City of Watertown, WI Article IV General Regulations; Enforcement

§ 446-26 Dumping prohibited.

[Amended by Ord. No. 06-33]

A. It shall be unlawful for any person to dispose of or dump garbage, recyclables, yard waste or any other debris in any street, alley or other public place within the City or in any receptacles or on private property in the City without the owner's consent, unless placed in bags or containers in the manner and at the time specified by this article.

B. No person shall place for collection any garbage, recyclables, yard waste or any other debris at any curbside adjacent to property not owned or occupied by such person.

C. It shall be unlawful to burn or bury solid waste and recyclables by residential and nonresidential sectors at any construction site.

D. It shall be unlawful to bring refuse or garbage for disposal (and recyclables) from outside the corporate limits into the City unless authorized by a specific written agreement with the City.

§ 446-27 Enforcement.

A. For the purpose of ascertaining compliance with the provisions of this chapter, any authorized City employee may inspect recyclable materials separated for recycling, post-consumer waste intended for disposal, recycling collection sites and facilities, collection vehicles, collection areas of multifamily dwellings and nonresidential facilities and properties, and any records relating to recycling activities, which shall be kept confidential when necessary to protect proprietary information. No person may refuse access to any authorized City employee who requests access for purposes of inspection and who presents appropriate credentials. No person may obstruct, hamper or interfere with such an inspection.

B. Any person who violates a provision of this chapter may be issued a citation by the City of Watertown. The issuance of a citation shall not preclude proceeding under any other ordinance or law relating to the same or any other matter. Proceeding under any other ordinance or law relating to the same or any other matter shall not preclude the issuance of a citation under this subsection.

C. Any person who violates any part of this chapter (unless otherwise specifically set forth in this chapter) shall be required to pay a forfeiture of $50 plus costs for the first violation, $200 plus costs for a second violation, and not more than $300 plus costs for a third or subsequent violation.

§ 446-28 Collection charges.

[Added by Ord. No. 11-04; amended by Ord. No. 11-30; Ord. No. 13-23]

A. The City shall compute the amounts due to the City for solid waste collection charges and shall render a statement thereof, at periodic intervals, to the owner or occupant of any premises subject to such charge. Rates are established and updated periodically as fixed by resolution of the Common Council and maintained by the Street Department as identified at Internet site www.ci.watertown.wi.us or as available by calling [phone] during normal City business hours. Industrial, commercial and institutional businesses utilizing private services are exempt. Multifamily properties over the four-family capacity may elect to opt into the City's solid waste collection service at the then-current rate per unit upon written application by the owner. Once an owner has opted into the City's solid waste collection service, the owner agrees to continue participation and may not later opt out. In the event that the owner transfers ownership of the property to a bona fide purchaser with whom, or in which, the owner retains no financial interest, the new owner may elect to opt out of the City's solid waste collection service upon providing written notice to the City. The rates shall be reviewed by the Common Council on an annual basis and adjusted as necessary. For each additional solid waste collection container requested by the owner or occupant of any premises subject to the above-listed charge, the requesting owner or occupant shall be responsible for an additional monthly charge, which shall be calculated at the rate of 66% of the current rate fixed by Common Council resolution.

B. The City currently computes the amount due to the City for recycling collection charges attributable to a single recycling container and owed by the owner or occupant of any premises subject to such charge, which amount is included in the rate established at Subsection A above. For each additional authorized recycling container requested from the City by the owner or occupant of the premises, the owner or occupant of any premises requesting the additional recycling container will be responsible for an additional fee calculated at 33% of the rate established at Subsection A above.

§ 446-29 Noncompliance.

[Added by Ord. No. 13-02; amended 3-18-2014 by Ord. No. 14-8]

A. Notice. If solid waste, garbage, recycling, refuse or any other item is placed at, near or about curbside or within the limits of the public right-of-way or otherwise in such conspicuous manner consistent with abandoning the item(s) in favor of collection or removal by the City or another entity or individual in violation of this chapter, a Street Department representative shall affix a written notice of the noncompliance to the item(s), as reasonably possible providing notice of the noncompliance. If the noncompliance is not fully cured within 24 hours per the observation and investigation of the Community Service Officer or other law enforcement officer, the City shall deliver a notice letter to the occupant and to the property owner, if different, requiring the removal of the offending solid waste, garbage, recycling, refuse or any other item(s) within not more than six days from the date of personal service or first-class mailing of the notice letter. The notice letter may be personally delivered by the Community Service Officer or a law enforcement officer to the occupant or may be sent by first class mail to any reasonably ascertainable last known address of the occupant and property owner.

(1) Where removal is necessitated pursuant to Subsection B below, the failure to comply under the foregoing section shall constitute a separately citable offense under this chapter.

B. Removal; special charge. If the item(s) for which a notice letter is issued pursuant to Subsection A is not removed within the time specified under such notice letter, the City shall arrange and cause the removal of item(s) and shall charge the cost attributable thereto to the property owner as a special charge pursuant to § 66.0627, Wis. Stats., consistent with §§ 76-19 to 76-21 of this Code; however, the procedure under § 76-22 shall not be required for the levying of special charges for costs borne by the City under this chapter. If the special charge is not fully paid within 30 days of the date of issuance of billing thereof, the special charge or any balance of special charges remaining owing shall become a lien upon the serviced real property and, together with an administrative charge in an amount equal to $100, shall be added to the current or next tax roll, as statute dictates, for collection. The special charge provided for hereunder shall not preclude proceeding under any other ordinance, law or manner of enforcement relating to the same or other matter.

(1) The method of calculating the costs borne by the City under this section will include both direct and indirect costs, including human resource productive rates of pay, fuel and fleet usage. The Street Superintendent shall annually determine and report to the City Treasurer and Chief of Police the minimum costs that would be borne by the City in any instance of remediating noncompliance under this chapter.

[Amended 7-5-2022 by Ord. No. 22-63]

(2) Any written communication issued to an occupant and/or property owner directing compliance under this section shall clearly identify such minimum cost to the City that may result in a special charge as well as the administrative charge.

C. Appeal. The imposition of a special charge and administrative charge hereunder may be appealed exclusively to the Public Works Commission. Appeals filed pursuant to this section shall be filed no later than 30 days from the date the bill is issued by the Street Department for the recovery of special charge sums. The Public Works Commission shall hear and consider the appeal no more than 30 days following notice of receipt of the appeal and may, by simple majority vote, affirm or reverse but may not modify the imposition of the special charge or administrative charge. The only matters to be taken up under appeal shall be the necessity of rendering such current service under this chapter and certification of the actual rendering of such current service. The Chairperson of the Public Works Commission shall forthwith cause to be transmitted to the appellant and City Clerk a written decision by the Public Works Commission. Chapter 68, Wis. Stats., shall not apply to such an appeal.

[Amended 7-5-2022 by Ord. No. 22-63]