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City of Royal Oak, MI
Oakland County
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Commission of the City of Royal Oak 11-6-1961 by Ord. No. 61-22. Amendments noted where applicable.]
CHARTER REFERENCES
Special assessments — See Ch. 12.
GENERAL REFERENCES
Animals — See Ch. 195.
Hauling and sale of dirt  — See Ch. 273.
Disorderly conduct — See Ch. 278.
Housing standards — See Ch. 400.
Property maintenance — See Ch. 556.
Abandoned refrigerators and ice boxes — See Ch. 574.
Rodent control — See Ch. 587.
Smoke pollution — See Ch. 619.
Solid waste — See Ch. 633.
Weeds — See Ch. 757.
This chapter shall be known and cited as the "Public Nuisance Ordinance."
No person shall place, deposit, throw, scatter or leave in or upon any street, sidewalk or other public place within the City any litter, rubbish, refuse, or other waste material of any kind whatsoever, except in public receptacles or in authorized private receptacles for collection.
[1]
Editor's Note: See also Ch. 278, Disorderly Conduct.
No person shall throw or deposit any commercial or noncommercial handbill in or upon any sidewalk, street, or other public place within the City, nor shall any person hand out, distribute or sell any commercial handbill in any such public place; provided, however, that it shall not be unlawful on any sidewalk, street or other public place within the City for any person to hand out or distribute without charge to the receiver thereof any noncommercial handbill to any person willing to accept same.
No person shall throw or deposit any commercial or noncommercial handbill in or upon any vehicle; provided, however, that it shall not be unlawful in any public place for a person to hand out or distribute without charge to the receiver thereof a noncommercial handbill to any occupant of a vehicle who is willing to accept same.
No person shall throw or deposit any commercial or noncommercial handbill in or upon any private premises which is temporarily or continuously uninhabited or vacant.
No person shall throw, deposit or distribute any commercial or noncommercial handbill upon any private premises if required by anyone thereon not to do so, or if there is placed on said premises in a conspicuous position near the entrance thereof a sign bearing the words "no trespassing," "no peddlers or agents," "no advertisement" or any similar notice indicating in any manner that the occupant of said premises does not desire to be molested or have his right of privacy disturbed or to have any such handbills left upon such premises.
No person shall throw, deposit or distribute any commercial or noncommercial handbill in or upon private premises which are inhabited, except by handing or transmitting any such handbill directly to the owner, occupant, or other person then present in or upon such private premises; provided, however, that in the case of inhabited private premises which are not posted, as provided in this article, such person, unless requested by anyone upon such premises not to do so, shall have the authority to place or deposit any such handbill in or upon such inhabited private premises if such handbill is so placed or deposited as to secure or prevent such handbill from being blown or drifted about such premises or sidewalks, streets, or other public places, and except that mailboxes may not be used when so prohibited by federal postal law or regulations.
No person shall attach, place, paint, write, stamp or paste any sign, advertisement, or other matter, upon any lamppost, electric light, telephone or telegraph pole, fire hydrant, shade tree, or on any pavement, sidewalk or crosswalk, public building or any property or thing belonging to the City, or any article or thing within any park; provided that this section shall not be construed to prevent any public officer from so doing for any public purpose. No person shall attach, place, paint, write, stamp or paste any sign, advertisement or other matter upon any house, wall, fence, gate, post or tree without first having obtained the permission of the owner, agents or occupants of the premises.
No person shall throw or deposit any litter on any occupied private property within the City whether owned by such person or not, except that the owner or person in control of private property may maintain authorized private receptacles for collection in such a manner that litter will be prevented from being carried or deposited by the elements upon any street, sidewalk or other public place or upon any private property.
The owner or person in control of any private property shall at all times maintain the premises free of litter; provided, however, that this section shall not prohibit the storage of litter in authorized private receptacles for collection.
No person shall throw or deposit litter on any open or vacant private property within the City whether owned by such person or not.
No person shall discharge or pour any foul or nauseous liquids or any refuse, vapor, gasoline, benzine, kerosene, cleaning solvent, or other crude oil products, or any substance that will clog a sewer into any public sewer or private sewer connecting with a public sewer, or into any receiving basin or gutter, or upon any street, alley or public or private place.
No person shall harbor or keep any animal, bird, bee, or pet, which causes annoyance in the neighborhood either by:
A. 
Barking, howling, braying, crowing, or making other sounds common to its species.
B. 
Failure of the owner, caretaker, or custodian to maintain in a clean and sanitary condition devoid of rodents and vermin and free from objectionable odor, all structures, pens, coops, or yards wherein any animal, fowl or bee is kept.
C. 
Failure of the owner, caretaker, or custodian to keep the said animal confined on his own premises.
D. 
In the case of bees, stinging or molesting any person.
A. 
No person shall keep any livestock, or any other animals, in the City in such a manner as to become a public nuisance. No person shall keep any horses, cattle, sheep, goats, hogs or similar animals in the City without first obtaining a permit therefor. Application for such permit shall be made to the City Clerk upon blanks furnished for the purpose. Such application shall state the location where such livestock or other animal is to be kept and describe the conditions under which the same shall be kept. Such permit shall be granted by the City Clerk only after investigation and recommendation by the Chief Inspector. No permit shall be issued for the keeping of any such livestock or animal except where it appears that the keeping of such livestock or animals is not likely to create a public nuisance. If at any time it appears that the keeping of any such livestock or animals creates a public nuisance, the City Manager or Chief Inspector may, whether or not a permit has been issued, order the owner or keeper to abate the nuisance or remove such livestock or animals from the City, and if he fails to do so within seven days after he has been served with said notice, the City Manager or Chief Inspector may summarily remove said animals and abate said nuisance.
[Amended 3-2-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-06]
B. 
The owner or keeper of any stable where horses or any kind of livestock are kept, or of any chicken house, rabbit hutch, or any other building used for the housing of animals shall keep such stable, hutch, or building in a clean and sanitary condition at all times and shall as often as is necessary remove the accumulations of manure or other excreta in order to prevent the same from becoming a public nuisance in the neighborhood. No stable shall be maintained without concrete floor draining to a sump of a style and character approved by the Building Department with a drain connection to the sewer. Said concrete floors shall be completely flushed and washed at least once each day. Every stable shall have a complete set of screens on all openings for ventilation, or ingress or egress, so that insects may be excluded therefrom. Such screens shall be kept closed at all times except when opened for purposes of ingress or egress.
A. 
No person shall deposit, place or throw any dead or fatally sick or injured animal, or part thereof, on any public or private place, or into any reservoir, or into or on the banks of any stream or pond or other body of water.
B. 
No person shall bury any dead or fatally sick or injured animal, or part thereof, in the City except that the owner or occupant of any unplatted property may bury thereon any dead animal owned by him dying on such premises after having obtained written permit to do so from the Health Officer. Such burial shall be made at a distance of not less than 200 yards from any residence or well, and the carcass shall be placed under ground and well covered with at least four feet of earth from the surface of the ground to the upper part of the carcass.
C. 
No person shall carry or convey any dead animal through or upon any street, alley or public place unless the same is covered that no part of it is exposed to view and no odors can emanate therefrom.
No person shall drop, scatter, strew or place, or cause or permit to escape from any receptacle or vehicle, any solid or liquid compound or chemical compound of any description which shall be destructive to the pavements, curbs, sidewalks, vegetation or other improvements, or to any plant or structure within the limits of any public highway, alley or public place within the City, or which shall endanger any person or animal, or cause damage to any vehicle passing over the public highways, alleys or public places of the City.
A. 
No person shall permit any land owned by him to become a menace to the health, morals or safety of the public by reason of the collection of stagnant water in ponds or pools upon such land. The City Commission may, after notice to the owner and after holding a public hearing thereon, declare any such condition to be a public nuisance by giving notice to the owner of the land upon which such condition is located, and requiring the owner to abate the nuisance within such reasonable time as may be necessary to do or have done the work required by said notice. Said notice may also provide a reasonable time within which such work shall be commenced.
B. 
If, at the expiration of any time limit in said notice, the owner has not complied with the requirements thereof, the City Manager shall cause the requirements of said notice to be carried out. The cost of such abatement shall be charged against the premises and the owner thereof in accordance with the provisions of Chapter Twelve of the City Charter.
[Amended 4-9-1962 by Ord. No. 62-6]
No person shall park, store or operate any commercial motor vehicle on private property zoned for residential use in such a manner as to cause material annoyance, inconvenience or discomfort to other persons by reason of noise, fumes, or any other circumstance incidental to the parking, storage or operation of such commercial motor vehicle; provided that no commercial vehicle shall be parked or stored in the required front yard of any lot; provided, further, that where a corner lot adjoins the side boundary of a lot in a residential zone, no commercial vehicle parked within 25 feet of the common lot line shall be nearer the street bounding the side lot line than the least depth of any front yard required along such side street.
[Added 8-7-1972 by Ord. No. 72-15]
The ground surface of every privately owned and operated off-street parking lot maintained for the parking of vehicles, if made of dirt, sand, cinders, or other loose mixture, shall be treated with liquid calcium chloride with sufficient frequency to effectively prevent dust from being raised, carried, or blown by wind, movement of vehicles or other causes, into or upon public property or the adjacent private property of others.
[Added 1-23-2017 by Ord. No. 2017-04[1]]
A. 
No person shall engage in, assist another in engaging in, or allow property that he or she owns or occupies to be used by another to engage in, any activity that requires a response from the Police Department, Code Enforcement Department, or other City department.
B. 
A violation of this section shall not be a lesser included offense of a criminal offense or of any ordinance violation which is not a civil infraction.
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also provided for the renumbering of former § 484-20 as § 484-21.
[Amended 12-5-1994 by Ord. No. 94-7; 1-23-2017 by Ord. No. 2017-04]
A. 
A violation of this chapter is a municipal civil infraction, punishable by a fine of up to $500, plus the costs of enforcement and court costs. In addition, the Court shall be authorized to issue any judgment, writ or order necessary to enforce or enjoin further violation of this chapter.
B. 
Each act of violation, and each day upon which any violation shall occur, shall constitute a separate offense.
C. 
In addition to any remedies provided for herein, any equitable or other remedies may be sought.