[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Valley Stream 10-28-1974 by L.L. No. 6-1974. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Garbage and rubbish - See Ch. 38.
Property maintenance — See Ch. 64.
Recycling — See Ch. 67A.
Abandoned vehicles — See Ch. 94.
For the purposes of this chapter, the following terms, phrases, words and their derivations shall have the meanings given herein. When not inconsistent with the context, words used in the present tense include the future, words used in the singular number include the plural number. The word "shall" is always mandatory and not merely directory.
AUTHORIZED PRIVATE RECEPTACLE
A container commercially manufactured for the purpose of holding litter, not exceeding four cubic feet in volume or 30 gallons' capacity in size, having a tight-fitting cover and a maximum weight of 75 pounds and equipped with suitable handles. Plastic bags may be used for all litter, provided that such bags are securely tied at the top and are not overfilled and not torn, ripped or otherwise not capable of being lifted and placed in a refuse truck. Maximum size bags for litter shall not exceed 30 gallons' capacity.
GARBAGE
Putrescible animal and vegetable wastes resulting from the handling, preparation, cooking and consumption of food.
LITTER
Garbage, refuse and rubbish, as defined herein, and all other waste material which, if thrown or deposited as herein prohibited, tends to create a danger to public health, safety and welfare.
PARK
A park, playgrounds or any other public area in the Village owned or used by the Village and devoted to active or passive recreation.
PERSON
Any person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, company or organization of any kind.
PRIVATE PREMISES
Any dwelling, house, building or other structure designed or used either wholly or in part for private residential purposes, whether inhabited or temporarily or continuously uninhabited or vacant, and shall include any yard, grounds, walk, driveway, porch, steps, vestibule or mailbox belonging or appurtenant to such dwelling, house, building or other structure.
PUBLIC PLACE
Any and all streets, sidewalks, boulevards, alleys or other public ways, and any and all public parks, squares, spaces, grounds and buildings.
REFUSE
All putrescible and nonputrescible solid wastes, except body wastes, including garbage, rubbish, ashes, street cleanings, dead animals, abandoned automobiles and solid market and industrial wastes.
RUBBISH
Nonputrescible solid wastes consisting of both combustible and noncombustible wastes such as yard clippings, leaves, wood, glass, bedding, crockery and similar materials.
VEHICLE
Every device in, upon or by which any person or property is or may be transported or drawn upon a highway, including devices used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks.
VILLAGE
The incorporated areas in the Village of Valley Stream.
No person shall throw or deposit litter in or upon any street, sidewalk or other public place within the Village except in public receptacles, in authorized private receptacles for collection or in official Village rubbish pits.
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.
No person shall sweep into or deposit in any gutter, street or other public place within the Village the accumulation of litter from any building or lot 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.
No person owning or occupying a place of business shall sweep into or deposit in any gutter, street or other public place within the Village 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 Village shall keep the sidewalk in front of their business premises free of litter.
No person, while a driver or passenger in a vehicle, shall throw or deposit litter upon any street or other public place within the Village or upon private property.
No person shall drive or move any truck or other vehicle within the Village 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 Village, the wheels or tires of which carry onto or deposit in any street, alley or other public place mud, dirt, sticky substances, litter or foreign matter of any kind.
No person shall throw or deposit litter in any park within the Village except in public receptacles and then 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.
No person shall throw or deposit litter in any fountain, pond, lake, stream or any other body of water in a park or elsewhere within the Village.
No person in an aircraft shall throw out, drop or deposit within the Village any litter, handbill or any other object.
No person shall throw or deposit litter on any occupied private property within the Village, 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.
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.
No person shall throw or deposit litter on any open or vacant private property within the Village, whether owned by such person or not.
A. 
Notice to remove. The Superintendent of Public Works is hereby authorized and empowered to notify the owner of any open or vacant private property within the Village 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 notices shall be by certified 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 48 hours after receipt of written notice provided in Subsection A above or within 48 hours after the date of such notice in the event that the same is returned to the Department of Public Works 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 Superintendent of Public Works is hereby authorized and empowered to pay for the disposing of such litter or to order its disposal by the Village.
[Amended 1-8-1979 by L.L. No. 1-1979]
C. 
Charge included in tax bill. When the Village has effected the removal of such litter or has paid for its removal, the actual cost thereof, plus accrued legal rate of interest 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 Village, and said charge shall be due and payable by said owner at the time of payment of such bill.
D. 
Filed statement constitutes lien. Where the full amount due the Village is not paid by such owner within 48 hours after the disposal of such litter, as provided for in Subsections A and B above, then, and in that case, the Superintendent of Public Works shall cause to be filed in the office of the Village Clerk a sworn statement showing the cost and expense incurred for the work, the date the work was done and the location of the property by school district, section, lot and block on which said work was done and the name of the reputed owner thereof. The filing 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 the legal rate of interest in the event same is not paid in full on or before the date the tax bill upon which said charge appears becomes delinquent. Sworn statements filed 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 properly and satisfactorily done 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.
[Amended 1-8-1979 by L.L. No. 1- 1979]
No person, firm, association or corporation shall throw, cast, lay, bury or leave or direct, suffer or permit any servant, agent or employee to throw, cast, lay, bury or leave any ashes, offal, dead animals, vegetables, garbage, dross, cinders, shells, straw, shavings, paper, dirt, filth, broken glassware, crockery, bottles, metal or any other refuse or rubbish of any kind whatsoever or abandoned vehicles of any kind in or upon any vacant lot or plot, except where ashes or dirt may be used for filling purposes under a permit secured from the department or bureau having jurisdiction thereof, or in or upon any street or road in the Incorporated Village of Valley Stream.
[Amended 8-17-1998 by L.L. No. 3-1998]
A. 
Any person or persons, association or corporation committing an offense against this chapter or any section or provision thereof is guilty of a violation punishable by a fine not exceeding $5,000 or imprisonment for a period not exceeding 15 days for each such offense, or by both such fine and imprisonment.
B. 
Each day such violation continues or is permitted to continue shall constitute a separate violation punishable as herein provided.
The Superintendent of Public Works shall have the power and authority, with the approval of the Board of Trustees, to make discretionary changes as may be necessary to secure the intent and purposes of this chapter and the proper enforcement of its provisions.
Each of the foregoing sections is hereby declared to be independent of every other section, and the invalidity of any one section shall not invalidate any of the others.
This chapter shall take precedence over any other local laws, ordinances or parts of ordinances or local laws theretofore adopted which are in any way inconsistent with or in conflict with this chapter, including Article X of Chapter 80, which is hereby specifically repealed.
This chapter shall take effect as set forth in the State Law.
For the purposes of codification, this chapter may be renumbered in conformance with the style of the Code of the Village of Valley Stream.