[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Town Council of the Town of Oakland as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Livability — See Ch. 175.
Weeds and rubbish — See Ch. 290.
[Adopted 12-1-2003 by Ord. No. O2003-05]
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
INSTITUTION
All commercial establishments, except as provided in § 236-2, all business, all churches or other charitable institutions, all governmental entities, service organizations, etc.
MULTIFAMILY RESIDENCY
Any building used to house more than one family unit, such as an apartment house, condominium, etc.
PRIVATE PROPERTY
All property which is not public property, including the property of institutions.
PUBLIC WAY
Any street, Town right-of-way, or alleyway.
RECYCLABLE MATERIAL
Includes newspapers, some "glossies," metal and cans, and/or other items as may be deemed necessary.
REFUSE
All rubbish, waste matter, garbage, trash, debris, dead animals, or other discarded material of every kind and description.
SINGLE RESIDENCE
Any single-family residence intended for occupancy by one family.
A. 
Food service establishments. The Town of Oakland will not collect refuse from food service establishments. Such establishments shall be required to arrange for their own contractor to collect their refuse
B. 
Other institutions. Other institutional users shall pay a fee in accordance with the following schedule.
(1) 
There shall be a quarterly fee of $8 for other institutional users with up to five bags of refuse per week.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
(2) 
Quarterly fee for other institutional users shall increase by $10 for each additional five bags of refuse per week, as illustrated in the following schedule:
Number of Bags
Cost
0 to 5
$8
6 to 10
$18
11 to 15
$28
16 to 20
$38
21 to 25
$48
26 to 30, etc.
$58
A. 
Single-family users:
(1) 
There shall be a quarterly fee of $5.50 for single-family users, with up to five bags of refuse, or equivalent containers, per week.
(2) 
The quarterly fee for residential users shall increase by $2.50 for each additional five bags of refuse per week as illustrated by the following schedule:
Number of Bags
Cost
0 to 5
$5.50
6 to 10
$8.00
11 to 15
$10.50
16 to 20
$13.00
21 to 25
$15.50
26 to 30, etc.
$18.00
A. 
Multifamily users:
(1) 
There shall be a quarterly fee of $5.50 per unit for up to five bags of refuse.
(2) 
The quarterly fee for multifamily users shall increase by $2.50 for each additional five bags of refuse per week as illustrated in the following schedule:
Number of Bags
Cost
0 to 5
$5.50
6 to 10
$8.00
11 to 15
$10.50
16 to 20
$13.00
21 to 25
$15.50
26 to 30, etc.
$18.00
(3) 
The owner of any multifamily building shall be primarily responsible for payment of the assessments for each occupied unit in the building. The Town at the request of a tenant or a landlord will bill the assessment to the tenant, but in the event the tenant does not pay the assessment, it shall be the responsibility of the owner of the property to pay the same. In the event that a tenant does not pay a quarterly assessment for two consecutive quarters, the Town will give prompt notice of this fact to the landlord.
Recycling services shall be as follows:
A. 
Recycling pickups shall be made on scheduled Fridays of each month.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
B. 
Materials eligible to be picked up for recycling will include newspapers, some "glossies," metal cans and other small metal objects, and other material as may be deemed necessary.
The following regulations shall apply to all refuse to be collected by the Town, under this article:
A. 
All refuse must be placed in bags, no larger than 30 gallons designed and marketed for said purpose.
B. 
All refuse must be placed on the street no earlier than 2:00 p.m. on the day prior to the day designated for its collection.
C. 
No bag shall weigh more than 40 pounds.
D. 
Any residential, multifamily or institutional user who expects to have more than five bags of refuse per week shall immediately notify the Town of the average number of bags he or she will have so that his billing may be adjusted accordingly.
E. 
Materials to be recycled must be placed in clear bags and conform to the Town's specifications. For a limited period, such bags may be obtained at the Town Hall. Thereafter the Town staff shall provide guidance with respect to the type of bags to be used.
F. 
Except for the type of bag used, materials to be recycled shall be set out in the same location as refuse on the first and third Friday of each month.
G. 
Recycling is voluntary.
H. 
Except for the pickup days and the type of bag, all other regulations relating to refuse as set forth in this section shall also apply to materials to be recycled.
A. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to place or store refuse on private property.
B. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to transport refuse from outside the Town limits of Oakland into the Town or from property to property within the Town for the purpose of having the Town's contractor collect it.
C. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly allow refuse transported from outside the Town limits or from another Town property to be placed with refuse generated by said person to be collected by the Town or to place such refuse for collection by the Town.
D. 
In the event that any person places or stores refuse on private property for more than one day, the Town shall have the authority to enter upon said property, to remove the refuse, and assess the full cost thereof, including all expenses associated therewith, along with any penalties as provided for in § 236-9 hereof, against the person so placing the refuse.
E. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to leave for collection by the Town more than five bags of refuse per week without having notified the Town so that his rate may be adjusted accordingly, or to intentionally misrepresent the number of bags to be set out for collection each week.
F. 
The Town's refuse collectors are hereby required to notify the Town Clerk of the addresses of all properties where more than five bags of refuse per week are left for collection by the Town.
G. 
All refuse must be bagged in accordance with § 236-6 hereof and placed on a public way as designated by the Town for pickup by the Town's contractor. It shall be unlawful for any person to place or store refuse on a public way other than that designated by the Town for pickup or to place refuse on any public way without paying the Town assessment as provided for herein.
A. 
The assessments and other charges provided for herein shall constitute a lien on the property and shall be treated as any other Town tax or assessment, and the Town shall, in the event that said assessment is not paid, file notice of lien against any property to which said assessments may apply and may employ such other means as are available to it by its general powers, ordinance or statute to collect the same.
B. 
The Town shall bill the assessments and other charges provided for herein, in the case of water customers, on the water bills, and in the case of persons who are not water customers, the Town shall send separate bills for said assessments.
C. 
In the event that any assessment provided for under this article is not paid 30 days after having been billed by the Town, the Town shall charge interest on said assessment at the legal rate; and said interest shall become part of the assessment and shall be treated as any other Town tax or assessment.
A. 
Any person violating any of the provisions of this article shall be deemed guilty of a municipal infraction subject to the maximum fine established pursuant to Chapter 40, Municipal Infractions.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
B. 
Each day a violation continues shall be considered a separate offense.
C. 
In the event the Town is required to enter upon private property to remove refuse as authorized by § 236-7 hereof, a penalty of $200 shall be assessed against the responsible person.
[Adopted 1-3-2006 by Ord. No. O2005-10]
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
BUILDING
A structure enclosed by four walls and having a roof. Buildings include, but are not limited to, residences, garages, storage buildings, business structures, or any other structure permitted in Chapter 300, Zoning.
DEBRIS, TRASH and RUBBISH
Discarded material or refuse of any kind, except normal household refuse placed in a proper container awaiting removal by Town trash collectors; used lumber, construction materials, discarded or inoperable machinery, car or vehicle parts, tires, refrigerators, bathroom fixtures, or household accessories or appliance of any kind; furniture other than usable lawn and garden furniture; brush; yard waste; tall grass and weeds 12 inches high or more; anything that is broken or dismantled; the remnants of anything which is broken or dismantled; or any parts or pieces thereof; pieces of broken trees, bushes or shrubbery; anything which is not intended for use out of doors and which is left out of doors more than 24 hours unless awaiting pickup by Town trash collectors; animal excrement; filth; any other item determined to be debris, trash or rubbish by the Mayor or his or her authorized representative.
PERSON
Any natural person, firm, partnership, association, corporation or organization of any kind.
TOWN
The Town of Oakland, a municipal corporation organized under the laws of the State of Maryland, and includes the Mayor and Town Council of Oakland.
A. 
Debris, trash and rubbish shall be prohibited from being located within the Town of Oakland unless stored in a building, out of sight.
B. 
Debris, trash and rubbish awaiting pickup by the Town or by Town trash collectors must be placed at the edge of the Town right-of-way not more than 24 hours before the scheduled pickup period.
C. 
Nothing herein shall prohibit the storage of debris, trash and rubbish by a properly licensed salvage yard as long as such salvage yard is in compliance with the Garrett County Junk Ordinance or a junk ordinance enacted by the Mayor and Town Council of Oakland.
D. 
No lot, plot or parcel of land in one ownership (hereafter "lot") or qualifying portion thereof will be held to be in violation of the prohibition against "tall grass and weeds 12 inches high or more," as set forth in the definition of "debris, trash and rubbish" under§ 236-10, Definitions, when the subject property or qualifying portion of the subject property meets one of the following criteria:
(1) 
Wooded or forested lot. Whether or not contiguous with or adjacent to other property of the same owner, any property or that portion thereof which is mature forest or woodlands, substantially in its natural state, such that concentrations of tall grass and weeds are suppressed by the naturally occurring detritus and undergrowth; or
(2) 
Vacant lot. Unless contiguous with or adjacent to other property of the same owner which has been improved with a building (as defined in Chapter 300, Zoning), any property which does not qualify as an exemption under Subsection D(1) of this section, so long as the subject property or portion thereof is mowed or otherwise cleared at least once annually and the grass and weeds are not allowed to exceed 30 inches in height.
A. 
Violation of any provision(s) of this article is a municipal infraction and is subject to Chapter 40, Municipal Infractions, and the fines or penalties provided in the Resolution of Fines for Municipal Infractions. The Mayor and Town Council may change the amount of fines and penalties in the Resolution of Fines for Municipal Infractions after the changes have been duly posted in accordance with the policy of the Mayor and Town Council of Oakland for advertising for the adoption of resolutions.
B. 
Nothing contained in this article shall prohibit or prevent the Town from seeking other legal remedies, such as injunction, criminal prosecution or damages in a civil action pursuant to § 3 of Article 23A, Annotated Code of Maryland, as amended.
In the event the violator of any provision of this article is a minor, the enforcement provisions in § 236-12 shall apply with full force and effect upon the parent, parents, guardian or other such person or persons directly responsible for the conduct of the minor.