Source: https://ecode360.com/16107163
Timestamp: 2019-12-10 18:09:27
Document Index: 181951960

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 315', '§ 315', '§ 315', '§ 315', '§ 315', '§ 315', '§ 315', '§ 315', '§ 315', '§ 315', '§ 315', '§ 315', '§ 315', '§ 315', '§ 944', '§ 944', '§ 944', '§ 944', '§ 944', '§ 254', '§ 57', '§ 315', '§ 315', '§ 946']

Town of Grand Chute, WI Hotels and Motels
§ 315-3 License to operate required.
§ 315-4 Application for license.
§ 315-5 Report of changes to application.
§ 315-6 Display of license.
§ 315-7 Nontransferability.
§ 315-8 Complaints seeking suspension, revocation, and nonrenewal of license.
§ 315-9 Grounds for denial, suspension, revocation or nonrenewal of license.
§ 315-10 Appeal process; notice of hearing.
§ 315-11 Effective date of decision; posting of notice.
§ 315-12 Removal or tampering with posted notice.
§ 315-13 Surrender of license following revocation or suspension.
§ 315-14 Violations and penalties; voluntary mitigation.
§ 315-15 Reissuance of license after suspension, revocation, or nonrenewal.
§ 315-16 Severability.
Chapter 315 Hotels and Motels
[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Grand Chute 6-19-2012 by Ord. No. 2012-01. Amendments noted where applicable.]
Finance and taxation — See Ch. 57.
315a Appendix A
The Town through the Town of Grand Chute Police Department has determined that various hotels/motels within the Town have accounted for an excessive number of police calls, including prostitution activity, drug trafficking, other crimes, and disorderly conduct disturbances.
The Town through the Town of Grand Chute Police Department has identified from past experience that working with area hotels/motels in a collaborative effort provides a more effective means of addressing issues involving prostitution activity, drug trafficking, other crimes, and disorderly conduct disturbances.
The creation of this hotel/motel ordinance by the Town of Grand Chute will provide improved accountability by owners/operators of hotel/motel businesses with a focus on improving health and safety issues for guests, hotel/motel employees, and the Grand Chute community, by requiring owners/operators to obtain licenses to operate hotels/motels in the Town, by imposing penalties for inappropriate activities, and by providing an opportunity for owners/operators to mitigate those penalties by voluntary cooperation with the Town Police Department.
[Amended 9-3-2013 by Ord. No. 2013-16]
For the purpose of this chapter, unless otherwise expressly stated, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings respectively ascribed to them by this section:
Includes, but is not limited to, any and all calls to emergency services (police, fire, and/or medical) that result in a representative being dispatched or directed to the hotel/motel. This shall include any calls for service within the surrounding neighborhood that, through information or investigation, can be traced to the hotel/motel staff and/or registered guest(s) and/or visitor(s). Calls for service also include any self-initiated activity and/or investigation based on the observation(s) of an emergency services representative.
Include, but are not limited to, arrests that involve the manufacture, cultivation, importation, transportation, possession, possession for sale, sale, furnishing, administering, or giving away, or providing a place to use or fortification of a place involving, any controlled drug, narcotic or drug paraphernalia.
A building or group of buildings in which the public may obtain accommodations for a consideration including, without limitation, such establishments as inns, motels, hotels, tourist homes, tourist houses or courts, lodging houses, rooming houses, summer camps, apartment hotels, resort lodges and cabins and any other buildings in which accommodations are available to the public, except accommodations rented for a continuous period of more than one month and accommodations furnished by any hospitals, sanitariums, or nursing homes, or by corporations or associations organized and operated exclusively for religious, charitable or educational purposes provided that no part of the net earnings of such corporations and associations inured to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual.
The occupancy of any guestroom or use of any hotel/motel facility regardless of compensation or remuneration.
The committee of individuals appointed by the Town Board from time to time for issuing licenses authorized by the Town of Grand Chute Ordinances.
Any person who, in connection with the activities of a hotel/motel, manages the hotel/motel business's operations, including such things as, but not limited to, the collection of rental charges, issuing of keys, direction of personnel, assigning of rooms to guests, handling guest affairs, and overseeing security. The term shall also include resident manager and assistant manager.
Any person, firm, association, partnership, limited liability company, or corporation, which is the record owner, part owner, lessee, receiver, sublessee, or franchisee of real property as listed on the last equalized assessment roll as maintained by the Town of Grand Chute Assessor at which a hotel/motel business is operated, which offers and accepts payment for rooms, guest rooms, sleeping accommodations, or board and lodging, and retains the right of access to, and control of, the dwelling unit on behalf of himself/herself or any entity listed above.
Includes, but is not limited to, arrests that involve prostitution or prostitution-related crimes, in violation of Wisconsin Statutes, including, but not limited to, § 944.30, Prostitution, § 944.31, Patronizing Prostitutes, § 944.32, Soliciting Prostitutes, § 944.33 Pandering, or § 944.34 Keeping Place of Prostitution, and Town of Grand Chute municipal ordinances adopting the aforementioned state statutes.
No hotel/motel shall operate in the Town without a license issued to the owner/operator by the Town Board pursuant to this chapter. Licenses shall be valid for one year, from July 1 through June 30 of the following year, and shall require renewal on an annual basis. Any hotel or motel in operation without a valid license issued pursuant to this chapter shall cease operations.
The annual license to operate a hotel/motel shall be applied for to the Town Clerk by the owner/operator of each hotel/motel.
Owner/operator seeking issuance or renewal of a license by July 1 shall submit their application by April 15 with the applicable license fee, as identified in the Town's fee schedule.
All owner/operators applying to the Town Clerk for a license to operate a hotel/motel shall file with the Clerk a sworn application on forms provided by the Town and containing information as follows:
Current Wisconsin Seller's license and federal ID number.
The name of the owner/operator, corporation, partnership, limited liability company, if any, of the hotel/motel; the name and address of its agent for service.
The name, address, and phone number of the manager/agent.
The trade name, address, and phone number of the hotel/motel, and the emergency contact phone information for the hotel/motel.
Proof of liability insurance, including the carrier, policy number, agent's name, address and phone number or a statement of self-insurance.
Proof of an annual license issued pursuant to § 254.64, Wis. Stats., as well as an inspection report completed by an environmental health specialist/sanitarian, certifying that the facility is in compliance with Outagamie County public health requirements.
Proof of compliance with Town of Grand Chute Municipal Code, § 57-4, Hotel and motel room tax.
Any such other information as the Town Board requires.
All applications will be reviewed by the Licensing Committee. Upon review, applications will be forwarded to the Town Board with a recommendation for approval or denial. The Town Board will receive the recommendation to approve or deny the license and take action as appropriate at a regular meeting of the Town Board.
Every owner/operator of a hotel/motel shall report any change in the information upon which the license has been granted, including but not limited to any change in the manager/agent or, owner/operator to the Town Clerk in writing within five business days after the change has occurred. A change in the information on the application is subject to review by the Licensing Committee and may be grounds for suspension or revocation of the license to operate.
The owner/operator of a hotel/motel shall display the license to operate in an open and conspicuous place on the premises.
Each license to operate issued pursuant to this chapter shall be separate and distinct from all others and shall not be transferable from the owner/operator to whom it was issued to any other owner/operator.
Whenever an owner/operator sells or transfers title to, or assigns the lease of or subleases, a hotel/motel, the owner/operator shall notify the Town Clerk in writing within five business days of such transfer.
When a change of operator occurs at an existing hotel/motel, the new operator shall apply for a license to operate within 10 business days of opening of escrow. If the prior operator's license to operate the hotel/motel was denied or revoked, a provisional license to operate may be issued with special conditions designated by the Town Clerk.
The Town Chairman, Town Clerk, or Chief of Police may file with the Licensing Committee and Town Clerk a written complaint against any owner/operator holding a license to operate a hotel/motel in the Town of Grand Chute at any time that said license is in existence, seeking suspension, revocation, or nonrenewal of the license.
The complaint shall set forth the factual grounds for seeking suspension, revocation, or nonrenewal as such grounds are set forth in § 315-9 below. A copy of the complaint shall be served by certified mail, return receipt requested, or personal service, on the owner/operator at the owner/operator's address shown on the most recent application for license on file pursuant to this chapter.
The owner/operator shall file, by mail or personal delivery, a written response to the complaint with the Licensing Committee within 14 days of receipt. Failure to file an answer shall render the allegations in the complaint deemed true for purposes of imposition of penalties.
The Licensing Committee shall make a written recommendation to the Town Board. The Town Board shall make a decision regarding suspension, revocation, or nonrenewal, and issue written notice of the decision to the owner/operator.
The owner/operator may appeal the decision under § 315-10 below, and imposition of the penalty determined by the decision shall be stayed pending completion of the appeal process.
The license to operate a hotel/motel may be denied, suspended from five to 30 days, revoked, or nonrenewed for any of the following reasons:
The owner/operator or manager/agent has multiple criminal misdemeanor convictions that relate to the hotel/motel or has been convicted of a felony that relates to the licensed activity. This subsection shall not apply to corporations, limited liability companies, or partnerships, but shall apply to all officers, directors of any such corporations and members of any such limited liability companies, and partners of any such partnerships.
The owner/operator or manager/agent provides incomplete, false, or misleading information on the application, or pursuant to background checks and questions, if any, submitted on behalf of the Town to either the owner/operator or the manager/agent.
Delinquent taxes, assessment, and claims. No new license or license renewal shall be issued under this chapter and any current license may be suspended or revoked for any premises, owner/operator, manager/agent, or person for which or for whom taxes, assessments, or other claims due to the Town, Sanitary District, State of Wisconsin, Outagamie County, or bank are delinquent and not paid. Included within the definition of delinquent taxes, delinquent assessments, or other delinquent payments due to the Town, Sanitary District, State of Wisconsin, Outagamie County or bank shall be any delinquency (unpaid) for special assessments, personal property taxes, real estate taxes, hotel/motel taxes, failure to pay any adjudicated fines or penalties, failure to pay current fees or moneys due to the Town, Sanitary District, State of Wisconsin, Outagamie County or bank of any kind or nature, etc.
The owner/operator, manager/agent, or hotel/motel property has an unabated notice of violation of the Town of Grand Chute Municipal Code in excess of 30 days.
Such other relevant facts as the Licensing Committee may discover or deem applicable or necessary in the course of the review of the application of, or complaint against, the owner/operator, manager/agent, or hotel/motel such as:
Incidence of drug-related CFS, or arrests;
Incidence of prostitution-related CFS, or arrests;
Incidence of multiple ordinance violations; and
Excessive number or nature of CFS (Appendix A).[1]
Noncompliance with federal or state law or Town of Grand Chute Municipal Code.
Good cause in the discretion of the Town Board showing that the operation of the hotel/motel is such that has, is, or will negatively impact the health, safety and/or welfare of its guests, the residents or businesses of the surrounding community, or the Town due to any of the foregoing factors listed above.
In processing a revocation, suspension or nonrenewal, a representative of the Licensing Committee shall prepare an investigative report that details the circumstances that led to the recommendation for suspension, revocation, or nonrenewal. It may include any or all of the foregoing factors, or following factors that are applicable:
Frequency of violations, arrests, or CFS;
Seriousness of violations, arrests, or CFS in relation to the threat or impact upon public health, safety or welfare;
History of the violations, arrests, or CFS;
Good-faith efforts taken by the responsible party to correct, reduce and/or alleviate violations, arrests, or CFS;
Any activity, action or effort taken by the responsible party to obstruct or interfere with correction of the problem;
The impact of the violations, arrests, or CFS on the surrounding property and community;
The financial impact to the Town;
Factors shown on Appendix A.[2]
If the license is denied, suspended, revoked, or nonrenewed by decision of the Town Board, the Town Clerk shall provide the owner/operator a letter stating the reasons for such denial, suspension, revocation, or nonrenewal.
Any owner/operator may appeal the above Town Board decision by submitting a letter requesting an appeal to the Town Clerk within 14 days of receipt of the notice of decision. The letter should state in detail the grounds for requesting reversal of the decision and shall be signed by the owner/operator. The Clerk shall submit the letter and appeal request to the Licensing Committee for further review.
If the Licensing Committee recommends reversal of the decision, the reversal recommendation shall be forwarded to the Town Board for consideration. If the Licensing Committee recommends upholding the decision or the Town Board rejects the Licensing Committee's recommendation for reversal, the owner/operator may request a hearing before the Town Board.
The request for hearing before the Town Board shall be made in writing to the Town Clerk within 14 days of notification of the Town Board's final decision, and the hearing will be conducted before the Town Board within 30 days of receipt of such request. Notice of the hearing will be given to the owner/operator by certified mail sent to the address of the owner/operator shown on the owner/operator application for license.
The Town Board has ultimate authority to affirm or reverse its original decision to deny, suspend, revoke, or nonrenew the license following the hearing, and shall provide the reasons for such denial to the owner/operator in writing by regular mail sent to the owner/operator's address shown on the application within 10 days of the hearing.
Any revocation, suspension or nonrenewal of a license shall not take effect for a period of 30 days following the first decision of the Town Board, during which time any party aggrieved by this decision may appeal to the Circuit Court for Outagamie County pursuant to procedures set forth in Ch. 68, Wis. Stats.
Upon confirmation and final decision issued by the Town Board, the Chief of Police or his/her designee shall post a copy or copies of the notice of suspension, revocation, or nonrenewal of license to operate at the hotel/motel, following expiration of the thirty-day time limit set forth below if no appeal is taken under Ch. 68, Wis. Stats.
The notice shall not be posted if an appeal is taken under Ch. 68, Wis. Stats. until such appeal process has concluded. Suspension, revocation, or nonrenewal shall be stayed pending a decision by the Circuit Court, and may then be imposed by the Town Board in accordance with the Circuit Court decision.
A posted notice of revocation, suspension or nonrenewal of a license to operate may be removed only by an authorized Town official. Any removal, covering, defacing, altering or tampering by unauthorized persons may be prosecuted as a misdemeanor under § 946.72(2), Wis. Stats.
Whenever a license to operate has been revoked or suspended by the Town, the operator of the hotel/motel for which such license was issued shall surrender such license to the Town Clerk, or his/her designee, forthwith. The hotel/motel operation shall cease all operations immediately following of the posting of the notice of revocation or suspension of the license to operate.
It is unlawful to operate a hotel/motel without a valid license to operate or to fail to comply with any of the requirements established by this chapter. Violations of this chapter shall be subject to enforcement by any and all remedies listed in Grand Chute Municipal Code. Furthermore, this chapter may be enforced by injunctive relief prosecuted through the Circuit Court for Outagamie County in the event the hotel/motel owner/operator fails to comply with directives to cease operations issued by Town officials declaring the hotel/motel to be in violation of this chapter.
In addition to the foregoing remedies, owner/operators shall be subject to civil forfeitures of $1,000 per day for operating a hotel/motel without a license, each day being a separate offense. The Town Board may bring action in the name of the Town against the owner/operator to reduce such forfeitures to a civil judgment for purposes of collection from the owner/operator in addition to any other remedy available at law or in equity.
The owner/operator may mitigate penalties authorized herein, and may also mitigate and delay imposition of, or shorten the term of, the suspension, revocation, or nonrenewal pursuant to such conditions as recommended by the Town Police Department and approved by the Licensing Committee for recommendation to the Town Board for final approval.
A license that is suspended shall not be reissued until the term of suspension has expired, which shall be a minimum of five days and a maximum of 30 days, unless the period of suspension is either delayed or shortened by the Town Board due to voluntary mitigation action by the owner/operator, and such mitigation action is approved by the Town Board.
A license to operate that is revoked shall not be reissued for a period of one year from the date of such revocation, unless the period of revocation is either delayed or shortened by the Town Board due to voluntary mitigation action by the owner/operator, and such mitigation action is approved by the Town Board.
A license to operate that is nonrenewed shall not be reissued for a period of one year from the date of such nonrenewal unless the period of nonrenewal is either delayed or shortened by the Town Board due to voluntary mitigation action by the owner/operator, and such mitigation action is approved by the Town Board.
If there is a transfer or sale of the hotel/motel or the real estate on which the hotel/motel is operated, at the time the license is either under suspension, revocation, or nonrenewal, the license may not be reissued if the following apply:
The new owner/operator or manager/agent is related to the former owner/operator by blood, adoption, or marriage, or common ownership or control.
The new owner/operator or manager/agent held a business or financial interest in the previous licensed hotel/motel business, real estate at which the hotel/motel business is operated, or equipment utilized by the hotel/motel business.
The former owner/operator retains a business or financial interest in the hotel/motel business, or real estate at which the hotel/motel business is operated or equipment used by the hotel/motel business.
The new owner/operator's acquisition of the hotel/motel business did not involve an arm's-length transaction consisting of an open-market sale in which the former owner/operator is willing but not obligated to sell and the new owner/operator is willing, not obligated, to buy.
It is declared to be the intention of the Town Board that the sections, paragraphs, sentences, clauses and phrases of this chapter are severable, and if any phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section of this chapter shall be declared unconstitutional by the valid judgment or decree of a court of competent jurisdiction, such unconstitutionality shall not affect any of the remaining phrases, clauses, sentences, paragraphs and sections of this chapter.