[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough
of Wallington 10-22-1999 by Ord.
No. 98-18. Amendments noted where applicable.]
Newspaper vending machines, hereinafter referred
to as "newsracks," may be maintained on public property in the Borough
of Wallington subject to the following. This chapter shall not apply
to any newsrack placed on private property. Nothing in this chapter
shall exempt newsracks placed on private property from compliance
with any other statute, ordinance or regulation applicable to maintenance
of private property.
No person, firm or corporation shall install,
use or maintain any newsrack which projects onto, into or over any
part of the roadway of any public street or which rests, wholly or
in part, upon any portion of a roadway.
An application for a newspaper vending machine
permit or for change of location of an existing newspaper vending
machine shall be filed in writing in the office of the Borough Clerk
on forms provided by that office for that purpose. The application
shall state:
A.
No person shall install, use or maintain any newsrack
which, in whole or in part, rests upon, in or over any sidewalk or
public way when such installation, use or maintenance endangers the
safety of persons or property.
B.
Any newsrack which, in whole or in part, rests upon,
in or over any sidewalk shall comply with the following standards:
(1)
No
newsracks shall exceed four feet in height, 30 inches in width or
two feet in depth.
(2)
Newsracks
which are placed near a curb or adjacent to the wall of a building:
(a)
Newsracks placed adjacent to the wall of a building shall be placed
parallel to such wall and not more than six inches from the wall,
measured from based of wall, to base of newsrack.
(b)
Newsracks placed near the curb shall be placed no less than six inches
from the edge of the inner edge of the curb.
(3)
Newsracks
may be chained or otherwise attached to one another; however, no more
than three newsracks may be joined together in this manner, and a
space of no less than 18 inches shall separate each group of three
newsracks so attached.
(4)
No newsrack or group of attached newsracks allowed under Subsection B(3) hereof shall weigh, in the aggregate, in excess of 125 pounds when empty.
(5)
No
newsrack shall be placed, installed, used or maintained:
(a)
Within three feet of any marked crosswalk.
(b)
Within 15 feet of the curb return of any unmarked crosswalk.
(c)
Within three feet of any fire hydrant, fire call box, police call
box or other emergency facility.
(d)
Within three feet of any driveway.
(e)
Within 10 feet to the rear of any sign or other demarcation marking
the beginning of a designated bus stop.
(f)
Within three feet of any bus bench, except where such bench is within
a bus shelter, in which event this restriction shall not apply, provided
that the newsrack is not placed within such bus shelter.
(g)
Within three feet directly in front of any display window of any
building abutting the sidewalk or parkway or in such manner as to
impede or interfere with the reasonable use of such window for display
purposes.
(h)
Within or upon any public right-of-way.
(i)
In, upon or attached to any Borough-owned property. Borough property
is defined as fire hydrants and street signs.
(j)
In, upon or attached to any Borough-owned property.
(6)
No
newsrack shall be used for advertising signs or publicity purposes
other than that dealing with the display, sale or purchase of the
newspaper or news periodicals sold therein.
(7)
Each
newsrack shall be maintained in a clean, neat condition and in good
repair at all times.
Every person who places or maintains a newsrack on the streets
of the Borough of Wallington shall have his name, address and telephone
number affixed thereto in a place where such information may be easily
seen.
Any person, firm or corporation owning a newsrack
in the Borough of Wallington shall, within 15 days after beginning
said maintenance, register with the Borough Clerk his name, address
and phone number and the location(s) of the newsrack(s) maintained
in the Borough and shall pay an annual fee of $25 for one and $10
for each additional rack to defray the costs to the Borough for registration
and inspection of said racks. For every subsequent year, the owner
shall pay the annual fee as aforesaid by January 10 of that year.
The owner shall at all times promptly notify the Borough Clerk of
any changes in the registration information.
Any newsrack maintained in the Borough which creates a hazard
to pedestrians or obstructs traffic or interferes with the response
to any emergency situation by a public officer, firefighter, ambulance
corps or medic may be summarily relocated by a public officer of the
Borough to the nearest location not presenting said hazard. Any such
relocation shall be reported as soon as reasonably possible to the
Borough Clerk, who shall thereafter notify the registered owner of
the newsrack as soon as possible of the new location. The owner may
thereafter relocate the newsrack to any location not presenting a
hazard and otherwise comply with the terms of this chapter.
A.
If any
newsrack is determined to violate any of the provisions of this chapter,
then a notice of violation shall be sent to the person designated
to receive notices in the registration form.
B.
The notice
shall state the specific provisions of this chapter which have not
been adhered to and notify the owner that the newsrack must either
be removed or brought into compliance with the specific provisions
of this chapter within seven business days. If the owner elects to
cure the specified violation or violations within said time period,
then the owner shall take all necessary curative actions prior to
the expiration of said time period.
C.
Upon request,
the official issuing a notice of violation shall meet with the recipient
of such notice to discuss the basis for the determination that a violation
exists and any proposed means of eliminating any violations. A request
for such a meeting shall not toll the time for correcting or eliminating
any violation, unless the official is unavailable for a meeting at
any reasonable time within three business days following the receipt
of a request. Following any such meeting, the official issuing the
notice of violation may rescind the notice if he determines that there
was no violation. The official may also grant an extension of up to
one week for the correction of any violation upon request and a showing
of good cause.
Any person who violates the provisions of this chapter shall be punishable as provided in Chapter 1, Article II, General Penalty, of the Code of the Borough of Wallington. Each violation of a section or subsection of this chapter and each violation by a different newsrack shall constitute a separate offense.
