[Ord. of 4-21-1998(4); Ord. No. 2000.54, 7-5-2000; amended 9-1-2009 by Ord. No. 2009.42]
(a) 
This chapter is adopted under the authority of 30-A M.R.S.A. §§ 3001, 3009 and is also intended to be enforced as a land use regulation within the meaning of 30-A M.R.S.A. § 4452.
(b) 
All licenses shall be issued or denied by the City Clerk; and all licenses may be suspended or revoked after a hearing, which shall be held by the City Council except as otherwise provided elsewhere in this chapter.
(c) 
No license shall be issued to a person, corporation or other legal entity unless all buildings, structures, vessels and platforms are in compliance with zoning, building and fire safety codes, where applicable.
[Ord. of 4-21-1998(4); amended 9-1-2009 by Ord. No. 2009.42]
(a) 
All applications shall be made in writing on a form provided by the City Clerk. Each application submitted to the Clerk shall state the name and business address of each applicant, the license desired, location to be used, if any, the date of the application, and such additional information as may be deemed necessary or useful by the Clerk in determining whether such permit or license applied for should be issued.
(b) 
Other papers:
(1) 
Any application for a license for which a criminal conviction is a disqualification under this Code shall be accompanied by a written waiver of the applicant's right to privacy or confidentiality under the State Criminal History Records Act (16 M.R.S.A. § 611 et seq.) and otherwise to the extent necessary for the City Clerk, acting through the Chief of Police, to determine whether or not such disqualification exists.
(2) 
If the applicant is other than a natural person, the names of all principal officers shall accompany the original application.
(3) 
A statement to the fact that no employee or officer of the City is beneficially interested in the license or licenses, or in lieu thereof, a statement of the names of such employees or officers as are beneficially interested.
(4) 
In the case of a renewal, the licensee shall submit to the Clerk on a form provided by the Clerk, a certified ownership report for the previous twelve-month period. Such report, among other things, shall list the names of all persons or groups of persons acting in concert who at any time during the period had an actual ownership interest.
(5) 
Any organization claiming status as a bona fide nonprofit organization shall furnish sufficient evidence of such status.
(c) 
The City Clerk, upon receipt of a completed application, all applicable fees/taxes, and appropriate state licenses, will forward the application to the following departments for inspections/approval:
(1) 
Life and Safety Inspector.
(2) 
Police.
(3) 
Health/welfare.
(4) 
Tax Collectors.
(5) 
City Clerk.
(d) 
The Tax Collector will verify that the following taxes have been paid, and or payment arrangements made:
(1) 
Tenant only businesses: personal property and sewer fees in the name of the tenant.
(2) 
Property owner/operator businesses: personal property, sewer and real estate taxes.
(e) 
Upon completion of the above inspections/approvals, the City Clerk will issue the license.
(f) 
Liquor licenses. All liquor license renewals will follow the process as stipulated in state law.
[Ord. of 4-21-1998(4); Ord. No. 99.97, 11-16-1999; Ord. No. 2000.54, 7-5-2000; Ord. No. 2001.49, 5-16-2001; Ord. No. 2002.34, 4-2-2002; Ord. No. 2003.114, 11-18-2003; Ord. No. 2003.131, 12-16-2003; amended 9-1-2009 by Ord. No. 2009.42; 5-1-2012 by Ord. No. 2012.33]
(a) 
Application fees. Except as expressly provided, all applications for original licenses or for the consent of the City Council other than a flea market or auction, shall be accompanied by an administrative fee of $10 to defray the cost of processing the application. All applications for renewal of licenses shall be accompanied by the fees for issuance and an administrative fee of $10 to defray the cost of processing the application. The latter shall be refundable if the application is denied. In any case where notice by publication or mail is required, the applicant shall pay the cost of publication and postage in advance.
(b) 
Appeals fee. Appeals from determinations of the City Clerk shall be accompanied by a filing fee of $25, and the appellant shall also pay the full cost of publication and postage in advance, if such notice is required. For the purposes of this subsection, notice by publication shall be deemed to apply to the hearing on appeal whenever the requirement of publication would exist in the first instance.
(c) 
Fees for issuance.
(1) 
Fees for issuance of licenses shall be as provided in Section 22-11.
(2) 
The City Clerk will use the following fee structure to develop the appropriate license fees.
[Amended 2-1-2011 by Ord. No. 2011.3; 4-19-2011 by Ord. No. 2011.14; 5-1-2012 by Ord. No. 2012.33; 4-2-2013 by Ord. No. 2013.19; 4-16-2013 by Ord. No. 2013.28; 11-19-2019 by Ord. No. 2019.118; 6-20-2023 by Ord. No. 2023.67]
Type of License or Service
Fee
Places of amusement/entertainment
$150 (single/multiple events)
Concerts
Exhibitions (including live performances)/shows
Playhouses/plays
Circuses
Carnivals
Air shows
Indoor skating rinks
$150 (annual)
Theater/moving-picture houses
Plus $25 per screen
Bottle clubs
Billiard rooms
Public firing ranges
Bowling lanes
Automobile service/repair; automobile graveyards, automobile recycling businesses, and junkyards
Automobile graveyard
$200
Automobile recycler business
$250
Junkyard without hazardous materials
$100
Junkyard with hazardous materials
$250
Recycling facilities
$200
Recycling facilities with hazardous materials
$500
Automobile service/repair
$75
Places/dealers in products
$200
Antique dealers
Dealers in gold jewelry, etc.
Flea markets
For 20 tables
For each additional table
$5
Junk dealers
Secondhand dealers
Required to pay a one-time licensing fee of $200 when the business is first established; not required to go through the annual license renewal process
Pawnbrokers
$200
Operating license
Taxicabs, motorbuses, public automobiles
$50 (plus $20 per sticker)
Victualers
$75
If serving beer and/or wine
$100
Serving liquor
$150
Massage establishments
$100
Massage therapists
$100
Combined massage establishment/massage therapist
$150
Ice cream truck, per truck
$75
Cannabis
Cannabis grow facility license (facility size)
Grow facility up to 10,000 square feet of floor area
$1,000
Grow facility between 10,001 to 20,000 square feet of floor area
$2,000
Grow facility between 20,001 to 30,000 square feet of floor area
$3,000
Grow facility between 30,001 to 40,000 square feet of floor area
$4,000
Each additional 10,000 square feet of floor area or less
An additional $1,000
Cannabis sales
Store
$2,500 up to 2,000 square feet used for retail; each additional 1,000 square feet or less an additional $1,000
Cannabis services
Delivery service
$2,500 per establishment doing business in Biddeford
Manufacturing
$1,000 per 1,000 square foot of floor area
Testing facility
$1,000 per 1,000 square foot of floor area
Cannabis Commercial Kitchen
$1,000
Miscellaneous
$10
Newspaper vending machines (per machine)
Video game devices (per 5 machines to a maximum of $50)
Other
Advertising/liquor license (See state law.)
At cost plus 10%
Vendors on public places (See appropriate section.)
$50
Wastehaulers
Per business
$150
Per truck
$150
Sludge disposal
$50
Adult businesses, per annum
$2,000
City Clerk fees
Notary attesting for residents
$2
Notary attesting for nonresidents
$5
Dedimus justice services
$10
Marriage ceremony
$100
Motor vehicle agent fee
As set within the limits of legislative action
Sale of Zoning Ordinances
$50
Sale of Subdivision Ordinances
$10
Vital records research
$10 per hour
Sale of voter I.D. card
$5
(d) 
[1]Prorated license fees. On any initial application for a business license received by the City Clerk during the last four months of the licensing year, the licensing fee is 1/2 of the annual licensing fee. All fees are due at the time of business license application submittal. Proration of licensing fees does not apply for business license renewals.
[Added 5-1-2012 by Ord. No. 2012.33]
[1]
Editor’s Note: Former Subsection (d) was redesignated as Subsection (e) to accommodate the addition of this new Subsection (d).
(e) 
Waiver of fee. No fee for a victualer's license shall be charged to any organization that operates a concession stand at a school-aged sporting event whose proceeds are used exclusively for the purchase of team uniforms, equipment, operating supplies, or for the improvement of the sports fields and facilities. For the purpose of this subsection, "school-aged sporting event" shall mean and include all sponsored sporting events that are organized and operated within the structure of a league, or under the auspices of the Biddeford School Department or a Biddeford private school, or under a program that is sanctioned by the City's Recreation Department and whose participants are enrolled in school and not older than 19 years of age.
[Added 4-6-2010 by Ord. No. 2010.27]
[Ord. of 4-21-1998(4); amended 9-1-2009 by Ord. No. 2009.42]
A late charge of $10 shall be added to each license fee for each license that has expired more than 30 days, and an additional fee of $10 shall be charged for each month thereafter that the license has not been renewed. The City Clerk may waive any part or all of the late fee upon good cause being shown.
[Ord. of 4-21-1998(4); amended 9-1-2009 by Ord. No. 2009.42]
All annual licenses and permits, except victualers licenses, issued under this article shall expire at 12:00 midnight on December 31 of the year of issuance, unless otherwise indicated. A victualers license issued under this chapter expires annually on May 31 of the year of issuance.
[Added 9-1-2009 by Ord. No. 2009.42]
(a) 
Upon receipt of an application for any license or permit, other than a renewal application substantially identical to the original application, the Clerk shall inquire of other City departments, as appropriate, for comments as to whether a license may be granted consistent with the provisions of the laws and ordinances enforced by such departments. In all appropriate cases, the building authority shall verify that the premises to be used for the proposed facility comply with the Building Code, Electrical Code, Plumbing Code and Zoning Ordinance, and if applicable, state Junkyard Screening Law; the Health Authority shall cause inspections to be made of the proposed location of any premises dispensing food or liquor; the Fire Chief shall cause inspection to be made for the purpose of determining if City ordinances, a state law or state regulations concerning fire and safety have been complied with; and if the license is not issuable to any class of persons, the Police Chief shall cause an investigation to be made of the principal officers or persons to be licensed. All such persons shall report to the Clerk in writing, and copies of any such report shall be deemed a public record.
(b) 
Whenever a criminal background check is done prior to issuance of a license, any cost of such background check which is charged to the City by another agency shall be added to the fees to be paid by the applicant.
[Added 9-1-2009 by Ord. No. 2009.42]
(a) 
Grounds In addition to any other specific provision of this Code authorizing such action, a license or permit may be denied, suspended or revoked upon a determination of the existence of one or more of the following grounds:
(1) 
Failure to fully complete the application forms; knowingly making an incorrect statement of a material nature on such form; or failure to supply any additional documentation required or reasonably necessary to determine whether such license is issuable, or failure to pay any fee required hereunder;
(2) 
The licensed activity, or persons on the premises for the purpose of participating in the licensed activity, or persons patronizing the licensed device have caused one or more breaches of the peace; or
(3) 
There is clear danger that a breach of the peace will occur if the licensed activity is permitted; or practicable thereafter.
(b) 
At any hearing, the licensee shall be given the opportunity to answer the complaint and to present evidence. The complainant shall also be notified of the hearing and given the opportunity to be heard.
(c) 
All suspensions or revocations shall be upon substantial evidence, and all hearings shall be conducted with substantial fairness and strict adherence to the rules of evidence shall not be required.
(d) 
All hearings on suspension or revocation of licenses shall be held within 30 days of delivery to licensee of the generalized statement of complaint.
[Amended 9-1-2009 by Ord. No. 2009.42]
(a) 
Grounds for denial. The City Clerk may deny a license application under this article upon a finding that the applicant:
(1) 
Does not have the financial capacity and technical ability to conduct the activity described in the application; or
(2) 
Has a history of complaints and problems resulting from the proposed business; or
(3) 
Has failed to comply with any other provisions of this article; or
(4) 
For other reasons that would support the position that approval of the license would be adverse to the public health, safety or welfare of the citizens of the City.
(b) 
Hearing following denial of license. If the City Clerk denies a license application under this article, the Clerk shall notify the applicant in writing, stating the reasons for the denial. An appeal to the City Council may be taken by any person aggrieved by the denial, suspension or revocation of a license by the Clerk by filing a notice of appeal and the prescribed fee with the City Council within 30 days of the decision appealed from, and not thereafter. Every appeal should be in writing and shall state the basis for the appeal. The City Council shall hear the appeal within 10 business days after the filing of the appeal and may affirm, reverse or modify the decision appealed from. The taking of an appeal shall not stay a decision appealed from, except that at the request of the licensee, the Clerk may stay the effective date of a suspension, revocation or denial of a renewal license upon a finding that the public is not likely to suffer any harm during the pendency of the appeal. In such case, the Clerk shall make a written finding of his or her decision in this regard and shall notify the appellant. The applicant may seek review of the denial in superior court pursuant to Maine Rules of Civil Procedure 80B, within 30 days after the denial.
(c) 
Suspension or revocation of license. Any license issued under this article may be suspended or revoked by order of the municipal officers after notice and hearing in accordance with the procedures in Section 22-16(d), for the following causes:
(1) 
Violation of this article.
(2) 
Violation of any provision of any state or local law, ordinance, code or regulation which relates directly to the provisions of this article.
(3) 
Violation of any license condition.
(4) 
Falsehoods, misrepresentations or omissions in the license application.
(d) 
Hearings.
(1) 
After investigation which results in a determination that the municipal officers should consider revocation or suspension of a license, the City Clerk shall serve notice of a hearing on the licensee or leave it at the licensed premises at least three days before the time set for hearing.
(2) 
After the hearing the licensee must be given an opportunity to hear the evidence in support of the charge(s) against the licensee, to cross-examine, alone or through counsel, the witnesses, and be heard in the licensee's own defense.
(3) 
After considering all information presented, the municipal officers may suspend or revoke a license if they find that the licensee is no longer fit to hold a license or for any cause which the municipal officers deem satisfactory, they may suspend a license for any period of time they consider proper.
(e) 
Appeal. The licensee may seek review of the denial in superior court pursuant to Maine Rules of Civil Procedure 80B, within 30 days after the denial.