[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Town of Galena 12-3-1990 by Ord. No. 90-2 (Ch. VI, Art. 2, of the 1990 Code of Ordinances). Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Housing Code — See Ch. 91.
Streets and sidewalks — See Ch. 150.
Trees — See Ch. 158.
Water and sewers — See Ch. 173.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
GARBAGE
All organic waste, consisting of the residue of animals, fruit or vegetable matter, resulting from the preparation, cooking, handling, or storage of food, exclusive of human or animal feces.
HEALTH OFFICER
The Health Officer of Kent County, Maryland.
INOPERABLE MOTOR VEHICLE
A vehicle that cannot be driven upon the public streets for reasons, including but not limited to being unlicensed, wrecked, abandoned, in a state of disrepair, or incapable of being moved under its own power.
[Added 10-27-2003 by Ord. No. 03-03]
JUNK
Any scrap copper, brass, rope, rags, batteries, paper, trash, rubber, debris, waste, iron, steel, and any other scrap material.
[Amended 10-27-2003 by Ord. No. 03-03]
NUISANCE
The existence of any of the prohibited conditions enumerated in this chapter.
REFUSE
Any ashes, garbage, rubbish, junk, industrial waste, motor drain oil, dead animals and all other solid waste materials, including salvageable waste.
RESIDENTIAL AREA
An area having an average of 40,000 square feet or less per dwelling unit.
RUBBISH
All refuse other than garbage, whether combustible or noncombustible, and such forms shall include but are not limited to the following: rubbish from building construction or reconstruction, dead trees, uprooted trees, stumps, slash, rubble, street refuse, abandoned automobiles, household appliances, machinery, bottles, cans, wastepaper, cardboard, sawdust piles and slash remaining from abandoned sawmill operations and all other waste materials and unsightly debris from any industry.
UNFIT STRUCTURE
Any vacant dwelling, building or part thereof which constitutes a hazard to the safety, health or welfare of the public because it is in disrepair, unsanitary, vermin infested or rodent infested.
WEEDS
All grasses, annual plants and vegetation, other than trees or shrubs; provided, however, this term shall not include cultivated flowers and gardens.
[Amended 10-27-2003 by Ord. No. 03-03]
The owner, owners, or occupant of any premises within the Town of Galena shall be responsible for the sanitary condition of the premises occupied, and it shall be unlawful for any person to place, deposit, or voluntarily allow to be placed or deposited on their premises any matter which constitutes a nuisance under the terms of this chapter.
A. 
It shall be unlawful to deposit any decaying or putrescent substance, garbage, refuse, rubbish or any other decaying matter in or upon any land, street, or highway in the Town; provided, however, it shall be permissible to have a small compost pile for personal use only as long as it is not offensive to an adjoining property owner and is kept neat and policed at all times.
[Amended 12-5-1994 by Ord. No. 94-3]
B. 
It shall be unlawful to discharge any sewage or similarly offensive matter from any type mobile vehicle holding tank except into an approved sewer treatment works, excepting normal agricultural practices.
C. 
It shall be unlawful to dispose of human excreta, dead chickens, hogs, horses, cows, sheep, dogs, or cats or any other fowl or animal upon any land, street or highway or in or upon any public or private place within the Town without it first being buried to a suitable depth or otherwise disposed of in a manner approved by the Health Officer of Kent County.
D. 
It shall be unlawful to convey any garbage, swill, refuse, dead animals, dead fowl, or other filthy matter through any street or highway, public or private, in the Town of Galena in a manner not approved by the Health Office of Kent County.
E. 
It shall be unlawful to use garbage, offal or other decaying or putrescible matter, either by itself or in connection with ashes or other harmless matter, for the purpose of filling in any land or other space, exempting licensed sanitary landfills.
It shall be unlawful to deposit upon any lands in the Town of Galena any hazardous substances, as defined and identified in Environment Article, Title 5, Subtitle 10, of the Annotated Code of Maryland, except for material originating in or delivered from lands within the territorial boundaries of Kent County.
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. II).
A. 
The Mayor and Council of Galena may take any action legally necessary, including making application to the appropriate court of competent jurisdiction for an injunction to abate such nuisances. The Mayor and Council may also recover the penalty as set forth in § 131-8 of this section by civil action in any court of competent jurisdiction.
B. 
Pursuant to Chapter 116, Nuisances, § 116-4, of the Kent County Code, the Health Officer's designee, or other properly designated law enforcement agent of Kent County, shall be the enforcement officer for all provisions of this chapter with the exception of those enumerated in §§ 131-6 and 131-7 below.
[Amended 7-1-2013 by Ord. No. 2013-02]
[Amended 10-27-2003 by Ord. No. 03-03]
A. 
It shall be unlawful for the owner or owners of any property within the corporate limits of the Town of Galena to allow the existence of lawns with weeds or grass more than 10 inches in height upon such property in any residential area within 200 feet of a habitable dwelling in the Town except areas noted as official wetlands or isolated by official wetlands, agricultural lands, and forests. All noxious weeds shall be prohibited.
B. 
The owner or owners of any property within the Town shall remove all trash, waste material, garbage, offensive and dirty material, and other junk as defined in this chapter, including weeds, briars, and brush more than one foot tall, on any private property within 200 feet of any habitable dwelling or any public or private streets, alleys, lanes, or any other public property in the Town.
C. 
It shall be unlawful to allow the presence of garbage or junk, as defined in this chapter, on any property in the Town in excess of 30 days.
D. 
It shall be unlawful to store garbage, refuse, or junk, as defined in this chapter, in any unsafe or unsanitary manner.
E. 
It shall be unlawful for the owner or owners of any property within the corporate limits of the Town of Galena to allow the presence of garbage, refuse, junk, weeds, grass, or foliage of any kind in and around any fire hydrant in such a manner that such presence conceals or obstructs the view of the fire hydrant.
[Added 4-1-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-02]
[Amended 10-27-2003 by Ord. No. 03-03]
A. 
It shall be the duty of the Town Administrator or his designee to notify the owner or owners of any property where there exists such public nuisance or nuisances, as described in § 131-6 of this chapter, to remove such nuisance within 10 days, inclusive of Sundays and holidays, after the date of such notice. Such notice shall be given by placing the same in the United States mail, addressed to the last known address of such person or persons and with sufficient postage, prepaid, or by any other manner deemed equally suitable by the Town Administrator.
B. 
Upon failure of said owner to remove said public nuisance within the specified time, the nuisance shall be removed by the Town and the cost thereof be charged to said owner unless cause to the contrary be shown by filing objections, in writing, with the Town Administrator on or before the expiration date of such notice.
C. 
If such written objections are filed, it shall be the duty of said owner to appear before the meeting of the Mayor and Council at its next meeting, when a public hearing shall be accorded to said owner.
D. 
If said public nuisance is not removed within the time specified in such notice, and no written objections have been filed or overruled by the Mayor and Council, the Town Administrator shall cause the public nuisance to be removed, and he is authorized to incur the necessary expense in so doing, and shall place a charge against the proper person or persons for such cost and proceed to collect the same by entering same on the tax records as a tax upon such real estate, or by a suit in a court of competent jurisdiction if deemed necessary, or both.
E. 
After the first notice is issued to a property owner, for any subsequent violation the property owner will receive an automatic municipal infraction and be fined, at the discretion of the Mayor and Council, as defined in § 131-8, Violations and penalties, of this chapter.
[Amended 10-4-2010 by Ord. No. 10-03]
[Amended 12-5-1994 by Ord. No. 94-3]
Any person, firm or corporation who fails to abate a nuisance, as defined in this chapter, shall be guilty of a municipal infraction and shall be fined not less than $25 nor more than $100. Each day that a violation continues shall constitute a separate violation.