[HISTORY: Adopted by the Municipal Council of the Municipality of
Norristown 10-5-2004 by Ord. No. 04-18.
Amendments noted where applicable.]
It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, corporation, partnership,
association, or other entity to make available for public use, or to authorize
the public use, in Norristown of any manual or mechanical device for the vending
or dispensing of merchandise, services or entertainment, the operation of
which is initiated by the insertion in such device of some extraneous object,
such as a coin, slug, token, plate, disc, key or other instrumentality, without
having just procured from the designated Municipal official a license authorizing
the use of such manual or mechanical device. The license shall be valid for
the calendar year in which issued, and shall be conspicuously displayed upon
the premises.
Any license issued shall be valid only for the calendar year in which
issued. The owner and/or operator of the business where such manual and/or
mechanical devices are located shall secure the proper license from the Municipality
no later than January 16 of each year, for each device already located upon
the premises on January 1 of the year; and, within 15 days of the date each
machine or additional machine is installed upon the premises.
A.
The license fee for each vending and dispensing device
so licensed, shall be dictated by resolution of Municipal Council.
B.
Where all profits of merchandise machines in business
establishments are designated to be given to legitimate charities or are already
prohibited by the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, then and in that
event, upon proof of the same, the Municipal Council may grant a waiver of
the licensing fee for such machines.
It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, corporation, partnership,
association or other entity to display upon the premises a license which was
issued for some other premises, a counterfeit license, or any expired license.
Violation of this section shall be considered a separate and distinct offense
from violation of any other subsection hereof, and, accordingly, any penalty
imposed therefor shall be in addition to any penalty imposed hereof.
It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, corporation, partnership,
association, or other entity to make available for public use or to authorize
the public use, within Norristown, of any manual or mechanical device, as
defined above, which is solely used for amusement, entertainment or recreation,
without first complying with the following:
A.
Placing of signs in visible area at or near such machines,
which set forth the body of the Municipal Ordinances relating to fire regulations,
loitering and curfew.
B.
Machines are not permitted to be used by school-aged
children during hours of the day and days of the week, when school is in session.
C.
When the premises upon which such devices are located
is designated as a place of amusement, pursuant to the revised general ordinances
of the Municipality, a responsible adult shall be employed, by the owner or
operator, whose sole function is to supervise and maintain order upon the
said premises.
It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, corporation, partnership,
or other entity, to offer for viewing, by means of any manual or mechanical
device, upon a commercial or otherwise publicly used premises, any print,
design, drawing, photograph, movie, figure, or any type of image whatsoever,
of any obscene nature. "Obscene" as used in this section means that which,
to the average person applying contemporary community standards, has as its
dominant theme, taken as a whole, an appeal to the prurient interest.
Any person, firm, corporation, partnership, association, or other entity,
who violates any of the provisions of this chapter, upon conviction thereof,
be sentenced to pay a fine of not more than $1,000; and in default of payment,
to imprisonment for a term not to exceed 30 days.
