[Ord. 2002-54, 7/11/2002]
This Part shall be known and may be cited as the "Swatara Township Junkyard Ordinance."
[Ord. 2002-54, 7/11/2002]
1. 
Unless otherwise expressly stated, the following words and phrases shall be construed throughout this Part to have the following meanings herein indicated:
BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
Supervisors of Swatara Township, Lebanon County, Pennsylvania.
FARM MACHINERY
All types of machinery and equipment which were originally manufactured for farm use, which are retained on farm properties, either as operable equipment or for the purpose of salvaging repair parts.
JUNK
Any discarded material or articles, including but not limited to scrap metal, scrapped, abandoned or junked motor vehicles, machinery, equipment, containers, scrap wood and all other salvageable material collected as salvage.
JUNK DEALER
Any person, as herein defined, who shall engage in the business of selling, buying, salvaging, storing and dealing in junk and who maintains and operates a junkyard within Swatara Township.
JUNKYARD
Any yard, lot, or place, covered or uncovered, outdoors or in an enclosed building, containing junk, as defined herein, for the purposes of buying, 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. It also includes any premises, as herein defined, having two or more unlicensed and discarded motor vehicles and/or unlicensed trailers stored thereon, which shall, in any event, be deemed a junkyard, except that the foregoing shall not apply to duly licensed automobile dealers having operable vehicles on their premises for resale.
LICENSE
The Township permit granted to a junk dealer who accumulates, stores or disposes of junk as heretofore defined.
MOTOR VEHICLE
All types of automobiles, trucks, and tractors, including self-propelled machinery of all kinds, with the exception of farm machinery.
PERSON
Any natural person, partnership, association, firm, corporation or other legal entity.
PREMISES
Any parcel of land situated in Swatara Township, Lebanon County, Pennsylvania, having a separate Tax Map parcel number for County assessment purposes.
SOLID WASTE
Any waste, including but not limited to municipal, residual or hazardous wastes, including solid, liquid, semisolid, or contained gaseous material.
TOWNSHIP
Swatara Township, Lebanon County, Pennsylvania.
TRAILER
Any wheeled vehicles not self-propelled, drawn by a motor vehicle.
2. 
In this Part, the singular shall include the plural; the plural shall include the singular; and the masculine shall include the feminine and the neuter.
1. 
No person may operate a junkyard, as herein defined, within the Township without first obtaining a license as herein described.
A. 
Any person desiring to operate a junkyard in the Township shall make a written application to the Board of Supervisors. Such application shall be in the form established by the Board of Supervisors and shall set forth the following information:
(1) 
The applicant's name, address and telephone number.
(2) 
An accurate description of the premises on which the junkyard is to be located, with the County Tax Map parcel number(s).
(3) 
A metes-and-bounds survey, plot plan or sketch of the premises to be licensed, together with deed references, showing the location, size, distances from residences and public streets adjacent to the premises.
(4) 
Plans and specifications for all fencing, water facilities, screening, access driveways, sewage disposal systems and stormwater management.
(5) 
A statement from the applicant that he will comply with this Part, any regulations adopted pursuant to this Part and such other information as the Board of Supervisors may require.
B. 
An application for a license under this Part shall be examined by the Board of Supervisors, or its duly authorized designee or agent, and a license shall be issued or denied within 60 days of the submission of the application to the Board of Supervisors. Examination of the application shall include consideration of the suitability of the property proposed to be used for the purpose of the license, the character of the adjacent and nearby properties, and the effect of the proposed use upon the zoning regulations of the Township. When the application is found in compliance with the provisions of this Part, the Board of Supervisors, or its duly authorized designee or agent, shall issue a license to the applicant for operation of the junkyard as described in the application.
C. 
The license fee shall consist of two parts: the application fee, which is nonrefundable in the case of the denial of a license, and the annual license fee. All fees are due and payable to and for the use of the Township at the time of the application and shall be in such amounts as established, by resolution, from time to time, by the Board of Supervisors.
D. 
Licenses issued under this Part are required to be renewed on or before January 1 of each year in which it is desired to continue operations under this Part. Applications for licenses shall be filed with the Township on or before November 1 of the year prior to which it is desired to continue operations under this Part. The Township shall issue licenses to those applicants that meet the requirements within 60 days of the submission of the application renewal. Such application for renewal must be in writing, in such form as may be required by the Board of Supervisors and accompanied by the license fee. Applications for renewal are subject to a complete re-examination and consideration by the Board of Supervisors, or its duly authorized designee or agent, for continued compliance with the terms and conditions of this Part. The Board of Supervisors, or its duly authorized designee or agent, may waive the application fee when issuing renewed licenses.
E. 
No person licensed under this Part shall, by virtue of one license, keep more than one place of business or maintain or operate more than one junkyard within the Township, nor shall any person engage in business as a junk dealer or operate or maintain a junkyard in any place other than the place designated in his license.
F. 
Nothing in this Part shall be construed to abrogate the Zoning and/or Subdivision and Land Development Ordinances.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See Ch. 27, Zoning, and Ch. 22, Subdivision and Land Development.
[Ord. 2002-54, 7/11/2002]
1. 
No license issued by the Board of Supervisors shall be transferable by the holder of such license to any other person unless the Board of Supervisors, as herein described, authorizes such transfer.
A. 
Any person desiring to transfer his license shall make a written application to the Board of Supervisors. Such application for the transfer of a license under this Part shall comply with the provisions set forth in § 10-103 of this Part.
B. 
An application for the transfer of a license under this Part shall be examined by the Board of Supervisors, or its duly authorized designee or agent, and a license shall be issued or denied within 60 days of the submission of the application to the Board of Supervisors. Examination of the application for transfer of a license shall include consideration of the suitability of the property proposed to be used for the purpose of the license, the character of the adjacent and nearby properties, and the effect of the proposed use upon the zoning regulations of the Township. When the application is found in compliance with the provisions of this Part, the Board of Supervisors, or its duly authorized designee or agent, shall issue a license to the applicant for operation of the junkyard as described in the application.
C. 
In the event the Board of Supervisors shall approve the transfer of a license, the transferee shall immediately pay to the Township a transfer fee, to be established, by resolution, from time to time, by the Board of Supervisors.
[Ord. 2002-54, 7/11/2002]
Any person wishing to extend or enlarge the area of an existing junkyard shall make an application for a new license in accordance with the provisions set forth in § 10-103 of this Part.
[Ord. 2002-54, 7/11/2002]
Such license, if issued, shall be posted conspicuously upon the licensed premises at all times. Permanent records of all junk received in or removed from any junkyard shall be kept by the junk dealer on the licensed premises, containing the name and address from whom received or to whom delivered, the date thereof, and a description of the junk. Such records shall be open to inspection at all reasonable times by the Board of Supervisors, or its duly authorized designee or agent, and by any law enforcement officer.
[Ord. 2002-54, 7/11/2002]
1. 
All junk in junkyards licensed under this Part shall be stored in accordance with the provisions of this section and any subsequent regulations adopted or imposed by the Board of Supervisors.
A. 
All junk shall be set back at least 40 feet from any adjoining premises and at least 60 feet from the nearest right-of-way of any public street, road or highway.
B. 
All junk shall be stored and arranged so as to permit access by fire-fighting equipment. Junked motor vehicles shall be spaced in rows with at least 35 feet between double rows; other junk shall be stored in piles or tiers which shall be separated by aisles or cleared areas of no less than 35 feet. All junk piles or tiers must be less than six feet in height from the ground. All aisles or cleared areas between junk piles, tiers, or junked motor vehicles shall be kept free from obstructions that could limit access to persons or emergency vehicles in the event of an emergency.
C. 
All material received on the premises shall be stored in a manner and such premises shall at all times be maintained so as not to constitute a nuisance or menace to the public health, public safety, public welfare or the environment, including but not limited to the health of the community or residents nearby, or a place for the breeding, harboring or infesting of rodents, vermin, rats or other vectors. Such premises shall not cause any excessive, offensive or noxious sounds, noises or odors or be in violation of any environmental, health or sanitation law, ordinance or regulation of any governmental body.
D. 
The manner of storage and arrangement of junk, and the drainage facilities of the premises, shall be such as to prevent the accumulation of stagnant water upon the premises.
E. 
Whenever any motor vehicle shall be received in such premises as junk, all liquids, including but not limited to gasoline and oil, shall be drained and removed from the junked motor vehicle within 12 hours of arrival on the premises, except for those motor vehicles with operable engines at the time of receipt and which are being offered for sale. If the engine is not sold within six months of the date of arrival on the premises, all liquids shall be drained and removed from the engine. Such flammable liquids, including but not limited to gasoline and oil, shall be stored at only one location on the premises, and not more than 100 gallons in aggregate may be stored in properly and clearly marked containers.
F. 
Junk, as defined herein, susceptible to blowing from its place of storage shall be stored indoors within an enclosed building or structure.
[Ord. 2002-54, 7/11/2002]
No material received on the premises, including material meeting the definition of "junk" provided in § 10-102, shall be accumulated or remain on the junkyard premises for more than one year, and it shall thereafter be properly disposed of at a permitted facility. Paper, plastic and similar materials for salvage shall not be accumulated or remain on the junkyard premises for more than 60 days. Materials separated as solid waste shall not be accumulated for more than 30 days.
[Ord. 2002-54, 7/11/2002]
Garbage, organic waste, or solid waste that cannot be salvaged for reuse shall not be received or stored in any junkyard. Solid waste that cannot be salvaged for reuse may be received only as mixed with salvageable materials and shall be promptly disposed of at a permitted facility, as herein provided.
[Ord. 2002-54, 7/11/2002]
1. 
Every junk dealer licensed under this Part shall enclose and maintain his junkyard as herein provided:
A. 
Every junkyard premises shall be completely enclosed by a fence. Such fences shall be set back in accordance with the provisions of § 10-107 of this Part, shall be six feet in height, and shall be of wood or wire with maximum lineal openings of three inches. Entrance gates shall be of similar material, well constructed, and kept securely locked except during business hours. Fencing shall be maintained in good condition throughout its length at all times.
B. 
Junkyard premises which have open-wire fence enclosures visible from an abutting public thoroughfare or from an abutting residential property within 500 feet of the fence shall have a landscaped screen of trees and/or shrubs, of varieties capable of attaining a continuous height of six feet within two years, planted along such fence or section of fence. All required open areas between fence and lot lines of the premises shall be maintained continuously in good order, free of weeds and shrub growth.
C. 
The area inside the fence and lot lines of any junkyard premises shall have weeds mowed regularly and not permitted to go to seed.
[Ord. 2002-54, 7/11/2002]
1. 
Every junk dealer and junkyard licensed under this Part is subject to inspection and regulation as herein provided:
A. 
Any member of the Board of Supervisors, or its duly authorized designee or agent, may at any reasonable time enter upon the premises currently licensed or for which a license application is pending.
B. 
The Board of Supervisors may, from time to time, pursuant to resolution, adopt regulations to carry out the provisions of this Part, upon giving notice to licensees affected by such regulation.
[Ord. 2002-54, 7/11/2002]
The Board of Supervisors may waive the setback requirements as established by § 10-107 and the planting requirements established by § 10-110 of this Part for those licensed junkyards in existence at the time of the enactment of this Part, if such junkyard is in compliance with other requirements as provided by this Part and if, in the Board of Supervisors' discretion, compliance with said setback and planting requirements would cause undue hardship to such existing junkyard.
[Ord. 2002-54, 7/11/2002]
Every junk dealer and junkyard licensed under this Part shall comply with all applicable health and environmental statutes, laws, rules and regulations of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
[Ord. 2002-54, 7/11/2002]
Junk dealers and junkyards operating and existing in the Township on the effective date of this Part shall be required to comply with the provisions of and obtain a license under this Part within six months from the effective date.
[Ord. 2002-54, 7/11/2002]
Any person, firm or corporation who violates or permits the violation of any provision of this Part, including any amendments to this Part, unless the section of the Code of Ordinances specifically provides for a penalty, fine or enforcement, shall, upon being found liable therefore in a civil enforcement proceeding commenced by the Township in a determination made by the applicable Magisterial District Judge in the manner provided for the enforcement of summary offenses under the Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure, pay a fine of not less than $100 and not more than $1,000, plus costs, including reasonable attorney's fees, incurred by the Township. Each day that a violation of this Part continues or each section of this Part which shall be found to have been violated shall constitute a separate offense. If the violator fails to pay the amount of the judgment after the time for appealing the final judgment has expired, the Township may enforce the judgment pursuant to the applicable Rules of Civil Procedure.
[Ord. 2002-54, 7/11/2002]
The Board of Supervisors may take any appropriate action at law or equity, civil or criminal, to enforce the provisions of this Part, and the Part shall in no way restrict any remedies otherwise provided by law.