§ 11-131. Definitions.

The following words, phrases, or terms as used in this division of this article, unless the context indicates otherwise, shall have the following meanings:

Abandoned vehicle means any motor vehicle in an inoperable condition without a current unexpired license plate which has been left unprotected from the elements for a period of one month or more.

Building means any structure, habitable or otherwise, consisting of two or more walls and a roof.

Building official means that employee of the board of county commissioners charged with the administration and enforcement of the Florida Building Code and related regulations as provided in Chapter 468, Florida Statutes.

Community blight means a condition in which a reasonable person would find that one or more properties has/have deteriorated or become unsafe or unsanitary, or has created a condition that the property is likely to become unsafe or unsanitary, including potentially harboring vermin such as rats, mice, and other rodents, disease bearing insects, or nuisance wildlife, due to the accumulation of junk or litter and for which the county has received one or more complaints.

Cover means any device, equipment, container, close-fitting tarpaulin, chain, rope, wire, or line used on vehicles to prevent any part of a vehicle load from shifting, blowing, leaking, falling or escaping in any manner from the vehicle.

Enforcement agency means the county sheriff's department, the county environmental officer and the county health department, and their respective agents.

Junkyard-like conditions include but are not limited to the accumulation on public or private property at a location readily visible while located at ground level from another property or from a public or private road right-of-way, of the following materials: litter; motor vehicle parts either in whole or in part and whether serviceable or otherwise; inoperable lawn equipment, refrigerators and other appliances; inoperable bicycles, golf carts, or other means of transportation other than automobiles and vessels regulated pursuant to chapter 21 of the county Code; and goods and materials such as, for example, clothing, large or small appliances (washers, dryers, blenders, food processors, etc.), furniture, other than lawn furniture, books, papers, electronic equipment, cookware or utensils, and other items not customarily used or stored outside even if kept in bins or containers or under tarps or similar covers, provided that such storage or accumulation is such that it would be contributory to the establishment of community blight if allowed to remain unabated. This definition is not intended to apply to the reasonable and temporary staging of construction materials or items not intended to remain in outside storage. This definition shall not apply to items meeting the preceding description located in a carport, pole barn, or a fully enclosed structure, nor shall it apply to such items within the curtilage if not readily visible while located at ground level from another property or from a public or private road right-of-way, nor to operable and good-working-order children's toys, including bicycles, scooters, skateboards, etc. on properties with an occupied residence, nor to properties for which the zoning allows such accumulation (e.g., a junkyard on property zoned for junkyards or construction materials stored on a property zoned for construction yards) and the accumulation is part of the active use (e.g., the construction company with which the construction yard is associated is in business) that is in compliance with the land development code and other applicable regulations.

Litter means refuse and rubbish including, but not limited to paper, bottles, cans, glass, crockery, scrap metals, plastic, rubber, yard trash, tar paper, lumber, masonry, concrete, drywall, packing and crating materials, discarded appliances, junked automobiles, tires, tree and shrub trimmings, piles of leaves improperly placed in a public or private right-of-way in a manner contrary to requirements for the collection of solid waste as set forth in article IV of chapter 11 of the Code of Okaloosa County, disposable packages and containers, and any other solid waste matter readily visible while located at ground level from another property or from a public or private road right-of-way.

Nuisance. Any violation of this division is declared to be a public nuisance and subject to abatement as such in accordance with the terms of this article.

Person means any natural person, partnership, firm, corporation, company, or other legal entity.

Repeat violation means a violation of a provision of a code or ordinance by a person who has been previously found through a code enforcement board or any other quasi-judicial or judicial process, to have violated or who has admitted violating the same provision within five years prior to the violation, notwithstanding the violations occur at different locations.

Salvaging means the controlled removal of valuable or useful material from solid waste for utilization.

Storage means the interim containment of litter, in an approved manner such as roll-off containers, wire fencing, wood fencing, or other controlled measures after generation and prior to proper and final disposal.

Structure means a thing that is built or constructed, regardless of whether it is made from prefabricated components.

Unauthorized accumulation means accumulation of litter on any property not permitted as a landfill site in violation of this article. This shall not include building materials used during active construction or repair of a building or stored off the ground for future construction or repairs.

Written corrective notice means a written statement issued to the violator of any provisions of this division, or his agent, identifying and specifying the violation, date and time of issuance, corrective measures to be taken, and date and time correction is to be completed.

(Ord. No. 87-33, Art. 3, § 1, 6-23-87; Ord. No. 18-20 , § 2, 11-6-18)