Park Forest — Ch. 18 Art. III Housing § 18-255

(a) It shall be unlawful for any family unit to occupy a dwelling unit within the village by rental, lease, purchase or otherwise or for any owner or agent thereof to permit the occupation of a dwelling unit within the village by any family unit for any purpose until a certificate of occupancy has been issued by the village building commissioner for each new family unit to occupy a dwelling unit and every separate occupancy of any family unit.
(1) For any owner-occupied dwelling unit, a certificate of occupancy is required for each new family unit to occupy a dwelling unit and every separate occupancy of any family unit whether as a result of sale, inheritance, assignment or gift.
(2) For rental or lease of a dwelling unit, a certificate of occupancy is required each calendar year either prior to the time a new family unit occupies the dwelling unit or, if no new occupancy occurs, prior to December 31, unless an annual inspection has been made pursuant to the requirements of section 18-256 of this Code.
(b) A certificate of occupancy shall be issued by the village building commissioner upon a determination that there are no violations of any applicable section of this Code in the interior and exterior of the dwelling unit after inspection has been made in accordance with the following:
(1) The building commissioner or his designated department employee inspects the interior and exterior of the dwelling unit to ascertain only visible Code violations.
(2) Reserved.
(c) Application for a certificate of occupancy shall be made to the building commissioner as follows:
(1) For owner-occupied property, an application shall be made by either the owner or contract purchaser and shall be made no less than seven days and no more than three months prior to occupancy by any new family unit. Such application shall state the name and number of occupants. If the applicant has chosen to have the village building department perform the inspection, the application shall be accompanied by an inspection fee of $100.00 for a building which contains one dwelling unit and $50.00 per dwelling unit where a building contains more than one dwelling unit.
(2) For any dwelling unit not owner occupied, the owners shall make application to the building commissioner for a certificate of occupancy for each dwelling unit within no less than seven days and no more than three months prior to occupancy by any new family unit. The application shall state the name and number of occupants and term of occupancy. The application shall be accompanied by an inspection fee of $100.00 for a building containing one dwelling unit and $50.00 per dwelling unit where a building contains more than one dwelling unit. In addition to the aforesaid inspection fees, a charge of $60.00 shall be imposed in any case where entry to a dwelling unit for purposes of inspection requires the administrative official of the village to petition and obtain a warrant from a court of competent jurisdiction, pursuant to section 18-254 .
(3) No application shall be acted upon until the applicable inspection fee has been paid in full. All reinspections to ascertain abatement of any building code violation shall be performed by the village building department. The first follow-up or reinspection shall be conducted at no cost. There shall be a fee for each subsequent follow-up or reinspection of $30.00 for a building containing one dwelling unit and $25.00 per dwelling unit where such unit comprises a part of a building that contains more than one dwelling unit, which fees shall be required whether or not the application fee has been paid or waived.
(d) If an inspection reveals any violation of any applicable section of this Code, a temporary certificate of occupancy may be issued, provided that the owner of the dwelling unit files with the village clerk security to insure the abatement of all outstanding violations in a form acceptable to the village attorney and in an amount equal to the estimated cost of the work and materials necessary to abate all outstanding violations.
(e) Any certificate of occupancy issued by the village building commissioner shall not be deemed a release or waiver by the village of any requirement for compliance with all applicable sections of this Code, nor shall it constitute a guarantee that no Code violations exist. Issuance of any certificate of occupancy shall not restrain or prohibit the village building commissioner from making further inspection of the dwelling unit and giving notice of any violation of this Code at any time, notwithstanding the validity of a certificate of occupancy.
(f) A certificate of occupancy shall not be required for any dwelling unit which forms a part of a multifamily dwelling where at least 25 percent of the units are owner occupied and the person who owns or operates such multifamily dwelling is certified by the village pursuant to section 18-256 as having an inspection program meeting all of the criteria and conditions as set forth therein.
(g) A certificate of occupancy shall be valid for six months from its date of issue. If no occupancy occurs within six months from the date of issue, a new certificate of occupancy shall be required for that calendar year.
(h) Reserved.
(i) Reserved.