[Ord. 5/7/1986, § 8-101]
This Part shall be known and may be cited as "East Fallowfield Township Junkyard and Refuse Ordinance."
[Ord. 5/7/1986, § 8-102; as amended by Ord. 5/20/1991]
Unless otherwise expressly stated, the following words and phrases shall be construed throughout this Part to have the meaning herein indicated:
The Board of Supervisors of East Fallowfield Township.
Any discarded material or articles and shall include, but not be limited to scrap metal, scrapped, abandoned, or junked motor vehicle and/or components thereof, machinery, equipment, paper, glass, containers, and structures, including used lumber, used plumbing supplies and other used building materials. Small amount of materials reasonably and normally accumulated by private families only shall be exempt and permitted without special written application as aforesaid.
Any person as hereinafter defined, who shall engage in the business of selling, buying, salvaging, and dealing in junk and who maintains and operates a junkyard within the Township of East Fallowfield.
Any place where any junk as hereinafter defined is stored, disposed of, or accumulated.
The permit granted to a person who accumulates, stores, or disposes of junk as hereinbefore defined.
Includes any individual, partnership, association, firm, and corporation.
East Fallowfield Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania.
[Ord. 5/7/1986, § 8-103]
No person shall engage in a business as a junkyard without first having obtained a license from the Board, for which a license fee in accordance with the schedule hereinafter set forth shall be paid to the Township for use of the Township. The license shall be issued for the twelve-month period beginning January 1, and ending December 31 of each year, and each license must be renewed annually on or before the first day of January of each year.
[Ord. 5/7/1986, § 8-104]
The license provided for in this Part shall be issued by the Board after written application shall have been made therefor by the person desiring to be licensed. Such license shall state the name of the person to whom such license is issued and the premises on which such business is to be conducted, or such junkyard is to be maintained. Such license shall be posted conspicuously upon the premises licensed thereunder. The written application for license herein above mentioned shall be accompanied by a form, every question of which must be answered, which form will be supplied by the Board. Applicants shall also submit therewith a plot of the premises used or to be used in connection with such license.
[Ord. 5/7/1986, § 8-105; as amended by Ord. 5/20/1991]
Upon receipt of an application by the Board, the Board shall issue a license or shall refuse to issue a license to the person applying therefore after an examination of the application and taking into consideration the suitability of the property proposed to be used for the purposes of license, the character of the properties located nearby, and the effect of the proposed use upon the safety, health, and general welfare of the Township, taking into account such factors as economics and aesthetics. In the event the Board shall issue a license, it may impose upon the license and the person applying therefore such terms and conditions in addition to the regulations herein contained and adopted pursuant to this Part as may be deemed proper and necessary to carry out the spirit and intent of this Part.
[Ord. 5/7/1986, § 8-106; as amended by Ord. 5/20/1991; and by Ord. 2010-01, 3/23/2010]
1.
The license fee shall be paid immediately upon the issuance of renewal of a license. The amount of license fee, which shall be established from time to time by resolution of the Board of Supervisors, shall be calculated in accordance with the schedule as determined by the actual land to be used or available for use, by the person to whom the license is issued, excluding all setback areas.
2.
No license shall be issued for the use of a tract of land in excess of 20 acres, excluding setback areas.
[Ord. 5/7/1986, § 8-107; as amended by Ord. 5/20/1991]
No person licensed under this Part shall, by virtue of one license, keep more than one place of business within the Township or maintain more than one junkyard, for the purpose of buying, selling, and dealing in junk. No person shall engage in business as a junk dealer in any place other than the place designated upon his license, or maintain a junkyard in any place other than the place designated upon his license. Multiple sites require multiple licenses.
[Ord. 5/7/1986, § 8-108]
No license issued by the Board shall be transferable by the licensee to any person unless such a transfer is authorized by the Board. Any person desiring to transfer his license shall notify the Board in writing, which notification shall be accompanied by an application for a license, as described in § 13-204 of this Part, by the transferee.
[Ord. 5/7/1986, § 8-109; as amended by Ord. 2010-01, 3/23/2010]
In the event the Board shall approve the transfer of a license the transferee shall immediately pay to the Township a transfer fee, in an amount as established from time to time by resolution of the Board of Supervisors.
[Ord. 5/7/1986, § 8-110]
Every person, licensed under this Part shall provide and shall constantly keep a book, in which shall be fairly written down in the English language at the time of purchase of any junk, a description of every article or material purchased or received by him, the date and hour of such purchase and the person from whom such article or material was purchased, received or handled by such person and which book shall at all times be subject to the inspection of any official of the Township.
[Ord. 5/7/1986, § 8-11]
Every person licensed under this Part shall keep and retain upon the licensed premises, for a period of 48 hours after the purchase or receipt thereof, all junk received or purchased by him, and he shall not disturb or reduce the same or alter the original form, shape, or condition until such period of 48 hours shall have elapsed.
[Ord. 5/7/1986, § 8-112; as amended by Ord. 5/20/1991]
1.
Every person licensed under this Part shall constantly maintain the licensed premises in accordance with any special provisions imposed by the Board and in the manner prescribed by this section and any subsequent regulations adopted by the Board:
A.
Such premises shall at all times be maintained so as not to constitute a nuisance or a menace to the health of the community or of residents nearby or a place for breeding rodents and vermin.
B.
No garbage or other organic waste shall be stored in such premises.
C.
Whenever any motor vehicle shall be received in such premises as junk, all gasoline and oil shall be drained and removed therefrom. Gasoline in an amount not exceeding 10 gallons may be stored above ground in said junkyards provided the same be placed in containers approved by the Board. All other gasoline which is kept in the premises shall be stored underground, which underground storage must be approved by the Board.
D.
The manner of storage and arrangement of junk and the drainage facilities of the premises shall be such as to prevent the accumulation of stagnant water upon the premises, and to facilitate access for firefighting purposes.
E.
All junk kept, stored, or arranged on the licensed premise shall be at all times kept, stored, and arranged within the junkyard as described in the application for license hereunder, and as limited under Subsection 1D above.
F.
A person licensed under the Part shall not burn more than one motor vehicle or its equivalent at any one time. No oil, grease, tires, gasoline, or other similar material that might be dangerous or tend to produce obnoxious smoke or odors shall be burned within a junkyard at any time. Burning of vehicles must be attended and controlled at all times.
G.
The premises to be licensed shall be set back a minimum distance of 25 feet from the right-of-way lines on all streets or roads and from all other property lines. The area between the setback line and the right-of-way line and all streets and roads and all other property lines shall be at all times kept clear and vacant.
H.
When the Board shall deem it necessary and desirable, the premises to be licensed shall at the setback lines be enclosed by a cyclone or equivalent chain fence six feet high to be erected along with suitable plantings to create natural screening, within 60 days after issuance of the license, or any renewal thereof, or at any time thereafter if the Township determines same is in the public's best interest.
I.
Automobile and other vehicle tires shall not be accumulated or stored in such numbers or fashion as to pose a threat of a significant fire, or a fire that is difficult to control, or a fire, because of heavy smoke and noxious fumes, creates a nuisance to the surrounding area. The Board of Supervisors, upon advice or recommendation of the fire official of the Township, or any fire marshal of the Township, shall have the authority to set limits on the number of tires accumulated or stored on site as well as their location and disposal. The standards for such regulations by the Board of Supervisors shall be those imposed or followed by other municipalities in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania taking into account the size of the property, where the tires are located, the surrounding zoning and character of the neighborhood, the number of local residents potentially affected by any such fire, the history of the operation in question, various state and federal regulations, and other matters deemed appropriate by the Board of Supervisors in protecting and promoting the safety, health, and general welfare of the Township.
[Ord. 5/7/1986, § 8-113; as amended by Ord. 5/20/1991]
Any violation of any provision of this Part as determined by the Board of Supervisors of East Fallowfield Township at a public meeting after 10 days' notice by letter to the licensee may result in the license of licensee being revoked, as the Board of Supervisors shall so determine. Such licensee, in the event of revocation of a license, may apply for a new license which may be granted at the Board's discretion upon payment of the required fee for new application, and a determination by the Township that the violation has been satisfactorily corrected.
[Ord. 5/7/1986, § 8-114; as amended by Ord. 2010-01, 3/23/2010]
Any person, firm, or corporation who shall violate any provision of this Part, upon conviction thereof in an action brought before a magisterial district judge in the manner provided for the enforcement of summary offenses under the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure, shall be sentenced to pay a fine of not less than $100 nor more than $1,000 plus costs and, in default of payment of said fine and costs, to a term of imprisonment not to exceed 90 days. Each day that a violation of this Part continues or each section of this Part which shall be found to have been violated shall constitute a separate offense.
[Ord. 5/7/1986, § 8-115; as amended by Ord. 5/20/1991]
In addition to the remedies provided in §§ 13-213 and 13-214 above, any continuous violations of this Part which shall constitute a nuisance in fact, or which shall in the opinion of the Board constitute a nuisance may be abated by proceeding against the violator under this Part, and/or any other applicable ordinance, of East Fallowfield Township, in equity, law, or by and under any other lawful remedy or right.
[Ord. 5/7/1986, § 8-116; as added by Ord. 5/20/1991; and as amended by Ord. 2010-01, 3/23/2010]
The provisions herein are supplemental to those set forth in the International Fire Code as implemented as part of the Uniform Construction Code [Chapter 5, Part 1]. If there are any inconsistencies between the terms and provisions therein and herein, the ordinance that has the more stringent provisions shall control.
