(A) As used in this section:

1. (1) "Building" means, except as otherwise provided in this division, any building or structure that is used or intended to be used for residential purposes. "Building" includes, but is not limited to, a building or structure in which any floor is used for retail stores, shops, salesrooms, markets, or similar commercial uses, or for offices, banks, civic administration activities, professional services, or similar business or civic uses, and in which the other floors are used, or designed and intended to be used, for residential purposes. "Building" does not include any building or structure that is occupied by its owner and that contains three or fewer residential units.

2. (2)

   1. (a) "Public nuisance" means a building that is a menace to the public health, welfare, or safety; that is structurally unsafe, unsanitary, or not provided with adequate safe egress; that constitutes a fire hazard, is otherwise dangerous to human life, or is otherwise no longer fit and habitable; or that, in relation to its existing use, constitutes a hazard to the public health, welfare, or safety by reason of inadequate maintenance, dilapidation, obsolescence, or abandonment.

   2. (b) "Public nuisance" as it applies to subsidized housing means subsidized housing that fails to meet the following standards as specified in the federal rules governing each standard:

      1. (i) Each building on the site is structurally sound, secure, habitable, and in good repair, as defined in 24 C.F.R. 5.703(b);
      2. (ii) Each building's domestic water, electrical system, elevators, emergency power, fire protection, HVAC, and sanitary system is free of health and safety hazards, functionally adequate, operable, and in good repair, as defined in 24 C.F.R. 5.703(c);
      3. (iii) Each dwelling unit within the building is structurally sound, habitable, and in good repair, and all areas and aspects of the dwelling unit are free of health and safety hazards, functionally adequate, operable, and in good repair, as defined in 24 C.F.R. 5.703(d)(1);
      4. (iv) Where applicable, the dwelling unit has hot and cold running water, including an adequate source of potable water, as defined in 24 C.F.R. 5.703(d)(2);
      5. (v) If the dwelling unit includes its own sanitary facility, it is in proper operating condition, usable in privacy, and adequate for personal hygiene, and the disposal of human waste, as defined in 24 C.F.R. 5.703(d)(3);
      6. (vi) The common areas are structurally sound, secure, and functionally adequate for the purposes intended. The basement, garage, carport, restrooms, closets, utility, mechanical, community rooms, daycare, halls, corridors, stairs, kitchens, laundry rooms, office, porch, patio, balcony, and trash collection areas are free of health and safety hazards, operable, and in good repair. All common area ceilings, doors, floors, HVAC, lighting, smoke detectors, stairs, walls, and windows, to the extent applicable, are free of health and safety hazards, operable, and in good repair, as defined in 24 C.F.R. 5.703(e);
      7. (vii) All areas and components of the housing are free of health and safety hazards. These areas include, but are not limited to, air quality, electrical hazards, elevators, emergency/fire exits, flammable materials, garbage and debris, handrail hazards, infestation, and lead-based paint, as defined in 24 C.F.R. 5.703(f).
3. (3) "Abate" or "abatement" in connection with any building means the removal or correction of any conditions that constitute a public nuisance and the making of any other improvements that are needed to effect a rehabilitation of the building that is consistent with maintaining safe and habitable conditions over its remaining useful life. "Abatement" does not include the closing or boarding up of any building that is found to be a public nuisance.
4. (4) "Interested party" means any owner, mortgagee, lienholder, tenant, or person that possesses an interest of record in any property that becomes subject to the jurisdiction of a court pursuant to this section, and any applicant for the appointment of a receiver pursuant to this section.
5. (5) "Neighbor" means any owner of property, including, but not limited to, any person who is purchasing property by land installment contract or under a duly executed purchase contract, that is located within five hundred feet of any property that becomes subject to the jurisdiction of a court pursuant to this section, and any occupant of a building that is so located.
6. (6) "Tenant" has the same meaning as in section 5321.01 of the Revised Code.

7. (7) "Subsidized housing" means a property consisting of more than four dwelling units that, in whole or in part, receives project-based assistance pursuant to a contract under any of the following federal housing programs:

   1. (a) The new construction or substantial rehabilitation program under section 8(b)(2) of the "United States Housing Act of 1937," Pub. L. No. 75-412, 50 Stat. 888, 42 U.S.C. 1437f(b)(2) as that program was in effect immediately before the first day of October, 1983;
   2. (b) The moderate rehabilitation program under section 8(e)(2) of the "United States Housing Act of 1937," Pub. L. No. 75-412, 50 Stat. 888, 42 U.S.C. 1437f(e)(2);
   3. (c) The loan management assistance program under section 8 of the "United States Housing Act of 1937," Pub. L. No. 75-412, 50 Stat. 888, 42 U.S.C. 1437f;
   4. (d) The rent supplement program under section 101 of the "Housing and Urban Development Act of 1965," Pub. L. No. 89-174, 79 Stat. 667, 12 U.S.C. 1701s;
   5. (e) Section 8 of the "United States Housing Act of 1937," Pub. L. No. 75-412, 50 Stat. 888, 42 U.S.C. 1437f, following conversion from assistance under section 101 of the "Housing and Urban Development Act of 1965," Pub. L. No. 89-174, 79 Stat. 667, 12 U.S.C. 1701s;
   6. (f) The program of supportive housing for the elderly under section 202 of the "Housing Act of 1959," Pub. L. No. 86-372, 73 Stat. 654, 12 U.S.C. 1701q;
   7. (g) The program of supportive housing for persons with disabilities under section 811 of the "National Affordable Housing Act of 1990," Pub. L. No. 101-625, 104 Stat. 4313, 42 U.S.C. 8013;
   8. (h) The rental assistance program under section 521 of the "United States Housing Act of 1949," Pub. L. No. 90-448, 82 Stat. 551, as amended by Pub. L. No. 93-383, 88 Stat. 696, 42 U.S.C. 1490a.
8. (8) "Project-based assistance" means the assistance is attached to the property and provides rental assistance only on behalf of tenants who reside in that property.
9. (9) "Landlord" has the same meaning as in section 5321.01 of the Revised Code.

(B)

1. (1)

   1. (a) In any civil action to enforce any local building, housing, air pollution, sanitation, health, fire, zoning, or safety code, ordinance, resolution, or regulation applicable to buildings, that is commenced in a court of common pleas, municipal court, housing or environmental division of a municipal court, or county court, or in any civil action for abatement commenced in a court of common pleas, municipal court, housing or environmental division of a municipal court, or county court, by a municipal corporation or township in which the building involved is located, by any neighbor, tenant, or by a nonprofit corporation that is duly organized and has as one of its goals the improvement of housing conditions in the county or municipal corporation in which the building involved is located, if a building is alleged to be a public nuisance, the municipal corporation, township, neighbor, tenant, or nonprofit corporation may apply in its complaint for an injunction or other order as described in division (C)(1) of this section, or for the relief described in division (C)(2) of this section, including, if necessary, the appointment of a receiver as described in divisions (C)(2) and (3) of this section, or for both such an injunction or other order and such relief. The municipal corporation, township, neighbor, tenant, or nonprofit corporation commencing the action is not liable for the costs, expenses, and fees of any receiver appointed pursuant to divisions (C)(2) and (3) of this section.
   2. (b) Prior to commencing a civil action for abatement when the property alleged to be a public nuisance is subsidized housing, the municipal corporation, township, neighbor, tenant, or nonprofit corporation commencing the action shall provide the landlord of that property with written notice that specifies one or more defective conditions that constitute a public nuisance as that term applies to subsidized housing and states that if the landlord fails to remedy the condition within sixty days of the service of the notice, a claim pursuant to this section may be brought on the basis that the property constitutes a public nuisance in subsidized housing. Any party authorized to bring an action against the landlord shall make reasonable attempts to serve the notice in the manner prescribed in the Rules of Civil Procedure to the landlord or the landlord's agent for the property at the property's management office, or at the place where the tenants normally pay or send rent. If the landlord is not the owner of record, the party bringing the action shall make a reasonable attempt to serve the owner. If the owner does not receive service the person bringing the action shall certify the attempts to serve the owner.

2. (2)

   1. (a) In a civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section, a copy of the complaint and a notice of the date and time of a hearing on the complaint shall be served upon the owner of the building and all other interested parties in accordance with the Rules of Civil Procedure. If certified mail service, personal service, or residence service of the complaint and notice is refused or certified mail service of the complaint and notice is not claimed, and if the municipal corporation, township, neighbor, tenant, or nonprofit corporation commencing the action makes a written request for ordinary mail service of the complaint and notice, or uses publication service, in accordance with the Rules of Civil Procedure, then a copy of the complaint and notice shall be posted in a conspicuous place on the building.
   2. (b) The judge in a civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section shall conduct a hearing at least twenty-eight days after the owner of the building and the other interested parties have been served with a copy of the complaint and the notice of the date and time of the hearing in accordance with division (B)(2)(a) of this section.
   3. (c) In considering whether subsidized housing is a public nuisance, the judge shall construe the standards set forth in division (A)(2)(b) of this section in a manner consistent with department of housing and urban development and judicial interpretations of those standards. The judge shall deem that the property is not a public nuisance if during the twelve months prior to the service of the notice that division (B)(1)(b) of this section requires, the department of housing and urban development's real estate assessment center issued a score of seventy-five or higher out of a possible one hundred points pursuant to its regulations governing the physical condition of multifamily properties pursuant to 24 C.F.R. part 200, subpart P, and since the most recent inspection, there has been no significant change in the property's conditions that would create a serious threat to the health, safety, or welfare of the property's tenants.

(C)

1. (1) If the judge in a civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section finds at the hearing required by division (B)(2) of this section that the building involved is a public nuisance, if the judge additionally determines that the owner of the building previously has not been afforded a reasonable opportunity to abate the public nuisance or has been afforded such an opportunity and has not refused or failed to abate the public nuisance, and if the complaint of the municipal corporation, township, neighbor, tenant, or nonprofit corporation commencing the action requested the issuance of an injunction as described in this division, then the judge may issue an injunction requiring the owner of the building to abate the public nuisance or issue any other order that the judge considers necessary or appropriate to cause the abatement of the public nuisance. If an injunction is issued pursuant to this division, the owner of the building involved shall be given no more than thirty days from the date of the entry of the judge's order to comply with the injunction, unless the judge, for good cause shown, extends the time for compliance.
2. (2) If the judge in a civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section finds at the hearing required by division (B)(2) of this section that the building involved is a public nuisance, if the judge additionally determines that the owner of the building previously has been afforded a reasonable opportunity to abate the public nuisance and has refused or failed to do so, and if the complaint of the municipal corporation, township, neighbor, tenant, or nonprofit corporation commencing the action requested relief as described in this division, then the judge shall offer any mortgagee, lienholder, or other interested party associated with the property on which the building is located, in the order of the priority of interest in title, the opportunity to undertake the work and to furnish the materials necessary to abate the public nuisance. Prior to selecting any interested party, the judge shall require the interested party to demonstrate the ability to promptly undertake the work and furnish the materials required, to provide the judge with a viable financial and construction plan for the rehabilitation of the building as described in division (D) of this section, and to post security for the performance of the work and the furnishing of the materials. If the judge determines, at the hearing, that no interested party is willing or able to undertake the work and to furnish the materials necessary to abate the public nuisance, or if the judge determines, at any time after the hearing, that any party who is undertaking corrective work pursuant to this division cannot or will not proceed, or has not proceeded with due diligence, the judge may appoint a receiver pursuant to division (C)(3) of this section to take possession and control of the building.

3. (3)

   1. (a) The judge in a civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section shall not appoint any person as a receiver unless the person first has provided the judge with a viable financial and construction plan for the rehabilitation of the building involved as described in division (D) of this section and has demonstrated the capacity and expertise to perform the required work and to furnish the required materials in a satisfactory manner. An appointed receiver may be a financial institution that possesses an interest of record in the building or the property on which it is located, a nonprofit corporation as described in divisions (B)(1) and (C)(3)(b) of this section, including, but not limited to, a nonprofit corporation that commenced the action described in division (B)(1) of this section, or any other qualified property manager.
   2. (b) To be eligible for appointment as a receiver, no part of the net earnings of a nonprofit corporation shall inure to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual. Membership on the board of trustees of a nonprofit corporation appointed as a receiver does not constitute the holding of a public office or employment within the meaning of sections 731.02 and 731.12 or any other section of the Revised Code and does not constitute a direct or indirect interest in a contract or expenditure of money by any municipal corporation. A member of a board of trustees of a nonprofit corporation appointed as a receiver shall not be disqualified from holding any public office or employment, and shall not forfeit any public office or employment, by reason of membership on the board of trustees, notwithstanding any law to the contrary.

(D) Prior to ordering any work to be undertaken, or the furnishing of any materials, to abate a public nuisance under this section, the judge in a civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section shall review the submitted financial and construction plan for the rehabilitation of the building involved and, if it specifies all of the following, shall approve that plan:

1. (1) The estimated cost of the labor, materials, and any other development costs that are required to abate the public nuisance;
2. (2) The estimated income and expenses of the building and the property on which it is located after the furnishing of the materials and the completion of the repairs and improvements;
3. (3) The terms, conditions, and availability of any financing that is necessary to perform the work and to furnish the materials;
4. (4) If repair and rehabilitation of the building are found not to be feasible, the cost of demolition of the building or of the portions of the building that constitute the public nuisance.

(F) Before proceeding with the duties of receiver, any receiver appointed by the judge in a civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section may be required by the judge to post a bond in an amount fixed by the judge, but not exceeding the value of the building involved as determined by the judge. The judge may empower the receiver to do any or all of the following:

1. (1) Take possession and control of the building and the property on which it is located, operate and manage the building and the property, establish and collect rents and income, lease and rent the building and the property, and evict tenants;
2. (2) Pay all expenses of operating and conserving the building and the property, including, but not limited to, the cost of electricity, gas, water, sewerage, heating fuel, repairs and supplies, custodian services, taxes and assessments, and insurance premiums, and hire and pay reasonable compensation to a managing agent;
3. (3) Pay pre-receivership mortgages or installments of them and other liens;
4. (4) Perform or enter into contracts for the performance of all work and the furnishing of materials necessary to abate, and obtain financing for the abatement of, the public nuisance;
5. (5) Pursuant to court order, remove and dispose of any personal property abandoned, stored, or otherwise located in or on the building and the property that creates a dangerous or unsafe condition or that constitutes a violation of any local building, housing, air pollution, sanitation, health, fire, zoning, or safety code, ordinance, or regulation;
6. (6) Obtain mortgage insurance for any receiver's mortgage from any agency of the federal government;
7. (7) Enter into any agreement and do those things necessary to maintain and preserve the building and the property and comply with all local building, housing, air pollution, sanitation, health, fire, zoning, or safety codes, ordinances, resolutions, and regulations;
8. (8) Give the custody of the building and the property, and the opportunity to abate the nuisance and operate the property, to its owner or any mortgagee or lienholder of record;
9. (9) Issue notes and secure them by a mortgage bearing interest, and upon terms and conditions, that the judge approves. When sold or transferred by the receiver in return for valuable consideration in money, material, labor, or services, the notes or certificates shall be freely transferable. Any mortgages granted by the receiver shall be superior to any claims of the receiver. Priority among the receiver's mortgages shall be determined by the order in which they are recorded.

(H)

1. (1) The judge in a civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section may assess as court costs, the expenses described in division (F)(2) of this section, and may approve receiver's fees to the extent that they are not covered by the income from the property. Subject to that limitation, a receiver appointed pursuant to divisions (C)(2) and (3) of this section is entitled to receive fees in the same manner and to the same extent as receivers appointed in actions to foreclose mortgages.

2. (2)

   1. (a) Pursuant to the police powers vested in the state, all expenditures of a mortgagee, lienholder, or other interested party that has been selected pursuant to division (C)(2) of this section to undertake the work and to furnish the materials necessary to abate a public nuisance, and any expenditures in connection with the foreclosure of the lien created by this division, is a first lien upon the building involved and the property on which it is located and is superior to all prior and subsequent liens or other encumbrances associated with the building or the property, including, but not limited to, those for taxes and assessments, upon the occurrence of both of the following:

      1. (i) The prior approval of the expenditures by, and the entry of a judgment to that effect by, the judge in the civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section;
      2. (ii) The recordation of a certified copy of the judgment entry and a sufficient description of the property on which the building is located with the county recorder in the county in which the property is located within sixty days after the date of the entry of the judgment.

   2. (b) Pursuant to the police powers vested in the state, all expenses and other amounts paid in accordance with division (F) of this section by a receiver appointed pursuant to divisions (C)(2) and (3) of this section, the amounts of any notes issued by the receiver in accordance with division (F) of this section, all mortgages granted by the receiver in accordance with that division, the fees of the receiver approved pursuant to division (H)(1) of this section, and any amounts expended in connection with the foreclosure of a mortgage granted by the receiver in accordance with division (F) of this section or with the foreclosure of the lien created by this division, are a first lien upon the building involved and the property on which it is located and are superior to all prior and subsequent liens or other encumbrances associated with the building or the property, including, but not limited to, those for taxes and assessments, upon the occurrence of both of the following:

      1. (i) The approval of the expenses, amounts, or fees by, and the entry of a judgment to that effect by, the judge in the civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section; or the approval of the mortgages in accordance with division (F)(9) of this section by, and the entry of a judgment to that effect by, that judge;
      2. (ii) The recordation of a certified copy of the judgment entry and a sufficient description of the property on which the building is located, or, in the case of a mortgage, the recordation of the mortgage, a certified copy of the judgment entry, and such a description, with the county recorder of the county in which the property is located within sixty days after the date of the entry of the judgment.
   3. (c) Priority among the liens described in divisions (H)(2)(a) and (b) of this section shall be determined as described in division (I) of this section. Additionally, the creation pursuant to this section of a mortgage lien that is prior to or superior to any mortgage of record at the time the mortgage lien is so created, does not disqualify the mortgage of record as a legal investment under Chapter 1107. or 1151. or any other chapter of the Revised Code.

(I)

1. (1) If a receiver appointed pursuant to divisions (C)(2) and (3) of this section files with the judge in the civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section a report indicating that the public nuisance has been abated, if the judge confirms that the receiver has abated the public nuisance, and if the receiver or any interested party requests the judge to enter an order directing the receiver to sell the building and the property on which it is located, the judge may enter that order after holding a hearing as described in division (I)(2) of this section and otherwise complying with that division.

2. (2)

   1. (a) The receiver or interested party requesting an order as described in division (I)(1) of this section shall cause a notice of the date and time of a hearing on the request to be served on the owner of the building involved and all other interested parties in accordance with division (B)(2)(a) of this section. The judge in the civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section shall conduct the scheduled hearing. At the hearing, if the owner or any interested party objects to the sale of the building and the property, the burden of proof shall be upon the objecting person to establish, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the benefits of not selling the building and the property outweigh the benefits of selling them. If the judge determines that there is no objecting person, or if the judge determines that there is one or more objecting persons but no objecting person has sustained the burden of proof specified in this division, the judge may enter an order directing the receiver to offer the building and the property for sale upon terms and conditions that the judge shall specify.
   2. (b) In any sale of subsidized housing that is ordered pursuant to this section, the judge shall specify that the subsidized housing not be conveyed unless that conveyance complies with applicable federal law and applicable program contracts for that housing. Any such conveyance shall be subject to the condition that the purchaser enter into a contract with the department of housing and urban development or the rural housing service of the federal department of agriculture under which the property continues to be subsidized housing and the owner continues to operate that property as subsidized housing unless the secretary of housing and urban development or the administrator of the rural housing service terminates that property's contract prior to or upon the conveyance of the property.

3. (3) If a sale of a building and the property on which it is located is ordered pursuant to divisions (I)(1) and (2) of this section and if the sale occurs in accordance with the terms and conditions specified by the judge in the judge's order of sale, then the receiver shall distribute the proceeds of the sale and the balance of any funds that the receiver may possess, after the payment of the costs of the sale, in the following order of priority and in the described manner:

   1. (a) First, in satisfaction of any notes issued by the receiver pursuant to division (F) of this section, in their order of priority;
   2. (b) Second, any unreimbursed expenses and other amounts paid in accordance with division (F) of this section by the receiver, and the fees of the receiver approved pursuant to division (H)(1) of this section;
   3. (c) Third, all expenditures of a mortgagee, lienholder, or other interested party that has been selected pursuant to division (C)(2) of this section to undertake the work and to furnish the materials necessary to abate a public nuisance, provided that the expenditures were approved as described in division (H)(2)(a) of this section and provided that, if any such interested party subsequently became the receiver, its expenditures shall be paid prior to the expenditures of any of the other interested parties so selected;
   4. (d) Fourth, the amount due for delinquent taxes, assessments, charges, penalties, and interest owed to this state or a political subdivision of this state, provided that, if the amount available for distribution pursuant to division (I)(3)(d) of this section is insufficient to pay the entire amount of those taxes, assessments, charges, penalties, and interest, the proceeds and remaining funds shall be paid to each claimant in proportion to the amount of those taxes, assessments, charges, penalties, and interest that each is due.
   5. (e) The amount of any pre-receivership mortgages, liens, or other encumbrances, in their order of priority.
4. (4) Following a distribution in accordance with division (I)(3) of this section, the receiver shall request the judge in the civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section to enter an order terminating the receivership. If the judge determines that the sale of the building and the property on which it is located occurred in accordance with the terms and conditions specified by the judge in the judge's order of sale under division (I)(2) of this section and that the receiver distributed the proceeds of the sale and the balance of any funds that the receiver possessed, after the payment of the costs of the sale, in accordance with division (I)(3) of this section, and if the judge approves any final accounting required of the receiver, the judge may terminate the receivership.

(J)

1. (1) A receiver appointed pursuant to divisions (C)(2) and (3) of this section may be discharged at any time in the discretion of the judge in the civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section. The receiver shall be discharged by the judge as provided in division (I)(4) of this section, or when all of the following have occurred:

   1. (a) The public nuisance has been abated;
   2. (b) All costs, expenses, and approved fees of the receivership have been paid;
   3. (c) Either all receiver's notes issued and mortgages granted pursuant to this section have been paid, or all the holders of the notes and mortgages request that the receiver be discharged.
2. (2) If a judge in a civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section determines that, and enters of record a declaration that, a public nuisance has been abated by a receiver, and if, within three days after the entry of the declaration, all costs, expenses, and approved fees of the receivership have not been paid in full, then, in addition to the circumstances specified in division (I) of this section for the entry of such an order, the judge may enter an order directing the receiver to sell the building involved and the property on which it is located. Any such order shall be entered, and the sale shall occur, only in compliance with division (I) of this section.

(L)

1. (1) Nothing in this section shall be construed as a limitation upon the powers granted to a court of common pleas, a municipal court or a housing or environmental division of a municipal court under Chapter 1901. of the Revised Code, or a county court under Chapter 1907. of the Revised Code.

2. (2) The monetary and other limitations specified in Chapters 1901. and 1907. of the Revised Code upon the jurisdiction of municipal and county courts, and of housing or environmental divisions of municipal courts, in civil actions do not operate as limitations upon any of the following:

   1. (a) Expenditures of a mortgagee, lienholder, or other interested party that has been selected pursuant to division (C)(2) of this section to undertake the work and to furnish the materials necessary to abate a public nuisance;
   2. (b) Any notes issued by a receiver pursuant to division (F) of this section;
   3. (c) Any mortgage granted by a receiver in accordance with division (F) of this section;
   4. (d) Expenditures in connection with the foreclosure of a mortgage granted by a receiver in accordance with division (F) of this section;
   5. (e) The enforcement of an order of a judge entered pursuant to this section;
   6. (f) The actions that may be taken pursuant to this section by a receiver or a mortgagee, lienholder, or other interested party that has been selected pursuant to division (C)(2) of this section to undertake the work and to furnish the materials necessary to abate a public nuisance.
3. (3) A judge in a civil action described in division (B)(1) of this section, or the judge's successor in office, has continuing jurisdiction to review the condition of any building that was determined to be a public nuisance pursuant to this section.
4. (4) Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit or prohibit a municipal corporation or township that has filed with the superintendent of insurance a certified copy of an adopted resolution, ordinance, or regulation authorizing the procedures described in divisions (C) and (D) of section 3929.86 of the Revised Code from receiving insurance proceeds under section 3929.86 of the Revised Code.