Source: https://ecode360.com/8291945
Timestamp: 2020-04-04 07:11:43
Document Index: 9517851

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 102', '§ 102', '§ 102', '§ 102', '§ 102', '§ 102', '§ 102', '§ 102', '§ 102', '§ 102', '§ 102', '§ 102', '§ 102', '§ 102', '§ 102', '§ 102', '§ 102', '§ 102', '§ 135']

Town of Cazenovia, NY Junkyards; Abandoned and Junked Vehicles
Ch 102 Art I Junkyards
§ 102-1 Findings and intent.
§ 102-3 License and certificate of approval required.
§ 102-4 Application.
§ 102-5 Hearing.
§ 102-6 Review by Town Board.
§ 102-7 Aesthetic considerations.
§ 102-8 Grant or denial of license; appeal.
§ 102-9 License fee.
§ 102-10 Fencing.
§ 102-11 Established junkyards.
§ 102-12 Proximity to churches, schools, hospitals and other public buildings restricted.
§ 102-13 Penalties for offenses.
Ch 102 Art II Abandoned, Junked, Discarded or Unlicensed Vehicles
§ 102-14 Legislative intent.
§ 102-15 Definitions.
§ 102-16 Storage of unlicensed vehicles.
§ 102-17 Exceptions.
§ 102-18 Inspections and enforcement.
§ 102-19 Penalties for offenses.
Chapter 102 Junkyards; Abandoned and Junked Vehicles
[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Cazenovia as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
Solid waste — See Ch. 135.
Article I Junkyards
Article II Abandoned, Junked, Discarded or Unlicensed Vehicles
[Adopted 7-8-1968 by L.L. No. 1-1968]
This article is enacted in recognition of the fact that junk cars abandoned or stored on private property can constitute both a public and private nuisance. They are a source of potential hurt to children and others who may find them an attractive nuisance. They are replete with broken glass, sharp torn metal edges and points, gasoline remaining in tanks of a highly explosive and combustible nature and hurtful acid in batteries, to mention but a few of the more obvious sources of potential physical hurt found on these junk cars. Besides this, these junk cars constitute a blight on the Town's landscape; they destroy the aesthetic qualities of the Town and they are generally otherwise unsightly. Their existence tends to depreciate not only the property on which they are located but also the property of other persons in the neighborhood and Town generally. They constitute the Town a less safe and less pleasant place in which to live and to do business. They hurt the welfare of the Town as a whole. The intent of this article is to establish a legal procedure for the removal of these junk cars where they are found in the Town outside duly licensed establishments.
Any place of storage or deposit, whether in connection with another business or not, where one or more unregistered, old, or secondhand motor vehicles, no longer intended or in condition for legal use on the public highways, are held, whether for the purpose of resale of used parts therefrom, for the purpose of reclaiming for use some or all of the materials therein, whether metal, glass, fabric or otherwise, for the purpose of disposing of the same or for any other purpose. Such term shall include any place of storage or deposit for any such purposes of used parts or waste materials from motor vehicles which, taken together, equal in bulk one or more such vehicles; provided, however, that the term "junkyard" shall not be construed to mean an establishment using facilities for processing iron, steel, or nonferrous scrap for sale or remelting purposes only.
No person shall operate, establish or maintain a junkyard in the Town of Cazenovia until he has obtained a license to operate a junkyard business and has obtained a certificate of approval for the location of such junkyard.
Application for the license and the certificate of approved location shall be made in writing to the Town Board of the Town of Cazenovia, and the application shall be accompanied by a certificate from the Board of Appeals of Chapter 165, Zoning, that the proposed location is not within an established district restricted against such uses or otherwise contrary to the prohibitions of such Chapter 165, Zoning. The application shall contain the legal description of the land to be included within the junkyard.
A hearing on the application shall be held within the Town of Cazenovia not less than two or more than four weeks from the date of the receipt of the application by the Town Board of said Town of Cazenovia. Notice of the hearing shall be given in the application and shall be published once in a newspaper having a circulation within the Town of Cazenovia, which publication shall be not less than seven days before the date of the hearing.
At the time and place set for hearing, the Town Board of the Town of Cazenovia shall hear the applicant and all other persons wishing to be heard on the application for a license to operate, establish or maintain the junkyard. In considering such application, it shall take into account the suitability of the applicant with reference to his ability to comply with the fencing requirements or other reasonable regulations concerning the proposed junkyard, to any record of convictions for any type of larceny or receiving of stolen goods, and to other matters within the purposes of this article.
At the hearing regarding location of the junkyard, the Town Board of the Town of Cazenovia may also take into account the clean, wholesome and attractive environment which has been declared to be of vital importance to the continued general welfare of its citizens by considering whether or not the proposed location can be reasonably protected from having an unfavorable effect thereon. In this connection the Town Board of the Town of Cazenovia may consider collectively the type of road servicing the junkyard or from which the junkyard may be seen, the natural or artificial barriers protecting the junkyard from view, the proximity of the proposed junkyard to established residential and recreational areas or main access routes thereto, as well as the reasonable availability of other suitable sites for the junkyard.
After the hearing the Town Board of the Town of Cazenovia shall, within two weeks, make a finding as to whether or not the application should be granted, giving notice of its finding to the applicant by mail, postage prepaid, to the address given on the application. If approved, the license, including the certificate of approved location, shall be forthwith issued to remain in effect until the following April 1. Approval shall be personal to the applicant and not assignable. Licenses shall be renewed thereafter upon payment of the annual license fee without hearing, provided that all provisions of this article are complied with during the license period, the junkyard does not become a public nuisance under the common law and the applicant is not convicted of any type of larceny or the receiving of stolen goods. The determination of the Town Board of the Town of Cazenovia may be reviewed under Article 78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules.
The annual license fee shall be as set by the Town Board at the annual reorganization meeting, to be paid at the time the application is made and annually thereafter in the event of renewal. In the event the application is not granted, the fee shall be returned to the applicant. In addition to the license fee, the Town Board of the Town of Cazenovia may assess the applicant with the costs of advertising such application and such other reasonable costs incident to the hearing as are clearly attributable thereto and may make the license conditional upon payment of the same.
Before use, a new junkyard shall be completely surrounded with a fence at least eight feet in height which substantially screens the enclosed materials and with a suitable gate which shall be closed and locked except during the working hours of such junkyard or when the applicant or his agent shall be within. Such fence shall be erected not nearer than 50 feet from a public highway. All motor vehicles and parts thereof stored or deposited by the applicant shall be kept within the enclosure of the junkyard except as removal shall be necessary for the transportation of the same in the reasonable course of the business. All wrecking or other work on such motor vehicles and parts and all burning of the same within the vicinity of the junkyard shall be accomplished within the enclosure. All burning of such motor vehicles and parts and other junk shall be confined to the hours between sunrise and sunset, except on Sundays when no burning shall take place. Stacking and piling of such motor vehicles and parts and other junk shall not exceed eight feet in height.
Where the topography, natural growth of timber of other considerations accomplish the purposes of this article in whole or in part, the fencing requirements hereunder may be reduced by the Town Board of the Town of Cazenovia upon granting the license; provided, however, that such natural barrier conforms to the purposes of this article.
For the purposes of this article the location of junkyards already established shall be considered approved by the governing board of the municipality where located and the owner thereof deemed suitable for board[1] the information as to location which is required in an application, together with the license fee, and the governing board shall issue him a license valid until the next April 1, at which time such owner may apply for renewal as herein provided. Such owner shall comply with all other provisions of this article, including the fencing requirements set forth above.
Notwithstanding any of the foregoing provisions of this article, no junkyard hereafter established shall be licensed to operate if such yard or any part thereof shall be within 500 feet of a church, school, hospital, public building or place of public assembly.
[Amended 12-8-2003 by L.L. No. 2-2003]
Any person, persons, association, partnership or corporation who or which violates any provision of this article or any regulation adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Cazenovia pursuant to authority granted by this article shall be guilty of an offense and, upon conviction, shall be punished by a fine of not more than $250 or by imprisonment for not more than 15 days, or both, and each day's failure to comply shall constitute a separate violation. In addition, the Town Board of the Town of Cazenovia may prosecute the violation of this article by any other means or method provided for in § 135 of the Town Law.
[Adopted 7-12-2004 by L.L. No. 3-2004]
The outdoor storage of abandoned, junked, discarded or unlicensed vehicles upon private property within the Town of Cazenovia is hereby declared to be detrimental to the health, safety and general welfare of the community, aesthetically unattractive and detracting from the enjoyment of the environment by said residents, tending to depreciate neighborhood property values, and is an infringement on their properties and homes. The same also constitutes a potential nuisance to the children of the community and may imperil their safety. The fuel tanks of abandoned, junked or discarded vehicles containing gasoline or gasoline fumes constitute an ever-present danger of explosion. The abandoned, junked or discarded vehicles also contain broken glass and sharp metal edges, and such vehicles usually are stored or abandoned with batteries containing harmful acids. The control of the outdoor storage of abandoned, junked or discarded vehicles is therefore regulated for the preservation of the health, safety and general welfare of the community. The intent of this article is to establish a legal procedure for the removal of these junk vehicles where they are found in the Town outside duly licensed establishments.
Any vehicle which is parked or permitted to stand on any public road, street or alley for a continuous period exceeding 48 hours unattended and not bearing one of the following: a valid registration and plate, a certificate of inspection or an ascertainable vehicle identification number.
Any vehicle which has no valid registration or certificate of inspection and has been stripped or partially disassembled so that it is inoperable or immovable and is parked or permitted to stand on a public street or alley for 48 hours and on private property for a continuous period of 30 days.
Any vehicle originally intended to be operated or driven upon a public highway, propelled by any power other than muscular power, whether or not such vehicle has an engine or is operable. The following vehicles shall not be considered motor vehicles for the purpose of this article:
Snowmobiles, as defined in Article 47 of the Vehicle and Traffic Law of New York State.
All-terrain vehicles, as defined in Article 48 of the Vehicle and Traffic Law of New York State.
Farm-type tractors and alt-terrain vehicles used exclusively for agricultural purposes.
Farm equipment, including self-propelled machines used exclusively in growing, harvesting or handling farm produce.
Self-propelled caterpillar or crawler-type equipment while being operated on the contract site.
Motor vehicles displayed on a licensed car dealer lot for the purposes of display for sale.
UNLICENSED VEHICLE
Any vehicle which may be licensed or registered for operation on public highways and which has not been registered during the preceding six months or is not currently registered and not in a condition for legal use on the public highways. A vehicle which is in a condition to receive a current New York State motor vehicle inspection sticker shall be deemed to be in a condition for legal use on the public highways.
It shall be unlawful for the owner of any unlicensed motor vehicle to store, park or place such vehicle or allow such vehicle to be stored, parked or placed on any private property in the Town for a cumulative period of more than 15 days except in an enclosed building or garage or within an area completely enclosed by a solid fence. If a fence is used, it shall be the greater of six feet in height, as measured from ground level, or 12 inches above the highest portion of any vehicle which is placed within it and should conform with any and all fence regulations established by the Town of Cazenovia. A permit for the fence shall be obtained from the Town of Cazenovia Code Enforcement Officer.
Display of vehicle for sale. The Code Enforcement Officer may, by written permit, allow a person to display a motor vehicle in an open area for the purpose of selling such vehicle. Application for such permit shall be made directly to the Code Enforcement Officer. Such permit shall be valid for a thirty-day period and shall not be renewable. Only one such permit shall be issued any one household at one time. Permit fees to be set on an annual basis.
Motor vehicle restoration permit. A motor vehicle restoration permit shall be issued by the Town of Cazenovia Code Enforcement Officer on the following terms and conditions:
A restoration permit will be issued to the private property owner only.
The motor vehicle being restored shall be titled to the property owner being issued the permit.
Only one motor vehicle restoration permit at a time will be issued to a property owner.
The motor vehicle restoration permit shall be valid for a maximum of one motor vehicle and shall be valid for one year from the date of issuance.
At all times that the motor vehicle is not being worked on for restoration, said vehicle of the property owner shall be covered with an approved car cover and the area shall be free of debris, litter, discarded parts or equipment utilized for the restoration.
An approved car cover must cover the entire vehicle and be securely fastened to the vehicle. An approved car cover shall be made of material which will resist wind, rain and other weather-related circumstances. The use of bricks, blocks or other material as a fastener shall not be permitted.
The area where the motor vehicle is being restored, placed or left shall be subject to periodic and random inspections by the Code Enforcement Officer. Should the owner be found in violation of this section, the restoration permit will be rescinded and the owner will be subject to other provisions of this article.
The fee for such permit will be set by the Town of Cazenovia on an annual basis.
The Town of Cazenovia Code Enforcement Officer shall have the right to enter and inspect, at any reasonable hour, any premises on which a vehicle or vehicles are openly stored and to inspect such vehicles to determine if the same are a hazard to the health and welfare of the community. This right of entry shall not be limited in any way by the existence or lack of existence of a request, authorization or other consent or approval of entry for inspection.
After the Code Enforcement Officer has determined that an abandoned, junked or unlicensed vehicle or discarded parts thereof is openly stored or deposited or is permitted to be openly stored or deposited on a parcel of property in violation of this article, he shall serve written notice, by personal service or by registered mail, on the owner of any private property on which the vehicle is openly stored. Such notice shall direct the person served, regardless of the ownership of the vehicle, to terminate the open storage of such vehicle(s) within the prescribed period of time stated in said notice.
An offense against any provision of this article shall, for jurisdictional purposes, be a violation and, upon convection, shall be punishable by a fine not to exceed $250 or by imprisonment for a term not to exceed 15 days, or both. Each day a person is in violation of this article shall be considered a separate offense.