Except where otherwise indicated by context, the following definitions
shall apply in the interpretation and enforcement of this chapter:
JUNK
Any discarded material, articles or things, including, but not limited
to, scrap, copper, brass, rope, rags, batteries, paper, trash, rubber debris,
waster, iron, steel and other old or scrap ferrous or nonferrous material;
any wrecked, ruined, dismantled, abandoned, nonoperable, disabled or junked
motor vehicles or parts thereof, or motor vehicles no longer used as such.
JUNKED MOTOR VEHICLES
Any motor-driven vehicle, regardless of size, which is incapable
of being self-propelled or is unable to move under its own power upon the
public streets of the Borough or is incapable of being utilized for its intended
purpose; also included in this definition is any trailer, semi-trailer or
any other article which would be classified as a vehicle and shall include
any disabled, abandoned, nonoperable, nonregistered, wrecked,
ruined or dismantled motor vehicle.
JUNKYARD
Any yard, lot or place covered or uncovered, outdoors or in an enclosed
building, containing junk as defined herein, upon which principally occurs
one or more acts or buying, keeping, storing, accumulating, dismantling, processing,
recycling, salvaging, selling or offering for sale, any such junk, in whole
units or by parts, or any premises used for the storage of two or more junked
motor vehicles. This definition shall not include a transfer station licensed
or permitted by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, or a recycling center licensed
or permitted by Crafton Borough.
LICENSEE
Any person holding a valid, current license issued pursuant to this
chapter.
PRELIMINARY APPROVAL
Approval of the application by the Code Enforcement Officer which
permits the applicant to develop his property as per the requirements of this
chapter. Preliminary approval does not permit the applicant to operate the
junkyard or accumulate junk in the approved location.
Every person seeking a license under this chapter shall make written
application to the Borough on a form to be provided by the Borough. The application
shall include the following information:
A. The name and address of the applicant, if the applicant
is a natural person; but if the applicant is another entity, the names and
address of all officers, directors, partners or natural persons having primary
responsibility for the lawful day-to-day operation of the junkyard or scrap
yard.
B. The names and addresses of the owner or owners of the
land upon which the junkyard is to be located.
C. Written consent of the owner or owners of the property,
if different from applicant.
D. A metes and bounds survey of the property showing the location of the property, together with a deed reference to the property, containing a layout of the proposed junkyard, and showing sufficient detail to establish compliance with this chapter; Chapter
225, Zoning; Chapter
197, Subdivision and Land Development; and all other applicable ordinances, laws and regulations. A junkyard or scrap yard shall have a minimum of 10 acres and a maximum of 20 acres, and shall front on a public road or have access to a public road by a right-of-way of at least 20 feet in width. Where a proposed junkyard fronts on or has access to a state highway, all proper permits must be obtained from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.
E. Plans and specifications for all fencing, water facilities,
screening, access driveways, sewage disposal system and stormwater management.
F. Plans for the control of insects, rodents and vermin,
and for the prevention of infestation.
G. Any other information, in any format and in as many copies,
as the Borough may from time to time require.
Any person wanting to establish, operate or maintain a junkyard within
the Borough must seek preliminary approval of an application by submitting
an initial application and application fee, after which:
A. The Code Enforcement Officer shall review the application
and plans for completeness and for compliance with this chapter, other Borough
ordinances and regulations and any state or federal laws or regulations.
B. The Code Enforcement Officer shall inspect the site,
taking into consideration the suitability of the property proposed to be used
for the purposes of the license, the character of the properties located nearby,
and the effect of the proposed use upon the Borough, with specific reference
to the general health, safety and welfare of the public and the residents
of the Borough.
C. The Borough Council, in its sole discretion, may hold
a public hearing on the application.
D. The Borough Council may impose, in addition to the general
requirements set forth in this chapter, such other terms and conditions as
it may deem necessary to carry out the spirit and intent of this chapter and
to effect the protection of the general health, safety, and welfare of the
public and the residents of the Borough.
E. After completion of the above items, and the determination
by the Borough Council that the applicant’s plans and representations
comply with this chapter and all other applicable ordinances, laws, rules
and regulations, the Borough Council shall issue in writing a “preliminary
approval” of the site.
F. Preliminary approval shall be in writing, and shall contain
a statement that the application and plans as submitted are acceptable to
the Borough Council without modification; or shall contain a detailed and
itemized list of other terms, conditions and requirements which must be met
if the application is to be finally approved.
G. Preliminary approval shall commit the Borough to issue
a license, pursuant to this chapter, only after the site is, in fact, in complete
compliance with the terms of the preliminary approval and the requirements
of this chapter.
H. No junkyard, scrap yard or junk dealer shall conduct
business on the site until a license is issued.
I. It shall be solely the obligation of the applicant to
communicate to the Borough, within the preliminary approval period, that the
site has been made to fully comply with this chapter and the terms, conditions,
and requirements of the preliminary approval.
J. Preliminary approval shall be valid for not more than
six months, after which, if the site is not in full compliance with this chapter
and all other terms, conditions and requirements of the preliminary approval,
the preliminary approval shall be revoked by the Borough Council and the Borough
shall not thereafter be required to issue a license automatically, at the
expiration of six months.
After a license has been issued for a junkyard in order to continue
the operation and maintenance of such junkyard, the licensee shall be required
to apply for license renewal on a form to be provided by the Borough. Such
application for renewal shall be filed with the Borough within such time as
to allow the Borough an opportunity for on-site inspection of the junkyard
prior to the date on which the license must be renewed; but in no event shall
such application be filed fewer than 60 days before the expiration of the
current license. The Borough Council shall, from time to time, establish rules
and regulations governing the application for and issuance of renewal licenses.
The following general requirements shall apply to all junkyards licensed
in accordance with the provisions of this chapter:
A. Such premises shall at all times be maintained so as
not to constitute a nuisance or menace to the health, safety or welfare of
the community and maintained so as not to provide a breeding place for insects,
rodents or vermin.
B. No garbage or other organic waste shall be stored in
open containers on premises.
C. All junk shall be stored and arranged so as not to interfere
with natural drainage of the land and shall be so stored and arranged as to
prevent the accumulation of stagnant water and to facilitate access for fire-fighting
purposes.
D. Maintenance shall be such that any adjacent stream or
body of water shall not, be polluted or damaged by the drainage or dumping
of organic or inorganic waste materials or waste substances.
E. Junk shall be stored in piles within the enclosed area
not exceeding eight feet in height. Junk shall be separated by alleys and
arranged so as to permit easy access to all such junk for fire-fighting purposes.
F. No burning of junk, discarded materials or any other
materials shall occur on the premises.
G. The business shall be conducted from a permanent building
on the premises.
H. The operator must be authorized to collect Pennsylvania
sales tax prior to opening.
I. No combustible material of any kind not necessary or
beneficial to the licensed business shall be kept on the premises, nor shall
the premises be allowed to become a fire hazard.
J. No oil, grease, tires, gasoline, tar, petroleum products,
shingles or other similar material or junk shall be burned within a junkyard
at any time.
K. The licensee shall permit inspection of the business
premises by the Borough or its appointed representative at any reasonable
time.
L. Any property not provided for and approved by the Borough
with the licensee shall not be utilized for junkyard operations.
M. All oil, antifreeze, gasoline, transmission fluid and
other vehicular fluids shall be drained from all vehicles before such vehicles
are stored as scrap in the junkyard; and all such fluids shall be properly
containerized, stored, transported and disposed of in the manner or manners
prescribed by or consistent with regulations promulgated by the Pennsylvania
Department of Environmental Protection in Title 25, Chapter 75, Pennsylvania
Code, as amended, relating to solid waste management, and in regulations promulgated
by the United States Environmental Protection Agency at 40 CFR, Subchapter
I, Parts 240-280, as amended, relating to solid waste, or any other applicable
laws or regulations pertaining to solid waste or solid waste management.
N. All spare tires not being used for a useful purpose must
be covered by a tarpaulin and not left exposed to the weather or enclosed
within the structure.
The location of any junkyard must conform to any and all applicable
Borough zoning regulations.
Any person wishing to extend or enlarge the area of an existing junkyard
shall make application for new license in accordance with the provisions of
this chapter, and will be required to comply with all provisions of this chapter
as if he were applying for a license for a new junkyard.
No license issued under this chapter shall be assigned or transferred
to any other person without the express written authorization of the Borough.
Any person wishing to transfer or assign such license shall make a written
request to do so, directed to the Code Enforcement Officer and setting forth
the name and address of the transferee and the date the transfer is expected
to be effective. Such written request shall be submitted together with a transfer
fee, the amount of which shall, from time to time, be determined by the Borough
Council; and such transfer fee shall not be returned, whether or not the transfer
or assignment of the license is authorized. Such written request must be submitted
at least 60 days prior to the date the transfer is expected to be effective.
The Code Enforcement Officer shall suspend any license issued hereunder
upon failure of any licensee to comply with, or to maintain compliance with,
or for violation of, any provision, standard or requirement of this chapter.
The Borough shall notify the licensee, in writing, of any section or sections
of this chapter which the Borough or its representative believes to have been
violated. Any notice provided for herein may also identify a reasonable period
of time within which the licensee may effect compliance without prosecution.
Any notice provided for in this section may be served personally upon the
licensee; or may be posted conspicuously upon the property for which the license
has been granted; or may be posted conspicuously at the address of the licensee
as shown on the application; or may be sent to the licensee by certified or
registered mail to the address shown on the application.
Application fees, renewal fees, transfer fees and any other fees shall
be established, from time to time, by resolution of the Borough Council.
The Borough Council may, from time to time, review or alter the rules
and regulations, the application for, renewal application for, and any other
forms reasonable and necessary to the proper and effective administration
of this chapter.
The Borough Code Enforcement Officer or any other representative of
the Borough shall be permitted to enter and inspect the premises of any licensee
or any applicant for preliminary approval at any reasonable time and with
no notice.