City of Athens Ohio Code Enforcement Office

 
The Office of Code Enforcement is basically a licensing, permitting, compliance inspection and enforcement agency. Every document retained is a public record available to anyone on request, except the name of the person filing a complaint which is held in confidence.

License applications for electricians, plumbers, garbage haulers, taxi drivers, "A" & "B" vendors, and individual vendors/ peddlers/solicitors are processed on an annual basis. Permits are issued after assurance that guidelines have been met. The public can then be confident that the most basic needs of the community are controlled and regulated.

Rental permits registered with the office (currently 5,604 units) represent approximately 70% of the total number of residential units available within the City. Tracking these permits plus reviewing building/zoning permits comprise the major workload of the office. The department also handles various other permits such as conditional use, signs, demolition, excavation, sidewalk repair, curb cuts, plumbing, security alarms, and tables/ benches/ chairs. This review assures the public that the most basic needs of the community are handled with a systematic approach guaranteeing orderly development.

The compliance facet of our daily responsibilities includes investigations for rental housing permits (4 officers conducting 2,800 inspections per year), plumbing inspections, building inspections, grass and weed complaints, housing complaints, parking complaints, zoning complaints, trash complaints, etc. Again, this is a regulatory function that addresses legislatively determined needs of the community.

The Office of Code Enforcement also researches, reviews and enforces subdivision regulations, flood plain regulations, and community development projects for the Planning Commission. This includes processing of minor lot splits, reviewing cases for the Planning Commission, reviewing variance requests for the Board of Zoning Appeals and Board of Housing Appeals, and reviewing issues involving joint Planning Commission and City Council action.

The goal of the Code Enforcement Office is to provide a service to the community which maintains and enhances the quality of life for all citizens. Each year should see obvious progress toward that goal. As yearly objectives are realized, they should progressively showcase Athens as an excellent place to live, work, and pursue an education. We are not addressing elaborate needs, but rather maintaining a quality rental housing stock, controlled building and development, and encouragement of a diverse, healthy, and sustainable business environment. These are the foundations of a viable and vibrant community. With that achieved, citizens can direct their energy toward making Athens an excellent community in which to live. As respect for the Office of Code Enforcement grows, based on competence gained through performance, then short term goals can be quickly accomplished and the long term quality of life issues challenging legislators and administrators can be identified and addressed sooner.

Public Notice

The Athens City Code Enforcement Office will be actively enforcing Athens City Ordinance 0-147-90 (Athens City Code 9.10) which authorizes the Office of Code Enforcement to insure that all types of grass, noxious weeds and vegetation be cut or declared a nuisance on private property. In particular, all owners of properties with grass in excess of 8 inches in height will receive a 5 Day Notice to cut the grass as authorized by Sections 731.51 and 731.52 of the Ohio Revised Code. If cutting is not accomplished in 5 days, the Office of Code Enforcement will contract a vendor to perform the cutting and the property owner will be billed the contractor’s fee plus an administrative charge. At the end of the summer, all bills not paid to the Office of Code Enforcement will be forwarded to the Athens County Auditor’s Office to be recorded as a tax lien.

Questions concerning this notice should be directed to the Office of Code
Enforcement at 592-3306