“Abate” means to act to stop an activity and/or to repair, replace, remove, or otherwise remedy a condition, when such activity or condition constitutes a violation of this code or a city regulation, by such means and in such a manner and to such an extent as the applicable department director, enforcement officer, or other authorized official determines is necessary in the interest of the general health, safety, and welfare of the community. For the purposes of this chapter, the verbs “abate” and “correct” shall be interchangeable and have the same meaning.

“Act” means doing or performing something.

“City” means the city of Cle Elum, Washington.

“Civil penalty” or “monetary penalty,” as used in any code, ordinance, or regulation of the city shall be deemed to have the same meanings as used in this chapter.

“Code” means the Cle Elum Municipal Code.

“Code enforcement officer” or “enforcement officer” means the city’s code enforcement officer(s); the building official; building inspectors; construction inspectors; the fire marshal or his or her designee; fire inspectors; the chief of the Cle Elum police department or his or her designee; the director of the planning department or his or her designee; the director of the public works department or his or her designee; or any other person or persons assigned or directed by the city administrator or his or her designee to enforce the regulations subject to the enforcement and penalty provisions of this chapter.

“Correction notice” means a written statement issued by a code enforcement officer, notifying a person that property or work under his or her control is in violation of one or more regulations and informing such person that a notice of civil violation may be issued and/or an infraction or criminal charges filed if the violations are not abated.

“Costs” means, but is not limited to, contract expenses and city employee labor expenses incurred in abating a nuisance; a rental fee for city equipment used in abatement; costs of storage, disposal, or destruction; legal expenses and attorneys’ fees associated with civil judicial enforcement of abatement orders or in seeking abatement orders; and any other costs incurred by the city, excluding fees and expenses associated with appeals authorized by this code or by state law.

“Day” or “days” means one or more calendar days, unless expressly stated otherwise in a given section or subsection. In addition, any portion of a twenty-four-hour day shall constitute a full calendar day.

“Hearing examiner” means the Cle Elum hearing examiner and the office thereof, as established pursuant to CEMC Chapter 2.60.

“Knowledge” means being aware of a fact or circumstance or having information which would lead a reasonable person in the same situation to believe a fact or circumstance exists. A person acts knowingly or with knowledge when that person either is aware of one or more facts, circumstances, or results, which are described by an ordinance defining an offense, or has information which would lead a reasonable person in the same situation to believe that facts, circumstances, or results exist which are described by an ordinance defining an offense.

“Mortgagee” means a financial institution, including a bank, credit union, or other commercial lender, which holds mortgaged property as security for repayment of a loan.

“Notice of violation” or “notice of civil violation” means a written statement, issued by a code enforcement officer, which contains the information required under CEMC Section 8.60.120 and which notifies a person that he or she is responsible for one or more civil violations of the Cle Elum Municipal Code.

“Omission” means a failure to act.

“Owner” means any owner, part owner, joint owner, tenant in common, tenant in partnership, joint tenant, or tenant by the entirety, of the whole or of a part of a building or land.

“Person” means any individual, firm, business, association, partnership, corporation, or other legal entity, public or private, however organized. Because “person” shall include both human beings and organizational entities, any of the following pronouns may be used to describe a person: he, she, or it.

“Person responsible for the violation” or “violator” means any of the following: a person who has titled ownership or legal control of the property or structure that is subject to the regulation; an occupant or other person in control of the property or structure that is subject to the regulation; a developer, builder, business operator, or owner who is developing, building, or operating a business on the property or in a structure that is subject to the regulation; a mortgagee that has filed an action in foreclosure on the property that is subject to the regulation, based on breach or default of the mortgage agreement, until title to the property is transferred to a third party; a mortgagee of property that is subject to the regulation and has not been occupied by the owner, the owner’s tenant, or a person having the owner’s permission to occupy the premises for a period of at least ninety days; or any person who created, caused, participated in, or has allowed a violation to occur.

“Regulation” means and includes any of the following, as now enacted or hereafter amended:

“Repeat violation” means, as evidenced by the prior issuance of a correction notice or a notice of violation, a subsequent violation that has occurred on the same property or that has been committed by a person responsible for the prior violation elsewhere within the city of Cle Elum. To constitute a repeat violation, the violation need not be the same violation as the prior violation. The violation of a written order of the hearing examiner that has been served as provided in this chapter shall constitute a repeat violation.

“Right-of-way” means land owned, dedicated, or conveyed to the public or a unit of government, used primarily for the movement of vehicles or pedestrians and providing for access to adjacent parcels, with the secondary purpose of providing space for utility lines and appurtenances and other devices and facilities benefiting the public. “Right-of-way” includes, but is not limited to, any street, easement, sidewalk, or portion thereof under the jurisdiction of the city.

“Violation” or “civil violation” or “civil infraction” means an act or omission contrary to a regulation as defined in this section. A violation continues to exist until abated to the satisfaction of the city, with each day or portion thereof in which the violation continues constituting a separate violation.