[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Ogden
as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 3-13-1968 by L.L. No. 3-1968 (Ch. 103, Art. I, of the 1995 Code)]
A clean, wholesome, attractive environment is declared to be
of importance to the health and safety of the inhabitants and the
safeguarding of their material rights against unwarrantable invasion
and, in addition, such an environment is deemed essential to the maintenance
and continued development of the economy of the Town of Ogden and
the general welfare of its citizens. It is further declared that the
unrestrained accumulation of junk motor vehicles is a hazard to such
health, safety and welfare of citizens of the Town, necessitating
the regulation, restraint and elimination thereof. At the same time,
it is recognized that the maintenance of junkyards, as hereinafter
defined, is a useful and necessary business and ought to be encouraged
when not in conflict with the express purposes of this article.
For the purposes of this article, the terms used herein are
defined as follows:
Any place of storage or deposit, whether in connection with
another business or not, where one or more unregistered, old or secondhand
motor vehicles, no longer intended or in condition for legal use on
the public highways, are held, whether for the purpose of resale of
used parts therefrom, for the purpose of reclaiming for use some or
all of the materials therein, whether metal, glass, fabric or otherwise,
for the purpose of disposing of the same, or for any other purpose.
Such term shall include any place of storage or deposit for any such
purposes of used parts or waste materials from motor vehicles which,
taken together, equal in bulk one or more such vehicles; provided,
however, that the term "junkyard" shall not be construed to mean an
establishment having facilities for processing iron, steel or nonferrous
scrap and whose principal produce is scrap iron, steel or nonferrous
scrap for sale for remelting purposes only.
[Amended 12-13-1995 by L.L. No. 9-1995]
All vehicles propelled or drawn by power other than muscular
power, originally intended for use on public highways.
The Town of Ogden outside of the Village of Spencerport.
No person shall operate, establish or maintain a junkyard until
such person has obtained:
Application for the license and the certificate of approved location shall be made, in writing, to the Town Board of the Town of Ogden. The application must be accompanied by a certificate from the Zoning Board of Appeals that the proposed location is not within an established district restricted against such uses or otherwise contrary to the prohibitions of Chapter 300, Zoning, of this Code. The application shall contain a description of the land to be included within the junkyard. Notwithstanding any of the provisions of this article, no junkyard shall be licensed to operate if such yard or any part thereof shall be within 500 feet of a church, school, hospital, public building or place of assembly.
A hearing on the application shall be held within the Town not
less than two nor more than four weeks from the date of the receipt
of the application by the Town Board. Notice of the hearing shall
be given to the applicant by mail, postage prepaid, to the address
given in the application and shall be published once in a newspaper
having a circulation within the Town, which publication shall be not
less than five days before the date of the hearing.
At the time and place set for hearing, the Town Board shall
hear the applicant and all other persons wishing to be heard on the
application for a license to operate, establish or maintain the junkyard.
In considering such application, it shall take into account the suitability
of the applicant with reference to the applicant's ability to
comply with the fencing requirements or other reasonable regulations
concerning the proposed junkyard, to any record of convictions for
any type of larceny or receiving of stolen goods and to any other
matter within the purposes of this article.
At the time and place set for hearing, the Town Board shall
hear the applicant and all other persons wishing to be heard on the
application for certificate of approval for the location of the junkyard.
In passing upon the same, it shall take into account, after proof
of legal ownership or right to such use of the property for the license
period by the applicant, the nature and development of surrounding
property, such as the proximity of churches, schools, hospitals, public
buildings or other places of public gathering, and whether or not
the proposed location can be reasonably protected from affecting the
public health and safety by reason of offensive or unhealthy odors
or smoke or of other causes.
At the hearing regarding location of the junkyard, the Town
Board may also take into account the clean, wholesome and attractive
environment which has been declared to be of vital importance to the
continued general welfare of its citizens by considering whether or
not the proposed location can be reasonably protected from having
an unfavorable effect thereon. In this connection, the Town Board
may consider collectively the type of road servicing the junkyard
or from which the junkyard may be seen, the natural or artificial
barriers protecting the junkyard from view, the proximity of the proposed
junkyard to established residential and recreational areas or main
access routes thereto, as well as the reasonable availability of suitable
sites for the junkyard.
After hearing, the governing board shall, within two weeks,
make a finding as to whether or not the application should be granted,
giving notice of their findings to the applicant by mail, postage
prepaid, to the address given on the application. If approved, the
license, including the certificate of approved location, shall be
forthwith issued, to remain in effect until the following January
1. Approval shall be personal to the applicant and not assignable.
Licenses shall be renewed annually as of January 1 in each year upon
payment of the annual license fee without hearing, provided that all
provisions of this article are complied with during the license period,
the junkyard does not become a public nuisance under the common law
and the applicant is not convicted of any type of larceny or the receiving
of stolen goods. The determination of the Town Board may be reviewed
under Article 78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules.
[Amended 12-13-1995 by L.L. No. 9-1995]
The annual license fee shall be as set from time to time by
the Town Board and shall be paid at the time the application is made
and annually thereafter in the event of renewal. Fees are kept on
file in the Town offices. In the event that the application is not
granted, the fee shall be returned to the applicant. The Town, in
addition to the license fee, may assess the applicant with the costs
of advertising such application and such other reasonable costs incident
to the hearing as are clearly attributable thereto, and issuance of
the license shall be conditional upon payment of the same.
A.
Before use, every junkyard shall be completely surrounded with a
fence at least eight feet in height which substantially screens and
with a suitable gate which shall be closed and locked except during
the working hours of such junkyard or when the applicant or the applicant's
agent shall be within. Such fence shall be erected not nearer than
50 feet from a public highway. All motor vehicles and parts thereof
stored or deposited by the applicant shall be kept within the enclosure
of the junkyard except as removal shall be necessary for the transportation
of the same in the reasonable course of the business. All wrecking
or other work on such motor vehicles and parts and all burning of
the same within the vicinity of the junkyard shall be accomplished
within the enclosure.
B.
Where the topography, natural growth of timber or other considerations
accomplish the purposes of this article, in whole or in part, the
fencing requirements hereunder may be reduced by the Town Board upon
granting the license; provided, however, that such natural barrier
conforms to the purposes of this article.
[Added 12-13-1995 by L.L.
No. 9-1995[1]]
Within 15 days after certified mailing of a written notice of
violation, the Commissioner of Public Works shall make an inspection
of the property allegedly in violation and shall cause violations
of this article to be remedied. The actual cost of the remediation,
plus a 20% fee for inspection and administrative overhead therewith,
shall be certified by the Commissioner of Public Works to the Town
Clerk and shall thereupon become and be a lien upon the property on
which said violations were located and shall be added to and become
and form a part of the taxes next to be assessed and levied upon such
lot or land and shall bear interest at the same rate as taxes and
shall be collected and enforced by the same officer and in the same
manner as taxes levied and assessed against such property.
A.
The owner or licensee of any such junkyard who commits or permits
any acts in violation of any of the provisions of this article shall
be deemed to have committed an offense against such article and also
shall be liable for any such violation or the penalty therefor. Each
day such violation shall continue or be permitted to exist shall constitute
a separate violation.
B.
For every violation of any provision of this article, the person
violating the same shall be subject to a fine of not more than $250
or imprisonment not exceeding 15 days, or by both such fine and imprisonment.
[Amended 12-13-1995 by L.L. No. 9-1995]
C.
Conviction for violation of this article shall constitute and effect
an immediate forfeiture of the license.
D.
Any person violating this article shall be subject to a civil penalty
enforceable and collectible by the Town in the amount of $1,000 for
each such offense. Such penalty shall be collectible by and in the
name of the Town for each day that such violation shall continue.
[Amended 12-13-1995 by L.L. No. 9-1995]
E.
In addition to the above-provided penalties and punishment, the Town
Board may also maintain an action or proceeding in the name of the
Town in a court of competent jurisdiction to compel compliance with
or to restrain by injunction the violation of such article.
