[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Brewster 5-25-1988 by L.L. No. 1-1988 (Ch. 111 of the 1992 Code); amended in its entirety 5-15-1996 by L.L. No. 1-1996. Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Housing maintenance — See Ch. 148.
Solid waste — See Ch. 205.
Zoning — See Ch. 263.
A clean, wholesome, attractive environment is declared to be of importance to the health, safety and welfare of the inhabitants of the Village, the safeguarding of their material rights against unwarrantable invasion, the protection, preservation or maintenance of property values and the minimizing of nuisances as well as protection against health hazards.
For the purpose of this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
ABANDON
Relinquishment of any item of personal property and/or litter with the intention of not reclaiming it or resuming its own ownership or enjoyment. Intent shall be presumed at the expiration of 24 consecutive hours from the time of abandonment.
GARBAGE
Waste animal or vegetable matter, such as material from a kitchen, store, delicatessen, restaurant, food stand, etc.
LITTER
A. 
Includes:
(1) 
Garbage, refuse, trash or rubbish or any nauseous or offensive material.
(2) 
All waste materials customarily handled or collected by refuse collectors or junk dealers.
(3) 
Items known as "junk," regardless of size, discarded or abandoned by reason of obsolescence, age or state of repair or intended to be discarded, abandoned or junked, including but not limited to discarded household furnishings or appliances, crates, boxes, cartons, building materials, vehicles, machines, farm equipment or parts of vehicles or machines or equipment.
(4) 
Signs, handbills, discarded reading material, newspapers, magazines or similar paper goods.
(5) 
Cans, bottles, containers, boxes, cartons or wrappers, with or without contents.
B. 
Shall not include:
(1) 
Equipment in actual use by the owner of property for farming, gardening or construction of improvements on the property site.
(2) 
Vehicles carrying current registration plates, unless abandoned by the owner thereof for 24 hours or more.
(3) 
Construction materials, reserved and stored upon premises for future use upon said premises, except that same must be stored and stacked in an orderly fashion and be free from debris not intended or designated to be used in such future construction. Such materials shall not be stored in any front yard nor within 25 feet of rear or side yards.
(4) 
Contractor's supplies or materials stored on premises during periods of construction for which a building permit has been issued and prior to issuance of a certificate of occupancy.
(5) 
Recreation equipment in actual use by the owner of the property and his family or his tenants.
LITTER RECEPTACLES
Covered garbage pails or containers, not plastic bags.[1]
PERSON
Includes an individual, partnership, corporation or other legal entity or association, organization or company.
THROWING, DEPOSITING or ABANDONING
Includes throwing from a vehicle of any type or from an aircraft or boat.
VILLAGE
That area consisting of the Incorporated Village of Brewster.
[1]
Editor's Note: Added at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
A. 
No person shall throw, deposit or abandon litter on any property within the Village, whether public or private and whether or not owned by such person, nor shall any property owner use his land for dumping of litter or permit dumping or accumulation of litter on his property by others, except that the owner or person in control of private property shall maintain private receptacles for the collection of litter in such a manner that litter will not be carried or deposited by the elements upon the yards or premises of others or upon the streets, roads, highways or public place or places.
[Amended 10-20-2004 by L.L. No. 3-2004]
B. 
Litter not contained in receptacles as aforesaid shall not be stored or piled on land within the Village except to facilitate delivery to the vehicle of a refuse collector, salvage dealer, licensed junk dealer or a person, firm or charitable organization customarily engaged in the removal, purchase, collection or salvage of discarded articles, and in such cases shall not be so stored in anticipation of such collection for a period in excess of 12 hours.
C. 
Owners or persons in charge or control of all private property, whether resident thereon or not, shall at all times maintain the premises free of litter, except as provided in Subsections A and B of this section.
D. 
No person shall throw or deposit or abandon litter upon any open or vacant property within the Village regardless of the ownership thereof.
E. 
No person shall throw or deposit or abandon litter in or upon any street, highway, walk, park, parking area or other public place within the Village except in public receptacles; provided, however, that no litter defined as "garbage" shall at any time be thrown or deposited in public receptacles unless such receptacles are specifically designated and marked for the reception of garbage.
F. 
No person owning or operating a place of business shall sweep or deposit litter from any building or lot in or onto any street or public parking area, and the frontage of such business properties along streets, public parking areas or access drives leading to parking areas shall be kept free of litter.
G. 
No person shall throw or deposit or abandon any litter or foreign matter of any kind whatsoever in any fountain, pool, pond, lake, stream, culvert, reservoir or its tributaries or watershed or any body of water in a park or elsewhere within the Village, except that this provision shall not prohibit the authorized treatment and control of pools or reservoirs to control or regulate water purity or aquatic vegetation by persons or corporations having all required permits issued by state, county, Village or watershed authorities having jurisdiction over such treatment or such permits.
H. 
Signs or posters advertising an event shall be removed by the person or organizations responsible for the erection or affixing of such signs or posters within five days after the happening of the advertised event.
[Amended 12-2-2009 by L.L. No. 5-2009]
I. 
The prohibitions contained herein against the deposit of litter shall include activities known as "dumping," the maintenance of dumps for any purpose, including landfill operations, or the use of any property in the Village as a dumping ground for the benefit of the owner or any other person.
J. 
All private litter receptacles placed curbside for collection shall be placed curbside no earlier than 6:00 p.m. of the day prior to the designated day of collection. All litter receptacles must be removed from curbside by 11:59 p.m. of the designated pick-up day.
[Amended 10-20-2004 by L.L. No. 3-2004; 3-4-2009 by L.L. No. 1-2009]
K. 
In the event any litter and/or garbage shall be deemed abandoned, the Village may cause the litter and/or garbage to be removed and to charge back the property owner for the cost and expense of removing said litter and/or garbage.
L. 
Notwithstanding anything to the contrary within this chapter, no private litter receptacles shall be permanently stored in any front yard, as such term is defined in Chapter 263, Zoning, § 263-3, or within public view in any side or rear yard as such terms are so defined within Chapter 263, Zoning, § 263-3.
This chapter and the penalties provided herein shall be in addition to and not in substitution of the rights and remedies of the Village of Brewster and its inhabitants, at law and in equity, under the Penal Law, Public Health Law, Vehicle and Traffic Law, Putnam County Sanitary Code or the Zoning Ordinance or any and all laws or ordinances relating to the conduct or activities similar to those prohibited herein.
[Amended 10-20-2004 by L.L. No. 3-2004]
A. 
An offense against the provisions of this chapter shall constitute a violation under the Penal Law and shall be punishable by a penalty not to exceed $250 or by imprisonment for not more than 15 days, or both.
[Amended 3-4-2009 by L.L. No. 1-2009]
B. 
In addition to the above-provided penalties and punishment, the Village of Brewster Board of Trustees may also maintain an action or proceeding in the name of the Village in a court of competent jurisdiction to compel compliance with or to restrain by injunction the violation of such chapter.
[Added 3-4-2009 by L.L. No. 1-2009]
This chapter shall be enforced by any official authorized to issue and serve appearance tickets under Chapter 4, Appearance Tickets, of the Code of the Village of Brewster or the laws of the State of New York.