided for in Title 13 of this Code. Sidewalks, parkways, and streets adjacent to residential property shall be considered a residential area for purposes of this title.

Residentially-developed property means any property developed with a conforming dwelling unit or legal nonconforming dwelling unit.

Responsible person means any of the following: (1) a person who causes a violation to occur, or who allows a violation to continue by his/her action or failure to act; (2) a person whose agent or employee causes or maintains a violation; (3) the owner of the property, which may include the property's manager and/or tenant; and/or (4) a person who is the beneficiary under a deed of trust for the property.

Rubbish means all waste which includes but is not limited to:

(1) Animal or human offal, asphalt, inoperative bicycles and parts, boards, inoperative boats and parts, bottles, boxes, bricks, cans, cartons, cement, cinder blocks, concrete, containers, crates, dirt, doors, equipment, glass, gravel, hoses, lumber, machinery, metal, paint, pallets, paper, pipe, plaster, rebar, rocks, rubber, sand, siding boards, stucco, tile, windows, wire, wood, and other similar material.

(2) Trimmings, clippings and cuttings from lawns, shrubs and trees, and all dead or uprooted grass, sod, shrubs, trees, vegetables and dirt, and firewood piles.

(3) Rugs, bedding, furniture, utensils, clothing, toys, appliances, household supplies and equipment.

(4) Vehicle bodies, motors, tires, parts and accessories.

(5) Any other similar item and material of residential, commercial or industrial nature existing in an unusable, inoperative, discarded or abandoned condition.

Street shall have the same meaning as Sections 360, 590, 591 and 592 of the California Vehicle Code.

Vacant real property means any vacant parcel of land, building or structure on real property in all zones in the city where the responsible person has intentionally left such property vacant and unoccupied for a period of time exceeding thirty (30) calendar days.

Vehicle shall have the same meaning as Section 670 of the California Vehicle Code.

Weed abatement official means the fire chief and shall include his or her designee.

Weeds means plant material that is noxious or dangerous, and/or dry grass, stubble, brush, or other flammable material that creates a fire hazard.

Wrecked and/or dismantled vehicle means any vehicle that meets the criteria of a total salvage vehicle or nonrepairable vehicle, as defined by the California Vehicle Code.

(Ord. No. 13-04, § 1, 10-1-13 )