While recognizing that highway vehicle service stations are
a necessary business, they should be properly regulated, and legislation
is necessary in order to promote the health, welfare, safety and morals
of the residents of the Town of Onondaga to insure by this chapter
a method of properly regulating the construction, operation and maintenance
of such highway vehicle service stations.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
HIGHWAY VEHICLE SERVICE STATION
Any area of land, including any building or buildings thereon,
used or heretofore used for the servicing of motor vehicles used or
capable of being used on highways, and/or supplying gasoline, diesel
oil or other energy for the propulsion of such motor vehicles.
Highway vehicle service stations shall be closed not later than
11:00 p.m., and all external lights shall be extinguished at that
time, and such station shall not be reopened prior to 6:00 a.m., except
that highway vehicle service stations may be permitted to be open
for additional hours upon issuance of a permit by the Town Board of
the Town of Onondaga after due notice and a public hearing thereon.
Notice of such hearing shall be published once at least 10 days and
not more than 20 days before the date of the hearing in the official
newspaper of the Town of Onondaga.
There shall be no signs or appurtenances connected with any
highway vehicle service station which are moving, rotating or animated
in any other way, or illuminated by flashing, blinking, fluctuating
or other form of animated light.
All lighting shall be shielded so as not to shine directly upon
adjacent properties or towards users of adjacent public highways.
All storage facilities for fuel oil, gasoline or similar substances
installed after the effective date of this chapter shall be underground
and at least 25 feet from any and all lot lines. Tanks shall be installed
and maintained in accordance with the standards of the National Board
of Fire Underwriters and the following specific standards:
A. Prior to installation, the Town shall be provided with a copy of
the specifications and the date of the proposed installation. No tank
shall be covered until inspection and approval by the Town, and the
decision of the Town as to the quality of materials and the adequacy
of the installation shall be final.
B. The operator, owner or lessee of any highway vehicle service station
shall keep a daily record of the amount of gasoline in all installed
tanks, the amount removed and the amount inserted. This record shall
be available to the Town or its authorized representatives on demand
at any reasonable business hour. The operator, owner or lessee of
such highway vehicle service station shall make a report consisting
of a summary of these records available to the Town annually, or more
frequently if requested by the Town, and shall certify to the Town
in this report that there is no leakage; or, if there is evidence
of such leakage, a detailed explanation of same and whether such leakage
has been stopped, together with such additional information as the
Town may require.
C. If at any time a leak is detected through the foregoing method, or
any other method, the owner and/or lessee of the highway vehicle service
station shall make the necessary repairs forthwith. If, in the sole
discretion of the Town or its authorized representatives, the condition
results in a threat to public safety, the highway vehicle service
station may be shut down until repairs are made.
D. In the event of any violations of the provisions of this section,
the Town shall have the right to order operation of the highway vehicle
service station shut down until such time as the conditions are corrected.
In the event of failure to comply with said order and correct the
conditions, the Town, within 24 hours after issuing such order, may
cause the condition to be corrected and collect all expenses therefrom
directly from the owner and/or lessee of such service station; and
in the event of failure of payment, all such costs and expenses shall
be added to the next annual tax bill covering the property on which
such highway vehicle service station is located and collected in the
same manner as unpaid taxes. In the event that a condition develops
which in the sole discretion of the Town is a threat to public safety,
the twenty-four-hour period shall not be applicable.
[Amended 9-15-1986 by L.L. No. 2-1986]
A. Each highway vehicle service station shall have a buffer zone on
each property line adjoining a residential zone and not abutting a
street, planted with at least a double row of conifer trees, at least
eight feet high on six-foot centers. Plantings shall be properly bedded
when planted, maintained and fertilized to assure long life and growth.
B. As an alternative to the foregoing, a buffer or ornamental fencing
may be constructed after issuance of a permit for the same by the
Town Board.
C. As a further alternative to the foregoing, upon approval of the Town
Board, the buffer zone herein mandated may consist of an area of vacant
land owned by the owner of the service station and having at least
20 feet in width between the service station and the adjacent residential
zone. In such instances, the twenty-foot buffer zone may not be used
in any way or manner in connection with the service station operation.
[Amended 9-15-1986 by L.L. No. 2-1986]
All highway vehicle service stations within the Town of Onondaga, whether in existence or hereafter constructed, shall comply with the provisions of this chapter and any amendments thereto from and after the effective date of said chapter or amendments. Highway vehicle service stations in existence on the effective date of this chapter shall have a period of 90 days after said effective date to comply with the provisions thereof, except that such stations shall have until September 1, 1987, to comply with the buffer-zone requirements set forth in §
214-10 hereof.
[Amended 9-15-1986 by L.L. No. 2-1986]
The provisions of this chapter shall be enforced by the Codes
Enforcement Officer of the Town of Onondaga.
Any and every violation of the provisions of this chapter shall
be deemed to be an offense against this chapter, punishable by a fine
not exceeding $1,000 or by imprisonment not to exceed one year, or
both. Each day's continued violation of this chapter, after written
notice thereof, shall constitute a separate and additional violation.
In addition to the above-provided penalty, or in lieu thereof, 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 chapter.