[HISTORY: Adopted by the City of Rochester as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Junk and secondhand dealers — See Ch. 110.
[Adopted 6-6-1995 as Ch. 32 of the 1995 Code]
[Amended 6-4-2024]
The provisions of this article are adopted pursuant to the authority granted by RSA 31:102-a.
[Amended 6-4-2024]
It shall be unlawful for any person to engage in the business of hawker, peddler, or itinerant vendor in the City of Rochester without first obtaining a license as provided herein.
[Amended 6-4-2024]
The words "hawker," "peddler," or "itinerant vendor" as used herein shall include any hawker, peddler, itinerant vendor, trader, farmer, merchant, or other person who sells, offers to sell, or takes orders for merchandise from temporary or transient sales locations within the City or who goes from town to town or place to place within the City for such purposes.
[Amended 10-15-2013]
A. 
Applicants for a license under this article must file with the Director of Building, Zoning, and Licensing Services a sworn application in writing (in duplicate) on a form to be furnished by the Director of Building, Zoning, and Licensing Services, which shall be filed with the Building, Zoning, and Licensing Services Department no later than seven days before the requested effective date of the license and shall give the following information:
(1) 
Name and description of the applicant.
(2) 
Address (legal and local).
(3) 
A brief description of the nature of the business and the goods to be sold and, in the case of products of farm or orchard, whether produced or grown by the applicant.
(4) 
If the applicant is employed by another, the name and address of the employer, together with credentials establishing the exact relationship between them.
(5) 
The requested effective date of the license and the length of time for which the right to do business is desired.
(6) 
If a vehicle is to be used, a description of the same, together with license number or other means of identification.
(7) 
(Reserved)[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Former Subsection A(7), regarding a copy of the state license, was repealed 6-4-2024.
(8) 
If a specific stationary location is to be used, the written permission of the property owner.
(9) 
A signed "release of information authorization" form authorizing the Rochester Police Department to conduct a criminal record check of the applicant and authorizing individuals to supply information to the Rochester Police Department in connection with such record.
B. 
At the time of filing the application, a fee of twenty-five dollars ($25.) per week or one hundred dollars ($100.) per year shall be paid to the Director of Building, Zoning, and Licensing Services to cover the cost of processing the license.
[Amended 12-3-1996]
No license shall be granted under this article to any hawker, peddler, itinerant vendor, trader, farmer, merchant or other person who sells, offers to sell, or takes orders for merchandise from any temporary or transient sales locations within the City if such temporary or transient sales location is or is related to a motor vehicle or a motor vehicle trailer weighing in excess of 18,000 pounds when empty or the storage and display area of which is more than 125 square feet. The provisions of this section shall not apply to licenses for activities conducted at Cold Spring Park (Rochester Fairgrounds) within the confines of said park.
The City Licensing Board shall have full power to grant all licenses hereunder and shall consider whether, from the application and any investigation the Board deems it advisable to make, it appears that all provisions of state law and City ordinances have been and will be complied with and whether the safety and convenience of the public will be adversely affected.
No license issued under the provisions of this article shall be used at any time by any person other than the one to whom it was issued.
A. 
Licenses issued under the provisions of this article may be revoked by the Licensing Board, after notice and hearing, for any of the following causes:
(1) 
Fraud, misrepresentation or false statement contained in the application for license.
(2) 
Fraud, misrepresentation or false statement made in the course of carrying on his/her business as peddler, hawker, or itinerant vendor.
(3) 
Any violation of this article.
(4) 
Conviction of any crime or misdemeanor involving moral turpitude.
(5) 
Conducting the business of peddling in an unlawful manner or in such a manner as to constitute a breach of the peace or to constitute a menace to the health, safety, or general welfare of the public.
B. 
Notice of the hearing for revocation of a license shall be given in writing setting forth specifically the grounds of complaint and the time and place of hearing. Such notice shall be mailed, postage prepaid, to the licensee at his/her last known address at least five days prior to the date set for hearing.
Any person aggrieved by the action of the Licensing Board in the denial of any application for a license as provided in § 171-6 of this article, or in the decision with reference to the revocation of a license as provided in § 171-8 of this article, shall have the right of appeal to the City Council. Such appeal shall be taken by filing with the Council, within 14 days after notice of the action complained of has been mailed to such person's last known address, a written statement setting forth fully the grounds for the appeal. The Council shall set a time and place for a hearing on such appeal and notice of such hearing shall be given to the appellant in the same manner as provided in § 171-8 of this article for notice of hearing on revocation. The decision and order of the Council on such appeal shall be final and conclusive.
A. 
No hawker, peddler, or itinerant vendor shall have any exclusive right to any location in the public streets and sidewalks, nor shall any be permitted at a stationary location, unless the license specifically grants a stationary location, nor shall any be permitted to operate in any congested areas where his/her operations might impede or inconvenience the public.
B. 
For the purpose of this article, the judgment of a police officer, exercised in good faith, shall be deemed conclusive as to whether the area is congested or the public impeded or inconvenienced.
Any person violating any of the provisions of this article shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine not to exceed one hundred dollars ($100.). A separate offense shall be deemed committed upon each day during which a violation occurs.
[Adopted 6-6-1995 § 26.9 of the 1995 Code]
The actual issuance of permits in accordance with RSA 31:91 shall be exercised by the Licensing Board. There shall be no fee for such permits.