[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Town of Rock Hall 10-6-1977 by Ord. No. 26. (The provisions of this chapter are derived from Section 218 of Chapter 2 of the former Code of Ordinances of the Town of Rock Hall, adopted 10-6-1977 by Ord. No. 26.) Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Garbage, rubbish and waste — See Ch. 125.
Housing standards and property maintenance — See Ch. 133.
Streets and sidewalks — See Ch. 196.
No person engaged in excavating or repairs to structures or grounds or construction or having charge or control of excavations or repairs to structures or grounds or construction or who may be engaged in or have charge or control of conveying material to or from excavations, repairs to structures or grounds or construction shall deposit or permit to be deposited, in any manner, upon the surface of any street, alley, avenue, highway, footway, sidewalk, parking or other public space within the corporate limits of the Town of Rock Hall, either by placing, spilling, dropping or tracking from the wheels of vehicles or from the feet of animals, or otherwise, any earth, clay, mud, sand, gravel or other material. If any such deposit occurs, every person whose duty it is under this section to prevent such deposit shall promptly remove the same. All macadamized or broken stone roadways adjacent to excavations or traversed by vehicles either in the process of conveying material from any excavation or in returning from the place of deposit to the place of excavation shall be covered with planking so far as may be required to prevent any mud, earth, clay or other material from the excavation or from the place of deposit from reaching the surface of such roadway.
No one being the owner, driver, manager or conductor of any cart or other vehicle shall carry or convey or cause to be carried or conveyed in such vehicle any coal, earth, sand, gravel, broken stone, dirt, ashes, paper and other rubbish or any loose fluid or offensive articles or matter or any articles whatsoever within the corporate limits of said Town of Rock Hall so that the same shall or may be scattered, dropped, let fall, blown or spilled therefrom; and all vehicles conveying combustible refuse or foul, dusty or offensive matter of any sort shall have tight bodies and be closely and securely covered. All vehicles conveying wastepaper and wastepaper products, baled, sacked or otherwise, shall be closely and securely covered.
Owners of lots abutting upon streets, avenues or alleys or upon public parking or other public space in the Town of Rock Hall and which are above grade shall protect such lots so as to prevent dirt, sand or gravel or any bushes, trees or like things from falling or being washed upon the sidewalks, streets, alleyways or other public space adjacent to the same.
[Added 12-5-1996 by Ord. No. 96-09]
No person shall throw or deposit litter in or upon any street, sidewalk or other public place within the town except in public receptacles or in authorized private receptacles for collection.
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 147-4, Violations and penalties, was renumbered as § 147-17, Violations and penalties, 12-5-1996 by Ord. No. 96-09.
[Added 12-5-1996 by Ord. No. 96-09]
A. 
Persons placing litter in public receptacles or in authorized private receptacles shall do so in such a manner as to prevent it from being carried or deposited by the elements upon any street, sidewalk or other public place or upon private property.
B. 
It shall be unlawful for any person to place residential or commercial trash or trash bags into public pedestrian receptacles.
[Added 12-5-1996 by Ord. No. 96-09]
No person shall sweep or deposit into any gutter, street or other public place within the town the accumulation of litter from any building or lot or from any public or private sidewalk or driveway. Persons owning or occupying property shall keep the sidewalk in front of their premises free of litter.
[Added 12-5-1996 by Ord. No. 96-09]
No person owning or occupying a place of business shall sweep or deposit into any gutter, street or other public place within the town the accumulation of litter from any building or lot or from any public or private sidewalk or driveway. Persons owning or occupying places of business within the town shall keep the sidewalk in front of their business premises free of litter.
[Added 12-5-1996 by Ord. No. 96-09]
No person, while a driver or passenger in a vehicle, shall throw or deposit litter upon any street or other public place within the town or upon private property.
[Added 12-5-1996 by Ord. No. 96-09]
No person shall drive or move any truck or other vehicle within the town unless such vehicle is so constructed or loaded as to prevent any load, contents or litter from being blown or deposited upon any street, alley or other public place, nor shall any person drive or move any vehicle or truck within the town whose wheels or tires carry onto or deposit in any street, alley or other public place mud, dirt, sticky substances, litter or foreign matter of any kind.
[Added 12-5-1996 by Ord. No. 96-09]
A. 
No person shall throw or deposit litter in any park within the town except in public receptacles and in such a manner that the litter will be prevented from being carried or deposited by the elements upon any part of the park or upon any street or other public place. Where public receptacles are not provided, all such litter shall be carried away from the park by the person responsible for its presence and properly disposed of elsewhere as provided herein.
B. 
No person shall throw or deposit litter in any fountain, pond, lake, stream, bay or any other body of water in a park or elsewhere within the town.
[Added 12-5-1996 by Ord. No. 96-09]
A. 
Distribution in public places. No person shall throw or deposit any commercial or noncommercial handbill in or upon any sidewalk, street or other public place within the town, nor shall any person hand out or distribute, without charge to the receiver thereof, any noncommercial handbill to any person willing to accept it.
B. 
Distribution on vehicles. No person shall throw or deposit any commercial or noncommercial handbill in or upon any vehicle; provided, however, that it shall not be unlawful in any public place for a person to hand out or distribute, without charge to the receiver thereof, a noncommercial handbill to any occupant of a vehicle who is willing to accept it.
C. 
Distribution on uninhabited or vacant premises. No person shall throw or deposit any commercial or noncommercial handbill in or upon any private premises which is temporarily or continuously uninhabited or vacant.
D. 
Distribution on private premises.
(1) 
Distribution prohibited where properly posted. No person shall throw, deposit or distribute any commercial or noncommercial handbill upon any private premises if requested by anyone thereon not to do so or if there is placed on said premises in a conspicuous position near the entrance thereof a sign bearing the words "no trespassing," "no peddlers or agents," "no advertisement" or any similar notice indicating in any matter that the occupants of said premises do not desire to be molested or have their right of privacy disturbed or to have any such handbills left upon such premises.
(2) 
Distribution at inhabited private premises. No person shall throw, deposit or distribute any commercial or noncommercial handbill in or upon private premises which are inhabited except by handing or transmitting any such handbill directly to the owner, occupant or other person then present in or upon such private premises; provided, however, that in the case of inhabited private premises which are not posted as provided in this chapter, such person, unless requested by anyone upon such premises not to do so, may place or deposit any such handbill in or upon such inhabited private premises if such handbill is so placed or deposited as to secure or prevent such handbill from being blown or drifted about such premises or sidewalks, streets or other public places, except that mailboxes may not be so used when so prohibited by federal postal laws or regulations.
(3) 
Applicability of provisions for mail and newspapers. The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to the distribution of mail by the United States nor to newspapers, as defined herein, except that newspapers shall be placed on private property in such a manner as to prevent their being carried or deposited by the elements upon any street, sidewalk or other public place or upon private property.
[Added 12-5-1996 by Ord. No. 96-09]
No person shall post or affix any notice, poster or other paper or device calculated to attract the attention of the public to any lamppost, public utility pole or shade tree or upon any public structure or building, except as may be authorized or required by law.
[Added 12-5-1996 by Ord. No. 96-09]
No person shall throw or deposit litter on any occupied private property within the town, whether owned by such person or not, except that the owner or person in control of private property may maintain authorized private receptacles for collection in such a manner that litter will be prevented from being carried or deposited by the elements upon any street, sidewalk or other public place or upon any private property.
[Added 12-5-1996 by Ord. No. 96-09]
The owner or person in control of any private property shall at all times maintain the premises free of litter; provided, however, that this section shall not prohibit the storage of litter in authorized private receptacles for collection.
[Added 12-5-1996 by Ord. No. 96-09]
No person shall throw or deposit litter on any open or vacant private property within the town, whether owned by such person or not.
[Added 12-5-1996 by Ord. No. 96-09]
A. 
Notice to remove. The Mayor and Council are hereby authorized and empowered to notify the owner of any open or vacant private property within the town or the agent of such owner to properly dispose of litter located on such owner's property which is dangerous to public health, safety or welfare. Such notice shall be sent by registered mail, addressed to said owner at his last known address.
B. 
Action upon noncompliance. Upon the failure, neglect or refusal of any owner or agent so notified to properly dispose of litter dangerous to the public health, safety or welfare within 10 days after receipt of such written notice provided for in Subsection A above or within 20 days after the date of such notice in the event that the same is returned to the town post office because of its inability to make delivery thereof, provided that the same was properly addressed to the last known address of such owner or agent, the Mayor and Council is hereby authorized and empowered to pay for the disposing of such litter or to order its disposal by the town.
C. 
Charge included in tax bill. When the town has effected the removal of such dangerous litter or has paid for its removal, the actual cost thereof, plus accrued interest at the rate of 6% per annum from the date of the completion of the work, if not paid by such owner prior thereto, shall be charged to the owner of such property on the next regular tax bill forwarded to such owner by the town. Said charge shall be due and payable by said owner at the time of payment of such bill.
D. 
Recorded statement constitutes lien. Where the full amount due the town is not paid by such owner within 30 days after the disposal of such litter as provided for in Subsections A and B above, then and in that case the Mayor and Council shall cause to be recorded in the office of the Town Administrator a sworn statement showing the cost and expense incurred for the work, the date the work was done and the location of the property on which said work was done. The recordation of such sworn statement shall constitute a lien and privilege on the property and shall remain in full force and effect for the amount due in principal and interest, plus costs of court, if any, for collection until final payment has been made. Said costs and expenses shall be collected in the manner fixed by law for the collection of taxes and, further, shall be subject to a delinquent penalty of 6% in the event that same is not paid in full on or before the date the tax bill upon which said charge appears becomes delinquent. Sworn statements recorded in accordance with the provisions hereof shall be prima facie evidence that all legal formalities have been complied with and that the work has been done properly and satisfactorily and shall be full notice to every person concerned that the amount of the statement, plus interest, constitutes a charge against the property designated or described in the statement and that the same is due and collectible as provided by law.
[Added 8-10-1979 by Ord. No. 79-6; amended 5-5-1994 by Ord. No. 94-4; 12-5-1996 by Ord. No. 96-09]
Violations of this chapter shall be punishable as a municipal infraction. Violators shall be subject to a fine not to exceed $100. Repeat offenders may be assessed a fine not to exceed $200 for each offense.