This chapter shall be known and cited as the "Nuisance Ordinance."
[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors of the Township of North Whitehall 3-4-2024 by Ord. No. 2024-1.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also repealed former Ch. 290, Art. I, Bamboo, adopted 12-4-2017 by Ord. No. 2017-1.
As used in this chapter, the following words and phrases shall have the following meanings:
Any building intended to be utilized for residential purposes, whether occupied or unoccupied. The term "dwelling" does not include accessory residential structures such as sheds or outbuildings.
A roofed and walled structure built for permanent use.
Wastes resulting from the handling, preparation, cooking, and consumption of food and wastes from the handling, storage, and sale of produce.
Includes, but is not limited to, unused or abandoned machinery, equipment, or appliances and all forms of waste or other salvageable materials.
Any vehicle or trailer that meets any of the following conditions:
Cannot be moved under its own power, in regards to a vehicle designed to move under its own power, other than a vehicle clearly needing only minor repairs;
Cannot be towed, in regard to a trailer designed to be towed;
Has been demolished or otherwise disassembled beyond repair;
Lacks a valid state vehicle inspection sticker or cannot pass a state vehicle inspection;
Contains one or more broken component such as windows or lacks one or more component such as mirrors;
Is not fit for travel on roadways or would otherwise be illegal to use for travel on roadways because of its condition;
Has been separated from its axles, engine, body, or chassis; and/or
Includes only the axle, engine, body parts, and/or chassis, separated from the remainder of the vehicle.
The term "junked vehicle" includes vehicles such as boats, all-terrain vehicles, and other similar vehicles capable of being towed or stored on a trailer where such vehicle is demolished, disassembled, or otherwise in a state of disrepair.
The person who is the record owner, occupant, or tenant of a parcel of real property. In the case of a junked vehicle, the term "owner" may mean the person(s) holding title to such junked vehicle, if not the same person(s) as the owner of the real property upon which such junked vehicle is situated. In the case of a dog, cat, or other animal, the phrase "owner" shall mean the person(s) responsible for the care, custody, or control of such dog, cat, or animal.
Any natural person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, company, club, copartnership, society, organization, or any entity of any kind.
Combustible trash, including paper, cartons, boxes, barrels, wood, excelsior, wood furniture, bedding, building supplies, tree limbs, grass clippings, and other deceased, trimmed, or removed vegetation and noncombustible trash including metal, tin cans, metal furniture, glass, crockery, other mineral waste, and the contents of letter receptacles; provided, however, that it shall not include earth and wastes from building operations, nor shall it include leaves, cornstalks, stubble, or other vegetable material provided that such leaves, cornstalks, stubble, or other vegetable material was generated in the course of harvesting agricultural crops.
Any public thoroughfare used for vehicular traffic including but not limited to roads, streets, highways, and alleys, whether located wholly or partially within the Township.
The presence of a dog or cat at any place except upon the premises of the owner owning or possessing such dog or cat or upon the premises of another without the consent of the owner of such premises. A dog or cat is not considered to be running at large while under the physical control (by leash or otherwise) of a person physically able to control such dog or cat.
The Board of Supervisors of North Whitehall Township, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania.
North Whitehall Township, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania.
All grasses, weeds, annual plants, and plant growths other than trees, shrubs, or bushes, however, the term does not include cultivated flowers or gardens but does include vegetation that is not edible nor grown for the purpose of consumption by humans or by animals as part of an agricultural activity or is otherwise not grown for some useful, lawful purpose.
Any large component of a junked vehicle including, but not limited to, engines, transmissions, axle housings, frames, or bodies.
A.
Activities and conditions identified herein deemed nuisances. The maintenance, carrying on, permitting, or conducting of any of the activities or conditions described in this chapter and/or the violation of any provisions of this chapter shall be and are hereby deemed nuisances based on the learned experience of the Supervisors of the deleterious impacts that such activities and conditions present to the health, safety, and welfare of members of the public, including Township residents.
B.
Garbage. It shall be unlawful for any owner to place or permit to remain anywhere in the Township any garbage or other material subject to decay except in a tightly covered container secure from insects, rodents, or other pests; provided, however, that a mulch heap shall be permitted where such mulch heap is properly maintained for gardening purposes and does not materially disturb or annoy persons of ordinary sensibilities in the neighborhood.
C.
Refuse/rubbish. It shall be unlawful for any owner to cause or permit to remain anywhere in the Township any refuse/rubbish or other material subject to decay except in a tightly covered container secure from insects, rodents, or other pests; provided, however, that a mulch heap shall be permitted where such mulch heap is properly maintained for gardening purposes and does not materially disturb or annoy persons of ordinary sensibilities in the neighborhood.
D.
Junk material. It shall be unlawful for any owner to store, maintain, or cause to be permitted any junk material that can be seen from any contiguous lot not also owned by the owner of the lot on which the junk material is stored or that can be seen from any roadway.
E.
Storage and accumulation of junked vehicles or vehicle components; exterior storage.
(1)
It shall be unlawful for any owner to place or permit to remain on any public or private lot a junked vehicle or a vehicle component for a continuous period exceeding 21 days, unless otherwise permitted by an applicable Township ordinance.
(2)
It shall be unlawful for any owner to place or permit to remain on any roadway a junked vehicle or a vehicle component for a continuous period exceeding 48 hours, unless otherwise permitted by an applicable Township ordinance.
(3)
This Subsection (E) shall not apply to any junked vehicle or vehicle component completely contained within an enclosed building. This Subsection (E) shall further not apply to any junked vehicle or vehicle component on the premises of a business enterprise operated in a lawful place and in a lawful manner when the keeping or maintaining of such junked vehicle or vehicle component is necessary to the operation of such business enterprise, nor shall it apply where a junked vehicle or vehicle component is in an appropriate storage place or depository maintained in a lawful place and manner by the Township or any other public entity.
F.
Grass, weeds, and other vegetation. It shall be unlawful for any owner to maintain on any lot within the Township vegetation exceeding a height of 10 inches, if such vegetation is located within 150 feet of a dwelling (other than such owner's dwelling) in any direction or within 50 feet of a roadway in any direction.
G.
Depositing snow on cartways. It shall be unlawful for any person to push, shovel, or otherwise deposit snow upon the cartway or traveled portion of any roadway within the Township and allow the same to remain thereon.
H.
Excavation. It shall be unlawful for any person or owner to permit any excavation, material excavated, or obstruction on or adjoining any roadway to remain opened or exposed without the same being secured by a barricade, temporary fence, or other protective materials.
I.
Interference with stream creek or other waterway. It shall be unlawful for any person to interfere in any way with the flow of a stream, creek, or other waterway, by means of dam construction or otherwise, or removing the embankment of a stream so as to alter the natural flow of the stream, unless such interference is properly permitted by an authority or entity having jurisdiction to render such authorization.
J.
Dogs, cats, and other animals; animal waste and noise.
(1)
It shall be unlawful for any owner to permit any dog, cat, or animal on or about the owner's premises to disturb the peace and quiet of the night by barking, howling, crying, or otherwise making a noise for a continuous period of 1/2 hour in any one-hour period and which can be heard from a distance of 150 feet from the property line of the premises.
(2)
It shall be unlawful for any person or owner to permit any dog, cat, or other animal to deposit excrement (defecation) on any public property or private property not owned by such person or owner, unless such excrement is immediately removed by said person or owner. This Subsection J(2) shall not apply to horses being used for transportation on public roadways within the Township.
K.
Dogs and cats running at large. It shall be unlawful for any person owning or possessing any dog or cat to permit the same to run at large.
M.
Other nuisances not specifically described herein. In addition to the specific activities, conditions, conduct, or occurrences described herein, it shall be unlawful for any person or owner to commit or maintain any activity, condition, conduct, or occurrence on a property that shall cause or result in annoyance or discomfort beyond the boundaries of such property which disturbs a reasonable person of normal sensitivities.
Upon discovery of a violation of any of the above-listed prohibitions, the Township will issue a notice to the owner or person responsible for such violation notifying such owner or person of the existence of the violation and the necessary measures to abate or remedy such violation. Such notice will be provided in one of the following ways, each of which in and of itself shall be deemed sufficient to provide notice of a violation to the owner or the person responsible for a violation:
A.
By personal delivery;
B.
By United States first-class mail, postage prepaid, to the last known address of the owner or person responsible for a violation, together with a United States Postal Service Form 3817 (or any similar, successor form issued by the United States Postal Service) Certificate of Mailing;
C.
By certified mail, return receipt requested, to address of the property upon which the violation occurs;
D.
By certified mail, return receipt requested, to last known address of the person or owner responsible for the violation;
E.
In the case of a dwelling, by handing a copy of the notice at the dwelling of the owner to an adult member of the family with which the owner resides, but if no adult member of the family is found, then to an adult person in charge of such dwelling;
F.
In the case of a property that does not contain a dwelling, by handing a copy of the notice at the property of the owner to an adult employee of the owner or other similar adult person in charge of such property; or
G.
By posting the notice on the subject property in a conspicuous manner and, in the case of a dwelling, on the dwelling's front door or main entrance.
A.
Any person or owner receiving a notice of violation pursuant to this chapter shall have a period of 14 days, or a longer period as determined in the sole discretion of the Township's Code Enforcement Officer, from the issuance of said notice to perform the remedial measures identified in said notice to remove or abate the violation.
B.
The Township's Code Enforcement Officer may prescribe a period of less than 14 days for the removal or abatement of a violation of this chapter if, in the sole discretion of the Code Enforcement Officer, the circumstances are such that immediate or irreparable harm will occur if such violation is not as soon after discovery as feasible.
For any and every violation of the provisions of this chapter, the Township may exercise one or more of the following remedies against the person or owner responsible for such violation:
A.
Upon summary conviction, any person violating this chapter may be subject to a fine of $1,000 or undergo imprisonment for a period not to exceed 10 days. Each and every day the violation continues after such person has been provided notice in accordance with this chapter shall be deemed a separate and distinct violation. The Township may claim attorneys' fees as a matter of restitution.
B.
Upon notice to the person or owner responsible for a violation to abate or remove a nuisance and the subsequent failure of such person or owner to abate or remove said nuisance within the time frame prescribed in said notice, the Township may enter upon the subject property and take any and all steps and actions necessary to abate or remove the nuisance, and the Township may thereafter charge said person or owner responsible for such violation with all costs thereof and attorneys' fees and consulting fees attributable thereto, together with a collection fee of 10% of the costs of removal or abatement or file a municipal claim against said person, together with a collection fee of 10%, or by an action of assumpsit without the filing of a municipal claim, as provided in the MCTLL.
C.
The Township, by means of an action in equity, may compel the person or owner responsible for a violation to comply with the terms of any notice of violation, or seek any such other relief as any such court of competent jurisdiction is empowered to afford.
D.
In accordance with Section 1533 of the Code, as amended, 53 P.S. § 66533, this chapter shall be the ordinance adopted by the Supervisors requiring an owner or person to remove any nuisance or dangerous structure on private or public grounds after receiving notice in accordance with the provisions of § 290-4, herein, and authorizing Township forces, in such owner's or person's default, to remove the nuisance or structure and collect the cost of removal, together with the penalties imposed in this § 290-6, from such owner or person in accordance with the provisions of this § 290-6.
It is the express intention of the Board of Supervisors that any definition, identification, or classification of a nuisance contained herein expressly excludes any agricultural operation conducted in accordance with normal agricultural operations (as defined in 3 P.S. § 952, as amended) so long as the agricultural operation does not have a direct adverse effect on the public health and safety.
The provisions of this chapter are severable and if any section, subsection, clause, sentence, part, or provision hereof shall be held illegal, invalid, or unconstitutional, the illegality, invalidity, or unconstitutionality shall not affect or impair any of the remaining sections, clauses, sentences, parts, or provisions hereof. It is hereby declared to be the intent of the Supervisors of North Whitehall Township that this chapter would have been adopted as if such illegal, invalid, or unconstitutional section, subsection, clause, part, or provision had not been included at the time of adoption.
A.
All existing ordinances or parts thereof inconsistent with the provisions of this chapter are hereby repealed, except to the extent otherwise specified herein.
This chapter shall become effective five days after adoption by the Board of Supervisors of North Whitehall Township at a public meeting.