This chapter is adopted pursuant to the authority granted the Village of Valatie in § 10 of the Municipal Home Rule Law and in § 4-412, Subdivision 1, the Village Law.
[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Valatie 8-11-1998 by L.L. No. 1-1998 (Ch. 79 of the 1980 Code); amended in its entirety 6-22-2000 by L.L. No. 3-2000. Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]
This chapter shall be known as the "Village of Valatie Junk Storage Law."
By adoption of this chapter, the Village of Valatie declares its intent to regulate and control the storage or keeping of junk and to regulate junkyards whether operated for commercial profit or otherwise. The Village Board hereby declares that a clean, wholesome and attractive environment is of vital importance to the continued general welfare of its citizens, and that junk and junkyards can constitute a hazard to property and persons and can be a public nuisance. Such materials may be highly flammable and sometimes explosive. Junk and particularly junked vehicles can constitute attractive nuisances to children and certain adults. The presence of junk and junkyards is unsightly and tends to detract from the value of surrounding properties unless the property is screened from view.
This chapter shall replace and supersede any prior existing Junkyard Law of the Village of Valatie.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
The Code Enforcement Official of the Village of Valatie.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
The outdoor storage or deposit of any of the following shall constitute junk:
One or more junk motor vehicles.
One or more junk mobile homes.
One or more abandoned or inoperable appliances, including, but not limited to, washers, dryers, dishwashers, stoves, refrigerators, freezers and televisions.
One or more abandoned or irreparably damaged pieces of indoor furniture, including, but not limited to, sofas, lounge chairs, mattresses, bed frames, desks, tables, chairs and chests of drawers.
One or more junk travel trailers.
Any combination of the above that totals two items or parts of the above that total two or more items.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
A structure, transportable in one or more sections, built on a permanent chassis and designed to be used as a dwelling unit, which is currently not inhabited and is no longer habitable under the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code.[1] This includes but is not limited to mobile homes, travel trailers and campers.
The areas of any parcel of land or water used or intended to be used for the placement, storage or deposit of junk.
One or more unregistered, old, secondhand motor vehicles, no longer in a condition for legal use on the public highways, or used parts or waste materials from motor vehicles which taken together equal in bulk two or more such vehicles. A vehicle is considered junked when it meets one of the following conditions.
The outdoor storage or deposit of any of the following:
All vehicles propelled or drawn by power other than muscular power originally intended for use on public highways or for recreational use.
Any individual, firm, partnership, association, corporation, company or organization of any kind.
No junk shall be located so as to be visible from public roads.
A.
Location. No junk storage area shall be located within:
(1)
Seventy-five feet of any adjoining property line;
(2)
One hundred feet of any public park, church, educational facility, nursing home, public building or other place of public gathering;
(3)
One hundred feet of any stream, lake, pond, wetland or other body of water;
(4)
Fifty feet from the right-of-way of any public highway; or
(5)
The front or side yard of any building. Storage of junk is limited to rear yard only within the setback requirements of the Village Code.
B.
Fencing. There must be erected and maintained a six-foot-high fence enclosing the entire junkyard and a locking gate, adequate to prohibit the entrance of children and others into the area of the activity or business and to contain within such fence the materials dealt with by the operator of the junkyard. Fencing requirements may be waived where topography or other natural conditions effectively prohibit the entrance of children and others.
C.
Screening. Where a junkyard is or would be visible from a public highway or from neighboring properties, the fence provided in § 205-7B shall be of wood or other materials sufficient to totally screen the junkyard from view. Such screening may be permitted by adequate planting of evergreen trees or shrubbery.
D.
Burning. No materials shall be burned in a junkyard except in compliance with the New York State Solid Waste Disposal Law (see 6 NYCRR Part 215).
E.
Burying. No junkyard items shall be buried in a junkyard except in compliance with the New York State Solid Waste Disposal Law (see 6 NYCRR Part 360).
F.
Approved junkyard items. No junkyard items shall be stored in any junk storage area other than those items specified on a junkyard permit approved by the Code Enforcement Official pursuant to this chapter.
G.
No junk items shall be stored under opaque colored or clear tarpaulins.
A.
Permit required.
(1)
No person shall establish or maintain a junkyard within the Village of Valatie unless a permit has first been issued for such junkyard pursuant to this chapter.
(2)
No person owning or having any right to or any interest in any real property within the Village of Valatie shall license, rent, lease or otherwise permit the use of such real property or any part thereof for a junkyard unless a permit has first been issued for such junkyard pursuant to this chapter.
(3)
All permits shall be issued for a period of one year, after which time a renewal shall be required.
B.
Temporary permit for prior existing junkyard. Any person maintaining a junkyard prior to the effective date of this chapter within the Village of Valatie shall apply for a permit within 60 days of the adoption of this chapter. If the junk storage area does not meet the requirements of § 205-7 herein, a temporary permit shall be granted for a period not to exceed six months, during which time the junk storage area shall be arranged to comply with said requirements. If at the end of such period the junk storage area has not been arranged to comply with said requirements, such person shall cease and desist from maintaining a junkyard and all junk shall be removed from the premises.
A.
Application. The applicant for a junkyard permit shall obtain application forms from the Code Enforcement Official. The completed forms, along with one copy of the proposed site plan and the appropriate fees, shall be returned to the Village Code Enforcement Official. The Clerk shall submit the application materials to the Village Board.
B.
Site plan contents. The site plan shall be drawn to scale or indicate all dimensions and show:
(1)
All existing and proposed structures, including fences.
(2)
All property lines, including the names of owners of adjacent property.
(3)
All streams, lakes, wetlands, floodplains and other water bodies.
(4)
All water lines and sewer lines.
(5)
All roads and easements.
(6)
All existing and proposed junk storage areas.
(7)
All existing and proposed accessways and parking and loading areas.
C.
Environmental impact statement. An environmental assessment form (EAF) shall be completed and submitted with all applications pursuant to the provisions of the State Environmental Quality Review Act, 6 NYCRR Part 617. If the EAF indicates that the proposed activity may have significant environmental consequences, the Village Board shall require that a draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) be submitted with the application. The application shall not be considered until the DEIS has been accepted by the Planning Board.
D.
Application fee. An application fee in an amount established by resolution of the Board of Trustees shall accompany all applications.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
E.
Public hearing. The Planning Board shall fix a time, within 45 days of the date a complete application is received, for a public hearing. Notice of the hearing shall be made in the official newspaper at least 10 days prior to the date thereof. At the hearing, the Village Board shall hear the applicant and all other persons wishing to be heard on the application for a junkyard permit.
F.
Planning Board action. Within 45 days of said hearing, the Planning Board shall render a decision to approve, approve subject to conditions or disapprove the application for a junkyard permit. The forty-five-day period may be extended by mutual consent of the applicant and the Board. All findings of the Board shall be entered into the official minutes of the Village. The decision of the Board shall immediately be filed in the office of the Village Clerk, and the applicant shall be notified of the decision and the reasons for such decision by certified mail with five days of the decision of the Board. Upon approval of the site plan and application, and payment of the fees and reimbursable costs due the Village, the Board shall endorse its approval upon a copy of the final site plan and application.
G.
Issuance of permit.
(1)
If the application is approved by the Planning Board, a junkyard permit shall be issued by the Code Enforcement Official.
(2)
If the application is approved with conditions by the Board, the Code Enforcement Official shall issue a junkyard permit upon notification by the enforcement officer that said conditions have been complied with.
A.
Aesthetic conditions. In granting or denying a permit, the Planning Board shall take the following aesthetic factors into consideration:
B.
Locational consideration. In granting or denying a permit, the Planning Board shall take the following locational factors into consideration:
(1)
The nature and development of surrounding property, such as the proximity of public parks, churches, educational facilities, nursing homes, public buildings or places of public gathering.
(2)
Whether or not the proposed location can be reasonably protected from affecting the public health and safety by reason of offensive or unhealthy noise, odors or smoke, or of other causes.
(3)
The proximity of streams, lakes, wetlands, floodplains, groundwater supplies and public water supplies.
(4)
Local drainage patterns.
(5)
Long-range comprehensive plans for the Village.
(6)
Proximity of the site to established residential or recreational areas.
(7)
Availability of other suitable sites for the junkyard.
A.
Waivers. Where the Planning Board finds that due to special circumstances of the particular case a waiver of certain requirements as stated in § 205-7 herein is justified, then a waiver may be granted. No waiver shall be granted, however, unless the Board finds and records in the minutes that:
(1)
Granting the waiver would be in keeping with the intent and spirit of this chapter and is in the best interest community.
(2)
There are special circumstances involved in the particular case.
(3)
Denying the waiver would result in undue hardship to the applicant, provided that such hardship has not been self imposed.
(4)
The waiver is the minimum necessary to accomplish the purpose.
B.
Enforcement officer.
(1)
The enforcement officer shall, upon request of the Village Board, make inspections of the premises of any junkyard for which application for a permit has been made, or any other existing within the Village, and shall report to the Board on the conditions of such junkyard.
(2)
The enforcement officer shall make periodic inspections of the properties within the Village to ensure that all existing junkyards have permits and that the requirements of this chapter are met. Any observed violations shall be reported to the Board.
(3)
The enforcement officer shall not enter the premises of any private property without the consent of the owner. It shall be the responsibility of the applicant to arrange for all required inspections of the premises prior to permit issuance or renewal.
C.
Revocation of permit. The Village Board may revoke a junkyard permit upon reasonable cause should the applicant fail to comply with any provisions of the chapter. Before a permit may be revoked, a public hearing shall be held by the Board. Notice of the hearing shall be made in the official newspaper at least five days prior to the date thereof. The permit holder shall be notified of the hearing by certified mail at least five days prior to the hearing. At the hearing, the Board shall hear the permit holder and all other persons wishing to be heard on the revocation of the junkyard permit. Should the Board decide to revoke a permit, the reasons for such revocation shall be stated in the Board minutes. The permit holder shall be immediately notified of the revocation by certified mail.
D.
Penalties for offenses.
(1)
Any person who shall violate any of the provisions of this chapter shall be guilty of an offense and subject to a fine not more than $250 or by a penalty of $250 to be recovered by the Village in a civil action. Every such person shall be deemed guilty of a separate offense for each week that such violation, disobedience, omission, neglect or refusal shall continue.
(2)
In addition to the above-provided penalties, the Board may also maintain an action or proceeding in the name of the Village in a court of competent jurisdiction to compel compliance with or restrain by injunction the violation of any section of this chapter.