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Home My WebLink About2025-12-8863ORDINANCE NO. 2025-12-8863 AN ORDINANCE CREATING A NEW ARTICLE OF CHAPTER 106, TAXATION, OF THE CODE OF ORDINANCES OF THE CITY OF PADUCAH, KENTUCKY, RELATED TO ABANDONED URBAN PROPERTIES WHEREAS, the City Commission of the City of Paducah, Kentucky, finds and declares that abandoned urban property exists within the City as defined by KRS 132.012; and WHEREAS, abandoned urban properties create fire and safety hazards, depress property values, erode the character of neighborhoods, and impose significant financial burdens on the City through code enforcement, police, fire, and demolition costs; and WHEREAS, pursuant to KRS 92.305 and KRS 132.012, the City is expressly authorized to establish a separate classification of real property known as abandoned urban property and to levy a higher ad valorem tax rate upon such properties; and WHEREAS, the City Commission further finds that the establishment of this separate classification and tax rate is necessary to protect the health, safety, and welfare of its citizens, to hold neglectful property owners financially accountable, and to promote the return of abandoned properties to productive use; and WHEREAS, the City intends that revenues derived from the abandoned urban property tax rate will be used to offset the increased costs of enforcement, demolition, stabilization, and related public purposes caused by such properties. NOW THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF PADUCAH AS FOLLOWS: Section 1. Recitals and Authorizations. That a new Article of Chapter 106, Taxation, of the Code of Ordinances, of the City of Paducah, Kentucky, hereby be enacted as follows: ARTICLE V. ABANDONED URBAN PROPERTIES SEC. 106-201. ABANDONED URBAN PROPERTY CLASSIFIED AS REAL PROPERTY. (A) Pursuant to KRS 92.305(1), the city hereby finds and declares that there exists abandoned urban property, as defined in KRS 132.012, within the city. (B) Abandoned urban property is established as a separate classification of real property for the purpose of ad valorem taxation. (C) ABANDONED URBAN PROPERTY means any vacant structure or vacant or unimproved lot or parcel of ground in a predominantly developed urban area which has been vacant or unimproved for a period of at least one (1) year and which: a. Because it is dilapidated, unsanitary, unsafe, vermin infested, or otherwise dangerous to the safety of persons, it is unfit for its intended use; b. By reason of neglect or lack of maintenance, has become a place for the accumulation of trash and debris, or has become infested with rodents or other vermin; c. Has been tax delinquent for a period of at least three (3) years; d. Has had a methamphetamine contamination notice posted as provided in KRS 224.1-410 for a period of at least ninety (90) days, and the owner has neither appealed the notice nor provided a certificate of decontamination during the ninety (90) days; or e. Is located within a development area established under KRS 65.7049, 65.705 1, and 65.7053. SEC. 106-202. RATE OF TAXATION LEVIED UPON ABANDONED URBAN PROPERTIES. The rate of taxation levied upon abandoned urban properties is $1.50 on each $100 of assessed value. SEC. 106-203. CLASSIFICATION OF PROPERTY AS ABANDONED URBAN PROPERTY; RIGHT TO APPEAL. (A) The Fire Prevention Division shall provide a list of Abandoned Urban Property as of January 1 of each year to the Code Enforcement Board. (B) The Fire Prevention Division shall adopt a policy for compiling the list of Abandoned Urban Property. The policy shall prioritize review of long-term vacant and unimproved properties, while avoiding unintended consequences for owners who are making good -faith efforts to renovate, sell, lease, or otherwise improve their properties. The policy shall allow the Fire Prevention Division to defer inclusion on their list when an owner can demonstrate: Active, verifiable renovation or construction, supported by current and active building permits, inspection results, or contractor invoices; Active and verifiable listing for sale or lease, supported by an active Multiple Listing Service ("MLS") listing or current broker agreement; iii. Approved redevelopment activity, including having a development plan under review, historic approvals, or financing commitments; or iv. That the property is subject to probate, insurance claims, or a court order which prohibit or impede improvements or use of the property. (B) The Code Enforcement Board shall, each year, determine which properties in the city are Abandoned Urban Properties in accordance with KRS 132.012, and considering the factors in subsection (B) above, and shall prepare and furnish a final list of abandoned urban properties to the city's Finance Department and the McCracken County Property Valuation Administrator no later than April 1 of each year. (C) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (D) below, a property classified by the Code Enforcement Board as "abandoned urban property" as of January 1 shall be taxed as abandoned urban property for such tax year. If the owner repairs, rehabilitates or otherwise returns the property to productive use so that the property is no longer abandoned urban property, the owner shall notify the City of Paducah and Code Enforcement Board, which shall, if it finds the property no longer abandoned urban property, notify the Finance Department and the McCracken County Property Valuation Administrator to strike the property from the list of abandoned urban properties as of the succeeding January 1. (D) (1) No later than May 1 of each year, the City of Paducah shall mail, by first- class mail, to the owner(s) of each abandoned urban property, as those names are listed in the records of the McCracken County Property Valuation Administrator, a notice that this property has been classified as abandoned urban property. The owner of any abandoned urban property who believes that the property has been incorrectly classified may request an appeal of such classification to the Code Enforcement Board. Such request for appeal shall be in writing and shall be delivered to the City Manager or his/her designee no later than June 1 of each year. The owner of the property shall be afforded the opportunity for a hearing before the Code Enforcement Board. Unless the property owner consents otherwise, the hearing shall take place no later than July 1. The general procedures for the hearing shall be those procedures in place for other hearings before the Code Enforcement Board as set out in section 42-39 and section 42- 41(a) -(d), except that the issue to be decided will be whether the property has been correctly classified as abandoned urban property. The Board shall forward a written copy of its decision within seven (7) days after the conclusion of the hearing to the property owner, the Fire Prevention Division, the city's Finance Department, and the McCracken County Property Valuation Administrator in conformance with the procedures for service and notice set forth in section 42-41(b). (2) If, after a hearing, an owner of property that has been classified as abandoned urban property demonstrates through substantial evidence that: the property was incorrectly classified as abandoned urban property; or the conditions that caused the property to be classified as abandoned urban property have been abated and the property has been returned to its intended productive use, then the Code Enforcement Board shall direct the Finance Department to remove the property from the abandoned urban property classification list. (3) Any interested party may appeal a Board's decision to the McCracken County Circuit Court within thirty (30) days of the Board's decision. SECTION 2. Severability. The provisions of this ordinance are severable. If any provision, section, paragraph, sentence or part thereof shall be held unconstitutional or invalid, such decision shall not affect or impair the remainder of this ordinance, it being the legislative intent to ordain and enact each provision, section, paragraph, sentence and part thereof separately and independent of each other. SECTION 3. Effective Date. This ordinance shall be read on two separate days and will become effective upon summary publication pursuant to KRS Chapter 424. 4"/-) &,,-- George Bray, Mayor 101, ATTEST: 4 � �ifidsay Parish, Ci ,,y Clerk Introduced by the Board of Commissioners, November 25, 2025 Adopted by the Board of Commissioners, December 9, 2025 Recorded by Lindsay Parish, City Clerk, December 9, 2025 Published by The Paducah Sun, ORD\ Abandoned Urban Property Ordinance 2025