[Adopted 12-17-2001 by Ord. No. 103; amended in its entirety 3-19-2018 (Ch. 7, § 7-1400, of the Codified
Ordinances)]
When used in this article, unless the context otherwise requires,
the following terms shall have the following meanings:
The Director of the Public Works Department of the Town of
West Springfield or such person as said Director may from time to
time designate.
The Building Commissioner and any local inspector.
The certificate of compliance issued by the Director to the
certificate holder in accordance with the provisions of this article.
The holder of a Certificate of Compliance issued by the Director
in accordance with the provisions of this Ordinance. A Certificate
Holder is responsible for the installation and maintenance of street
furniture encompassed by any Certificate of Compliance issued pursuant
to the provisions of this Ordinance and for compliance with all provisions
contained herein.
Governmental and municipal signs, traffic control devices
and signs, cable, electric and telephone utility poles, including
conduits, transformers, wires, cables and supporting structures, mailboxes,
structures belonging to a regional transit authority created under
MGL c. 161B, municipal trash receptacles, fire hydrants, call boxes
and public safety and all municipal structures.
The clerk of the License Commission.
Any natural person or other legal entity, including, but
not limited to, corporations, partnerships, joint ventures and the
like, who either own, operate or are otherwise in control of street
furniture.
Any public highway, private way laid out under authority
of statute, way dedicated to public use, or a way under the control
of the Town or any department thereof.
Any structure erected or placed in or on a public way on
a temporary or permanent basis.
That portion of a street right-of-way located between the
paved portion of the street and the outside edge of the right-of-way
containing a sidewalk, if any, and commonly planted with trees, shrubs,
grass, or other vegetation. However, where the area between the paved
portion of the street and the outside edge of street layout is paved
or the like, the first four feet from the outside edge toward the
paved street shall be considered the sidewalk for the purpose of this
article.
A.
Requirement.
No person shall place, affix, erect, constitute or maintain street
furniture in or on any part of a public way without first obtaining
a certificate of compliance from the Licensing Clerk in accordance
with the provisions of this article.
B.
The certificate
of compliance must be renewed annually by application to the Director.
C.
Issuing
authority. The Licensing Clerk shall be the issuing authority and
coordinator of the application process and administration of this
article.
E.
Application
process. Applicants must complete a written application on a form
provided by the Licensing Clerk.
F.
Application
contents. The application shall describe in sufficient detail the
number, location and type of street furniture for which the certificate
of compliance is sought and shall contain the following information:
(1)
The
name, address and telephone number of the applicant who is the owner/operator
or other person who is the principal responsible person in charge
of the street furniture; and
(2)
The
name, address and telephone number of a natural person (if different
from the applicant) who the Town may notify and/or contact at any
time concerning the applicant’s street furniture. This person
would be responsible for receiving complaints and notices of violations
when a certificate of compliance is issued and for providing information
relating to the application during the application process; and
(3)
The
number of pieces of furniture, with a plan and written description
specifying the proposed location of each; and
(4)
A certificate of liability insurance in an amount not less than $100,000 to cover claims by a person(s) for damages of personal and bodily injury, including death, or property damage and costs and expenses suffered or incurred by reason of the design, placement, installation, operation or maintenance of any of the applicant’s street furniture. Insurance under this subsection shall run continuously with the presence of the applicant’s street furniture in Town of West Springfield public ways and any termination or lapse of such insurance shall be a violation of this article, subject to appropriate remedy under § 218-19 of this article.
G.
Issuance
of certificate. Upon a finding by the Director that the application
is in compliance with the provisions of this article, the Licensing
Clerk shall issue a certificate of compliance for installation by
the applicant.
H.
Denial
of certificate. If an application for a street furniture location
is denied by the Director, the Licensing Clerk shall notify the applicant
within 15 business days of the Licensing Clerk’s receipt of
the denial. The Director shall state the specific reasons for denial.
The applicant may reapply for a substitute alternative location without
having to pay an additional application fee. An applicant who has
been denied a certificate of compliance pursuant to this article may
appeal within 30 days of such denial by filing a request in writing
with the Licensing Clerk to appear before the License Commission to
review said denial. The appeal shall be heard within 30 days of receipt
of the appeal. The decision on the appeal shall be sent to the applicant
within 72 hours (excluding weekends and holidays) after the meeting.
I.
The Director
reserves the right to order, by written notice to the certificate
holder, that street furniture be removed from an approved location,
either temporarily or permanently, if he/she determines said removal
is in the interests of public safety.
A.
There
shall be a certificate of compliance fee in the amount of $100 paid
to the Town. This fee shall be due upon the initial application.
B.
Additional certificate of compliance. If at any time after the Director has issued a certificate of compliance a certificate holder proposes to install additional street furniture on a separate parcel, the provisions of § 218-13 are to be repeated. Additional certificate of compliance fees shall be in accordance with Subsection A, except that an additional certificate of compliance fee is $50.
C.
The Director
shall waive any fee established in this section due as a result of
an application by a nonprofit religious, educational, or charitable
entity for directional or informational signs upon the receipt of
documentation showing it is qualified under the provisions of Internal
Revenue Code § 501(c)(3). No fee waiver shall be considered
for any street furniture used as a source of revenue for said organization.
Placement of street furniture shall be described in detail as
part of the application and shall be approved by the Director. The
Director may require a drawn plan of placement or a written description.
No street furniture shall be placed in any manner that may impede
the use of the public way; or block any sight line of traffic or pedestrian
crossing; or in any way interfere with public safety.
A.
Attachment
to trees and other objects is prohibited. No operator shall place
or cause to be placed and no operator shall suffer to remain any street
furniture chained or otherwise attached to any tree, street light
post, traffic signal, sign, or structure in or upon a public way.
B.
Attachment
to other street furniture. When placed side by side, street furniture
may be chained or otherwise attached to one another, provided that
no group of street furniture shall extend for a distance of more than
five feet along a sidewalk, and a space of not less than 75 feet shall
separate each group of street furniture.
It shall be unlawful for any operator to use street furniture
for advertising or publicity purposes other than that pertaining to
the items being dispensed therein. Advertising associated with the
dispensing of material shall be nonilluminated, located on the front
face of the street furniture and shall be no greater than two square
feet in area.
Street furniture shall be of a sturdy material and installed
or otherwise placed and maintained by the certificate holder in accordance
with the following provisions:
A.
Installed
or placed in accordance with this article, in an upright, sufficiently
weighted and secure position;
B.
Constructed
so as not to have sharp edges or corners; and
C.
Handicap-accessible,
as defined by the State Architectural Access Board at 521 CMR 5.1.
Each piece of street furniture shall be regularly maintained and serviced
so that:
(1)
It
is kept free of graffiti;
(2)
It
is maintained in a state of good repair and in a neat and clean condition;
(3)
It
is maintained in a condition that is free of trash, rubbish, or debris;
(4)
It
is kept reasonably free of chipped, faded, peeling and cracked paint
in the visible painted areas thereof;
(5)
It
is kept reasonably free of rust and corrosion in the visible unpainted
metal areas thereof;
(6)
The
clear glass or plastic parts thereof, if any, through which the material
is being dispensed are not broken and are kept reasonably free of
tears, peeling or fading; and
(7)
The
structural parts of the street furniture are not broken or unduly
misshapen.
A.
Nonconforming
street furniture. Any street furniture found not to be in compliance
with this article shall be subject to the enforcement provisions contained
herein.
B.
Abandonment.
In the event that any street furniture installed pursuant to the provisions
of this article used to hold printed materials (newsrack) does not
contain the printed materials being dispensed therein for a period
of 35 days after the release of the current issue, the Director may
deem the newsrack abandoned and take appropriate action under this
article. In the event that a certificate holder voluntarily abandons
a street furniture location, the certificate holder shall notify the
Licensing Clerk in writing and shall also completely remove the street
furniture and restore the public way to a safe condition. The failure
to pay any fee or fine or to properly maintain a piece of street furniture
shall be deemed an abandonment, if the fee or fine is not paid when
due, and if the required maintenance is not completed in a good workmanlike
manner within 10 days of written notice by first class mail, mailed
to the certificate holder by the Director.
C.
Enforcement.
(1)
Enforcement
of the provisions of this article shall be carried out by the Director.
Upon a determination that a violation of any provision of this article
exists, the Building Inspector shall notify the certificate holder
of the violation in writing by first class mail. The notice shall
include:
(2)
The
notice shall inform the certificate holder that at the expiration
of 10 days from the mailing of the violation notice, the street furniture
will be removed by the Director unless the violation is corrected.
(3)
Upon
removal of street furniture, the Building Inspector shall send, by
first class mail, written notice of such removal to the certificate
holder.
(4)
Notwithstanding the provisions of the foregoing Subsection C(1), (2) and (3) of this subsection, the Building Inspector may order the immediate removal of any street furniture that presents an imminent threat or peril to public health or safety, provided that the certificate holder shall be notified by first class mail of such removal within 72 hours (excluding weekends and holidays), and further provided that any street furniture so removed shall be stored for a period of 30 days in order to allow the certificate holder to retrieve the street furniture.
(5)
Street
furniture removed under the provisions of this section shall be disposed
of after 30 days.
(6)
A
certificate holder who has been ordered under this section to remove
street furniture may appeal within 30 days by filing a request in
writing to the Licensing Clerk to appear before the License Commission.
The appeal shall be heard within 30 days of receipt of the appeal.
(7)
Street
furniture removed by the Town will not be disposed of after 30 days
if an appeal is pending; and in the event the appeal is made and the
appellant prevails, there will be no storage fee.
A.
Street
furniture removed pursuant to this article may be retrieved by the
certificate holder at any time within 30 days of its removal upon
payment of a removal fee of $25 plus a storage fee of $5 per day,
to a maximum combined removal and storage fee of $180.
B.
After 30 days, any street furniture removed by the Building Inspector pursuant to this § 218-20 shall be deemed "abandoned property" and become the property of the Town of West Springfield.
C.
Failure of a certificate holder to retrieve street furniture within the specified thirty-day period shall not operate to dismiss any fees owed to the Town for removal and storage of such street furniture. Unpaid fees accrued pursuant to this § 218-20 shall be considered a municipal lien payable to the Town.
The Director may, with the approval of the Town Council, promulgate
such rules and regulations consistent with the provisions of this
article and the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as shall
carry out the purposes of this article.
Nothing in this article shall affect the adoption of regulations
affecting street furniture by other government bodies, such as historic
district commissions, to the extent such bodies are authorized to
adopt such regulations.
The provisions of this article shall be severable, and if any
section, part, or portion hereof shall be held invalid for any reason
by a court, the decision of such court shall not affect or impair
any remaining section, part or portion thereof.
