[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of
the City of Jamestown 4-5-1982. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Amended 6-12-1982; 4-8-1985]
For the purposes of this chapter, the following
words and phrases shall have the meanings respectively ascribed to
them by this section:
Material or a combination of materials which burns, ignites,
supports combustion or liberates flammable vapor or gas.
Materials such as flammable solids, corrosive liquids, radioactive
materials, oxidizing materials, potentially explosive chemicals, highly
toxic materials and poisonous gases.
Materials which are highly flammable or which may react to
cause fires or explosions or which by their presence create or augment
a fire or explosion hazard or which because of toxicity, flammability
or liability to explosion render fire fighting abnormally dangerous
or difficult; also flammable or combustible liquids which are chemically
unstable and which may spontaneously form explosive compounds or undergo
spontaneous reactions of explosive violence or with sufficient evolution
of heat are a fire hazard.
Any previously used iron, steel, brass, copper, tin, lead
or other base metals, cordage, ropes, rags, fibers, fabrics, rubber,
tires, bottles, glass, bones, wastepaper, motor vehicles no longer
used as such and such other waste or discarded material which may
or may not be prepared to be used again in some form. The term "junk"
shall not include cans and bottles held for recycling purposes pursuant
to Title 10 of Article 27 of the New York State Environmental Conservation
Law, materials or objects accumulated by persons as by-products, waste
or scraps from the operation of his own business or materials or objects
held and used by a manufacturer as an integral part of his own manufacturing
process.
Any person engaged In the purchase and sale of any previously
owned or used material, machinery, tools, equipment, scrap iron, scrap
metals and automobiles for the purpose of scrapping such articles
and operating a junkyard.
A yard, lot or place, covered or uncovered, outdoors or in
an enclosed building, containing junk as described above, upon which
occurs one or more acts of buying, keeping, dismantling, processing,
selling or offering for sale any such junk, in whole units or by parts,
for a business or commercial purpose, whether or not the proceeds
from such business or commercial purpose are to be used for charity.
All vehicles propelled or drawn by power other than muscular
power and originally intended for use as a means of transportation
and which are no longer capable of being operated as such or of being
registered for use on the public highways of New York State.
Any person engaged in the purchase and/or sale of previously
owned or used gold, silver, jewelry, silverware, dinnerware, coins,
furniture, household goods, tools, pottery, flatware, precious gems,
precious metals, radios of every type and kind, electronic devices
of every type and kind, wearing apparel, firearms, automobile accessories
and musical instruments. The items of personal property hereinbefore
mentioned shall not include items previously owned if such items were
originally purchased at retail or wholesale and thereafter returned
to the original retailer or wholesaler for exchange, refund or credit.
No person, either as principal, agent or employee,
shall within the City establish, engage in or carry on the business
of a secondhand dealer or junk dealer, either separately or in connection
with some other business, without first having obtained and paid for
and having in full force and effect a license as provided by this
chapter.
[Amended 2-10-2006 by L.L. No. 2-2006; 8-28-2017; 11-25-2019 by L.L. No. 1-2020]
Every person desiring to procure a license,
as provided in this chapter, shall file with the City Clerk/Treasurer
a written application upon a blank form prepared and furnished by
the City.
A.
Such application shall contain the names and residences
of the applicant, if an individual, partnership or firm, or the names
and residences of the principal officers, if the applicant is an association
or corporation. Such application shall also describe, in detail, the
character of the business in which the applicant desires to engage.
The application shall also state the following:
(1)
The length of time such applicant, or the manager
or person in charge if the applicant is a firm, partnership, corporation
or association, has resided in the City, his places of previous employment,
whether he is married or single, whether he has been convicted of
a felony or misdemeanor and, if so, what offense, when and in what
court.
(2)
The premises where such business is to be located
or carried on, giving the street and number.
(3)
Whether the applicant has either alone or with someone
else ever engaged in the business of a secondhand dealer or junk dealer.
B.
Such application shall be signed and acknowledged
before a notary public or other official authorized to administer
oaths in the City.
[Amended 4-8-1985; 8-10-1992 by L.L. No. 2-1992]
Each application required by § 235-3 shall be accompanied by a certificate of zoning compliance issued by the Building Inspector and by a bond to the City, approved as to form by the Corporation Counsel, in the penal sum as provided in Chapter 175, Licenses and Permits, with sufficient surety or sufficient collateral security condition for the faithful performance of the duties and obligations pertaining to the business so licensed, the due observance during the term of the license of any and all ordinances and laws which are now enforced or may hereafter be adopted or enacted respecting the businesses defined in this chapter and the accounting for and paying over of all moneys which he shall be liable to pay as such secondhand dealer or junk dealer to the City or any person.
A.
The City Clerk/Treasurer may at any time suspend or
revoke any license granted under the provisions of this chapter for
the following reasons:
[Amended 2-10-2006 by L.L. No. 2-2006; 8-28-2017; 11-25-2019 by L.L. No. 1-2020]
(1)
The City Clerk/Treasurer shall suspend any license
granted under the provisions of this chapter for a period of up to
30 days, upon a finding that the licensee has failed to comply with
the provisions of this chapter.
(2)
The City Clerk/Treasurer shall suspend any license
granted under the provisions of this chapter for a period of up to
60 days, upon a finding that the licensee has failed to comply with
any of the provisions of this chapter and such noncompliance is the
second such offense within a one-year period.
(3)
The City Clerk/Treasurer shall revoke any license
granted under the provisions of this chapter upon a finding that the
licensee has failed to comply with the provisions of this chapter
and such noncompliance constitutes the third such offense within a
one-year period.
(4)
The City Clerk/Treasurer shall revoke any license
granted under the provisions of this chapter upon a finding that the
licensee has been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor involving moral
turpitude during the period when the license issued pursuant to the
provisions of this chapter was in full force and effect.
B.
Whenever any license shall be so suspended or revoked,
no refund of any unearned portion thereof shall be made, and no license
shall be granted to any person whose license has been revoked within
a period of two years from the date of such revocation. Notice of
such suspension or revocation and the reason therefor, in writing,
shall be served by the City Clerk/Treasurer upon the person named
in the application by mailing the same to the address given in the
application and upon filing a copy of such suspension or revocation.
If the licensee shall deem himself aggrieved by the suspension or
revocation, he shall be entitled to apply to the City Council within
30 days after such suspension or revocation for a review of the same.
The decision of the City Council shall be final.
[Amended 2-10-2006 by L.L. No. 2-2006; 8-28-2017; 11-25-2019 by L.L. No. 1-2020]
C.
Any person who himself or by his clerk, agent or employee
shall establish, engage in or carry on the business of a secondhand
dealer or junk dealer without having obtained a license as provided
by this chapter or who, by himself or by his clerk, agent or employee,
shall violate any of the provisions of this chapter or who, having
had his license suspended or revoked, shall continue to engage in
or carry on the business of a secondhand dealer or junk dealer shall,
in addition to the penalty imposed, have his license canceled or revoked
and the bond upon such license forfeited. Upon such forfeiture, the
amount of the bond shall thereupon become due and payable to the City,
and the amount thereof may be recovered in a civil action based upon
such forfeiture.
[Amended 2-10-2006 by L.L. No. 2-2006; 8-28-2017; 11-25-2019 by L.L. No. 1-2020]
When an application is filed pursuant to this chapter, the City Clerk/Treasurer shall cause an investigation to be made by the Police Department to ascertain the validity of the information provided on such application pursuant to the provisions of § 235-3 of this chapter. The Chief of Police shall furnish to the City Clerk/Treasurer, in writing, the information derived from such investigation.
A.
Upon the filing of the application, bond and information as provided in this chapter, the City Clerk/Treasurer may, upon his approval of such application and bond as to the sufficiency of surety or collateral securities and the payment to the City of the license fee provided by § 235-8, issue to the applicant a license to engage in the business as required by § 235-2. No license shall be refused except for reason that the applicant has previously been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor involving moral turpitude or by reason that the location from which the business would be operated would, if operated, constitute a violation of the provisions of Chapter 300, Zoning, of the Code of the City of Jamestown or by reason of the fact that an applicant has previously had such license suspended or revoked.
[Amended 2-10-2006 by L.L. No. 2-2006; 8-28-2017; 11-25-2019 by L.L. No. 1-2020]
B.
All licenses shall be numbered in the order in which
they are issued and shall state clearly the location of the place
of business in which the person receiving such license shall be authorized
to establish, engage in and carry on the business, the kind of business,
the dates of issuance and expiration of the license, the fee paid
and the name and address of the licensee.
C.
No applicant to whom a license has been refused shall
make further application until a period of at least six months shall
have elapsed since the last previous rejection, unless he can establish
that the reason for such rejection no longer exists.
A.
Each secondhand dealer and junk dealer shall pay an annual license fee as provided in Chapter 175, Licenses and Permits, to the City Clerk/Treasurer for each established place of business.
[Amended 12-26-1990; 8-10-1992 by L.L. No. 2-1992; 2-10-2006 by L.L. No.
2-2006; 8-28-2017; 11-25-2019 by L.L. No. 1-2020]
B.
All licenses shall be issued as of May 1 and shall
continue in force until April 30 next succeeding the issuance thereof,
unless sooner suspended or revoked by the City Clerk/Treasurer.
[Amended 2-10-2006 by L.L. No. 2-2006; 8-28-2017; 11-25-2019 by L.L. No. 1-2020]
C.
No license shall be used by any person other than
the original licensee, and any holder of such license who permits
it to be used by any other person and any person who uses such license
granted to any other person shall be guilty of a violation of this
section.
D.
Whenever a license shall be lost or destroyed without
fault on the part of the holder or his agent or employee, a duplicate
license in lieu thereof under the original application and bond may
be issued by the City Clerk/Treasurer, at his discretion, upon the
filing with him of an affidavit by the licensee setting forth the
circumstances of the loss and what, if any, search has been made for
its recovery. No person shall destroy, deface or injure a license
in any manner or change the name, number or date thereon.
[Amended 2-10-2006 by L.L. No. 2-2006; 8-28-2017; 11-25-2019 by L.L. No. 1-2020]
[Amended 2-10-2006 by L.L. No. 2-2006; 8-28-2017; 11-25-2019 by L.L. No. 1-2020]
If any licensee shall move his place of business from the place designated in the license, he shall immediately give notice to the City Clerk/Treasurer and have the same endorsed on the license. No licensee shall carry on business at any other place than the one designated in his license. No licensee shall carry on business at any place not permitted by the provisions of Chapter 300, Zoning, of the Code of the City of Jamestown.
It shall be the duty of every licensee to make or cause to be made to the Chief of Police or his representative at least once a week, and daily if the Chief of Police shall so require, a copy of the record required to be kept by § 235-11 of every article purchased or exchanged by a secondhand dealer or junk dealer. All reports required in this section shall be made on forms prepared and furnished by the Chief of Police, and each report shall be signed at the end by the licensee or his representative. It shall be the duty of every licensee to cooperate with the Police Department in preventing the sale or exchange of stolen property. If a licensee has reason to believe that an attempt is being made to sell stolen property, he shall so notify the Police Department at once.
A.
Every licensee pursuant to this chapter shall keep records, in duplicate, on forms prepared and furnished by the Chief of Police. Said records shall be legibly written in ink or typewritten and in English. Appropriate entries on said records shall be made at the time of making a purchase or exchange, and said records shall include but not be limited to a description of the goods, articles or things purchased or exchanged, including the number and any monogram inscription or other marks of identification that may appear thereon, the amount of the purchase price, the date of purchase or exchange and the name and residence of the person selling or exchanging such goods, such articles or things. Such records and all articles purchased and exchanged shall at all reasonable times be open to the inspection of any Police Officer, the City Clerk/Treasurer or the Corporation Counsel, any Magistrate of the City or other person duly authorized, in writing, for such purpose by the City Clerk/Treasurer, Corporation Counsel, Chief of Police or Magistrate, who shall exhibit such written authority to the licensee. No entry on any such record shall be erased, obliterated, altered or defaced. One copy of such record shall be delivered to the Chief of Police or his representative at least once a week, and daily if the Chief of Police shall so require, pursuant to the provisions of § 235-10 of this chapter.
[Amended 2-10-2006 by L.L. No. 2-2006; 8-28-2017; 11-25-2019 by L.L. No. 1-2020]
B.
The provisions of this section shall not apply to
the purchase in bulk of scrap iron, scrap metal or other scrap materials
produced in the normal course of business by industrial, manufacturing
or commercial concerns.
[Amended 6-12-1982]
No licensee by himself or by his clerk, agent
or employee shall make any purchase or exchange with any individual
under the age of 18 years without the prior written consent of the
parent or lawful guardian of such individual.
[Added 4-8-1985]
On and after October 1, 1985, all persons maintaining
junkyards, all junk dealers and all junkyards shall comply with the
following requirements:
A.
All junkyards, including all equipment used in connection
with the operation of a junkyard, but excluding parking lots and junkyard
offices, shall be contained within an enclosed building or within
an area enclosed by a solid wall or solid fence.
B.
Where fences or walls are utilized to enclose a junkyard
as hereinbefore provided, such walls or fences shall comply with the
following requirements:
(1)
All fences and walls shall be of uniform height in
relation to the ground upon which they are erected and shall be not
less than eight feet nor more than 15 feet in height. Where such fences
or walls exceed a height of 10 feet and are located on a street or
highway frontage, such fences or walls shall be set back at least
five feet from the lot line.
(2)
All fences and walls open to view from any public
street, highway or waterway or in any area in a residential or commercial
district or zone shall be constructed of metallic panels, at least
0.024 inch thick and painted with a baked-on enamel or other similar
permanent finish, or shall be constructed of masonry or such other
materials comparable to the foregoing with the approval of the Building
Inspector.
(3)
All fences and walls shall be constructed in a workmanlike
manner and shall consist solely of new materials unless the Building
Inspector approves the substitution of used materials where, in his
opinion, such materials will provide the equivalent in service, appearance
and useful life.
(4)
All fences and walls open to view from any public
street, highway or waterway or in any area in a residential or commercial
district or zone shall be painted a uniform neutral color and shall
be maintained in a uniformly painted condition at all times.
(5)
All such fences and walls shall contain no painted
or illuminated signs or posters, except that such fences or walls
may contain no more than two painted signs of commercial quality,
which signs shall be no more than eight feet in width and four feet
in height and shall only display thereon the name of the person or
business entity in whose name the junkyard is operated.
C.
All fenced or walled junkyards shall be equipped with
suitable gates which shall be closed and locked except during the
working hours of such junkyards and shall be of sufficient width to
permit access to such junkyards by emergency vehicles, including but
not limited to fire trucks, ambulances and police vehicles, and shall
further conform to all appropriate provisions of Article 231A of the
Code of the National Fire Protection Association and Section 1164.15
of the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code.
D.
No junkyard owner or operator shall place any junk
or permit any junk to remain on junkyard property located beyond the
confines of any enclosed junkyard area, whether or not such area is
enclosed by a building or fence or wall.
E.
All junkyards, together with all junk kept therein,
shall at all times be maintained in a sanitary and orderly condition.
F.
No water shall be allowed or permitted to stand in
any place in any junkyard in such a manner so as to afford a breeding
place for mosquitoes or other insects.
G.
All weeds and other vegetation, including grass within
any junkyard, and excepting trees, shall be kept at a height of not
more than four inches.
H.
No garbage, including but not limited to animal or
vegetable material, capable of giving off a foul odor or of attracting
vermin shall be maintained on any junkyard, nor shall any refuse of
any kind be kept in any junkyard unless such garbage, waste or other
refuse is junk as such is defined by this chapter.
I.
No junk shall be permitted or allowed to rest upon
or protrude over any public street, walkway, highway, parkway, terrace
or curb or be maintained in such a manner as to permit such junk to
become scattered or blow off the junkyard.
J.
No hazardous materials, hazardous chemicals, toxic
waste or explosives shall be kept or maintained in any junkyard except
where such material is necessary to the operation of the junkyard
and has been approved for use as such, in writing, by the Fire Inspector
and Building Inspector.
[Amended 2-24-2003]
K.
No junkyard shall keep or maintain any scrap engines,
machinery, motor vehicles or other equipment containing therein gasoline,
oil, antifreeze, transmission fluid, power steering fluid, brake fluid,
hydraulic fluid or any other hazardous chemical or hazardous material.
M.
No processing of junk or other activity in connection
with the operation of any junkyard which produces a noise audible
at a distance of 50 feet from the enclosed portion of a junkyard shall
be conducted on Sundays or public holidays or at any other time between
the hours of 6:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m.
N.
No gasoline, oil, antifreeze, power steering fluid,
brake fluid, hydraulic fluid, hazardous chemical, hazardous material
or other substance deemed extra hazardous by the Fire Chief shall
be allowed to accumulate in any junkyard other than in containers
approved by the Fire Chief and/or the Chautauqua County Department
of Health and/or the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
and/or the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
O.
No gasoline, oil, antifreeze, power steering fluid,
brake fluid, hydraulic fluid, hazardous chemical, hazardous material
or other substance deemed extra-hazardous by the Fire Chief shall
be permitted to run off or flow from any junkyard.
P.
All junkyards shall comply with all requirements for
sanitary and storm sewer connections of the City of Jamestown.
Q.
No junkyard shall be operated or maintained in a manner
injurious to the public health, safety or welfare.
R.
No junk shall be buried or covered with any earthen
material within any junkyard.
S.
The junkyard license issued pursuant to the provisions
of this chapter shall be plainly displayed on the premises of any
junkyard at all times.
T.
The owner and/or operator of any junkyard shall permit
inspection of such junkyard by the Building Inspector and/or the Fire
Inspector or their designated representatives between the hours of
8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. in weekdays and at all other times which such
junkyard is open for or transacting or conducting business or is otherwise
occupied.
[Amended 2-24-2003]
U.
No single pile or accumulation of combustible material
shall exceed a maximum storage area of 1,600 square feet at a height
of 15 feet, and each single pile or accumulation of combustible material
shall be separated from any other pile or accumulation of junk by
a distance of 20 feet.
V.
Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section,
all junkyards shall be operated and maintained according to generally
accepted standards pertaining to indoor and outdoor storage, including
but not limited to the Code of the National Fire Protection Association
and the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code.
A junk dealer or secondhand dealer who possesses stolen property is presumed to know that such property was stolen if he obtained it without having made the record required by § 235-11 of this chapter.
[Added 6-12-1982]
[Added 4-8-1985; amended 2-24-2003]
Responsibility for enforcement of the provisions of § 235-17 of this chapter is hereby vested with the Fire Inspector and the Building Inspector.
Any person convicted of violating any provision
of this chapter shall be deemed to be guilty of a misdemeanor.
