[CC 1983 §51.010; Ord. No. 306 §51.010(1), 11-19-1987]
Except where otherwise indicated by the context, the following definitions shall apply in the interpretation and enforcement of this Chapter:
BUSINESS PREMISES or PREMISES
The area of a junk yard as described in a junk dealer's license or application for license, as provided for in this Chapter.
ITINERANT JUNK DEALER
An individual (natural person) who buys, sells, collects, or delivers junk within the City as a business or employment within the City, but who is not an operator of a junk yard within the City or an employee of such an operator.
JUNK
Any old iron, steel, brass, copper, tin, lead, or other base metals; old cordage, ropes, rags, fibers, or fabrics; old rubber; old bottles or other glass; bones; wastepaper and other waste or discarded material which might be prepared to be used again in some form; and any or all of the foregoing; and motor vehicles, no longer used as such, to be used for scrap metal or stripping of parts; but "Junk" shall not include materials or objects accumulated by a person as by-products, waste, or scraps from the operation of his/her own business, or materials or objects held and used by a manufacturer as an integral part of his/her own manufacturing processes.
JUNK DEALER
A person who operates a junk yard, as defined below, within the City.
JUNK YARD
A yard, lot, or place, covered or uncovered, outdoors or in an enclosed building, containing junk as defined above, upon which occurs one or more acts of buying, keeping, dismantling, processing, selling or offering for sale any such junk, in whole units or by parts, for a business or commercial purpose, whether or not the proceeds from such act or acts are to be used for charity.
[CC 1983 §51.020; Ord. No. 01-23, 4-19-2001]
It shall be unlawful for any person to act as a junk dealer or itinerant junk dealer in the City, whether personally, by agents or employees, singly, or along with some other business or enterprise, without first having applied and been approved for a special use permit.
[CC 1983 §51.030]
A. 
An applicant for license under this Chapter shall file with the City Clerk a written application upon forms provided by the City Clerk, and pay a fee as hereinafter prescribed.
B. 
Said application shall include the junk dealer or itinerant junk dealer's name, residence address, and telephone number of applicant; the exact address or location of the place where the business is or is proposed to be carried on; and such other information as the City Clerk may reasonably require.
[Ord. No. 223 §51.040, 10-4-1984]
The fee for the license required pursuant to Section 620.020 as established by ordinance of the Board of Aldermen is twenty dollars ($20.00) per annum.
[CC 1983 §51.050]
A. 
Upon receipt of an application for a junk dealer's license as provided for herein, the Chief of Police shall cause an investigation to be made of the applicant's business responsibility and moral character.
B. 
If the findings of said investigation are favorable to the applicant, the City Clerk shall within thirty (30) days after the filing of the application and payment of the fee, issue a junk dealer's license to the applicant.
[CC 1983 §51.070]
All licenses issued under the provisions of this Chapter shall expire on the thirtieth (30th) day of June following the issuance thereof. For a partial year license, the fee shall be pro-rated quarterly. No license fee shall be returned to the holder upon sale, transfer or dissolution of the business for which the license was issued.
[CC 1983 §51.080]
A. 
The following general operating requirements shall apply to all junk dealers licensed in accordance with the provisions of this Chapter:
1. 
The license issued pursuant to this Chapter shall be plainly displayed on the business premises.
2. 
The junk yard, together with things kept therein, shall at all times be maintained in a sanitary condition.
3. 
No space not covered by the license shall be used in the licensed business.
4. 
No water shall be allowed to stand in any place on the premises in such manner as to afford a breeding place for mosquitoes.
5. 
Weeds and vegetation on the premises, other than trees, shall be kept at a height of not more than four (4) inches.
6. 
No garbage or other waste liable to give off a foul odor or attract vermin shall be kept on the premises; nor shall any refuse of any kind be kept on the premises, unless such refuse is junk as described herein and is in use in the licensed business.
7. 
No junk shall be allowed to rest upon or protrude over any public property, street, alley, walkway, or curb or become scattered or blown off the business premises.
8. 
Junk shall be stored in piles not exceeding ten (10) feet in height and shall be arranged so as to permit easy access to all such junk for firefighting purposes.
9. 
No combustible material of any kind not necessary or beneficial to the licensed business shall be kept on the premises; nor shall the premises be allowed to become a fire hazard.
10. 
Gasoline and oil shall be removed from any scrapped engines or vehicles on the premises.
11. 
No junk or other material shall be burned on the premises in any incinerator not meeting the approval of the Chief of the Fire Department, which approval shall not be unreasonably denied.
12. 
No noisy processing of junk or other noisy activity shall be carried on in connection with the licensed business on Sunday, Christmas, Thanksgiving, or at any time between the hours of 6:00 P.M. and 7:00 A.M.
13. 
The area on the premises where junk is kept (other than indoors) shall be enclosed, except for entrances and exits, with a solid vertical wall or fence of a minimum height of eight (8) feet measured from ground level. Entrances and exits shall not be wider or more numerous than reasonably necessary for the conduct of the licensed business.
[CC 1983 §51.100]
All junk yards in violation of this Chapter are hereby declared to be public nuisances. However, to allow flexibility and prevent undue hardship, the Board of Aldermen may consent to a schedule by which non-conforming junk yards existing as of January 1, 1975, are brought in compliance within two (2) years, with one quarter of the work required for compliance done each six (6) months.