[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Moreau: Art. I, 12-11-1973
as Ch. 30 of the 1973 Code; Art. II, 1-29-1988 as L.L.
No. 1-1988. Sections 96-3, 96-5C and D, 96-6B, 96-11 and 96-18B amended
and §§ 96-7 and 96-16 added at time of adoption of Code; see
Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I. Other amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 12-11-1973 as Ch. 30 of the 1973 Code]
This Article shall be known and may be cited as the "Mobile Home and
Mobile Home Park Ordinance of the Town of Moreau."
It is the purpose of this Article to promote the health, safety, morals
and general welfare of the inhabitants of the Town of Moreau by the proper
regulation of mobile homes and mobile home parks.
As used in this Article, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
Any vehicle, or combination thereof, used, designed for use or capable
of being used as sleeping or living quarters, either propelled by its own
power or the power of another vehicle to which it may be attached; or any
such vehicle after the wheels are removed; or a dwelling unit manufactured
in one or more sections on an integral metal frame, designed for long-term
occupancy, containing sleeping accommodations, a flush toilet, a tub or shower
bath and kitchen facilities, with plumbing and electrical connections provided
for attachment to outside systems and designed to be transported after fabrication
on wheels or on flatbed or other trailers, arriving at the site where it is
to be occupied as a dwelling. Any addition to such "mobile home" shall, for
the purpose of this Article, be deemed to be a part of such "mobile home."[1]
Any lot, piece or parcel of ground whereon 10 or more mobile homes
are located or parked.[2]
The lot or space in any mobile home park which shall be assigned
to or used and occupied by any one mobile home.
No person, firm or corporation being the owner or occupant of any land
or premises within the Town of Moreau shall use or permit the use of said
land or premises as a mobile home park without obtaining a permit therefor
as hereinafter provided.
A.
Contents of permit application.
(1)
The application for each mobile home park permit shall
be in writing and signed by the applicant. It shall state:
(a)
The name and address of the applicant.
(b)
The name and address of each partner if the applicant
is a partnership.
(c)
The name and address of each officer and director if
the applicant is a corporation.
(d)
A complete description of the premises upon which the
proposed park is to be located.
(e)
The name and address of the owner or owners of such premises.
(f)
The number of park units to be provided in the proposed
park.
(2)
The application shall be accompanied by two sets of plans
and specifications, drawn to scale, showing the layout of the park, the location,
size and arrangement of each park unit, location of streets, location and
number of toilets, lavatories and showers for each sex, location of water
services and location of slop sinks and garbage receptacles. One set of plans
shall be retained by the Town Building Inspector and/or Code Enforcement Officer
and the second set retained with the application. Where the applicant is not
the owner of the premises, the application shall also be accompanied by a
certified or photostatic copy of the lease of the premises.
B.
Filing of application and submission of same to the Building
Inspector and/or Code Enforcement Officer, Town Planning Board and Town Board.
(1)
Each application shall be filed with the Town Clerk,
who shall thereupon transmit the same to the Town Planning Board. Such application
shall indicate compliance by the applicant with the minimum park requirements
as established by rules and regulations of the State Department of Health
and by the Sanitary Code of the State of New York.
(2)
The Town Planning Board shall, after investigation, transmit
the application to the Building Inspector and/or Code Enforcement Officer,
together with its written approval or recommendations pertaining thereto.
(3)
The Building Inspector and/or Code Enforcement Officer
shall, in turn, investigate the application, and he shall transmit the same
to the Town Board, indicating his approval or rejection in writing.
(4)
All such applications shall, after investigation, be
approved or rejected by the Town Board, after which the applications shall
be filed with the Town Clerk and the applicants notified in writing by the
Town Clerk of the action taken thereon, with the reason for rejection if the
application is rejected. If said application is rejected, the applicant shall
have the right to appear before the Town Board for a hearing.
C.
Issuance of permit. The Town Clerk of the Town of Moreau,
upon the written application and upon the approval of the same by the Building
Inspector and/or Code Enforcement Officer and the Town Board, and upon the
receipt of the fee hereinafter provided, shall issue a permit to become effective
from the date thereof and to continue in force through the first day of July
next succeeding for the use of the premises therein specified as a mobile
home park, which permit shall specify the number of park units which may be
used in said park. Each permit shall not be transferable or assignable.[1]
D.
Fees. The applicant for a mobile home park permit shall,
at the time of issuance of such permit, pay to the Town Clerk a fee set by
resolution of the Town Board and on file in the Town offices. The fee for
renewal of a permit for a mobile home park shall be set by resolution of the
Town Board and on file the town offices based upon the number of park units
in use at the time of application for renewal, as verified by the Building
Inspector and/or Code Enforcement Officer.[2]
A.
Drainage and grading. All lands used as a mobile home park shall be well drained, of ample size and free from heavy or dense growth of brush or woods, except as provided in Subsection C below. The land shall be properly graded to ensure proper drainage during and following rainfall and shall, at all times, be so drained as to be free from stagnant water.
B.
Each mobile home park shall be subdivided and marked
off into park units, each of which park unit shall contain at least 9,000
square feet, proportioned appropriately to accommodate the mobile home on
said unit. No more than one mobile home shall be permitted to occupy any one
park unit. Each mobile home park shall be so marked off that there will be
no more than four park units to the acre. The maximum occupied area per park
unit shall not exceed 1,000 square feet. Mobile homes shall be so placed on
each park unit that there shall be a distance of 25 feet from the front unit
line, 15 feet from the rear unit line and 12 feet from the side unit lines.
No mobile home shall be so placed that the same will be within 15 feet of
any public highway or street nor within 15 feet of any adjacent property line.
Each mobile home park and all parts thereof shall be kept in a clean and sanitary
condition at all times.[1]
C.
The margins along the side and rear property lines of
a mobile home park shall be densely planted to trees for a minimum depth of
five feet, and the trees shall have a minimum height of five feet.
D.
Water connection. Each such mobile home park shall be
provided with proper water connections on each such park unit.
E.
Water supply. A sufficient supply of pure drinking water
shall be provided in convenient locations in the mobile home park.
F.
All roadways within a mobile home park shall be at least
25 feet in width and shall be maintained free from parked cars, snow or obstructions
of any nature so that fire and other emergency vehicles may have free and
open access to any part of the mobile home park. Each roadway shall be so
designed and constructed as to withstand use of fire trucks and fuel delivery
trucks, etc., with a minimum of nine inches of compacted gravel covering an
eighteen-foot-wide carriageway. On each road the gravel shall be compacted,
graded and leveled so as to permit safe passage of vehicles at speeds not
exceeding 15 miles per hour.
G.
Any mobile home park in which is parked or located any
mobile home not containing a water closet, lavatory and a shower or bathtub,
and hereinafter called a "dependent mobile home," shall be provided with toilets,
showers, slop sinks and other sanitary facilities which shall conform to the
following requirements:
(1)
The toilet and other sanitary facilities for males and
females shall be either in separate buildings or shall be separated, if in
the same building, by soundproof walls.
(2)
Toilet facilities for males shall consist of not less
than one flush toilet for every 15 dependent mobile homes, one urinal for
every 15 dependent mobile homes, one shower with individual dressing accommodations
for every 10 dependent mobile homes and one lavatory for every 10 dependent
mobile homes.
(3)
Toilet facilities for females shall consist of not less
than one flush toilet for every 10 dependent mobile homes, one shower with
individual dressing accommodations for every 10 dependent mobile homes and
one lavatory for every 10 dependent mobile homes.
(4)
There shall be provided in a separate compartment not
less than one slop sink or other like facility with an adequate supply of
hot running water.
(5)
Service buildings housing the toilet and sanitary facilities
shall be permanent structures complying with all applicable ordinances and
statutes regulating buildings, electrical installations and plumbing and sanitation
systems, and shall be located not closer than 10 feet nor farther than 200
feet from any park unit.
(6)
The service buildings shall be well lighted at all times
of the day and night, shall be well ventilated with screened openings, shall
be constructed of such moistureproof material, including painted woodwork,
as shall permit repeated cleaning and washing, and of at least 68° F.
during the period from October 1 to May 1. The floors of the service buildings
shall be of water-impervious material.
(7)
All service buildings and the grounds of the park shall
be maintained in a clean, sightly condition and kept free of any condition
that will menace the health of any occupant or the public or constitute a
nuisance.
H.
Disposal of sewage and other water-carried wastes.
(1)
All sewage and other water-carried wastes shall be disposed
of into a municipal sewage system whenever available. In mobile home parks
in which such connections are not available, disposal shall be into a private
system which includes a sanitary means of disposal, the operation of which
creates neither a nuisance nor a menace to health.
(2)
Whenever a water-carriage system of sewage is used, each
park unit shall be provided with a sewer connection for the combined liquid-waste
outlet or outlets of each mobile home. It shall be the duty of the owner or
operator of said mobile home park not to permit the use of these outlets until
the connection from the mobile home to the outlet has been made odortight
as well as watertight. Sewer connections in occupied park units shall be so
closed that they will not emit any odors nor cause a breeding place for flies.
No water or waste shall be allowed to fall on the ground from a mobile home.
I.
Garbage receptacles. Each such mobile home park shall
provide equipment sufficient to prevent littering of the grounds and premises
with rubbish, garbage and refuse and provide flytight metal depositories with
tight-fitting covers as conspicuous locations upon such premises. Such depositories
shall be emptied weekly and kept at all times in a sanitary condition. The
depositories shall be so located that no park unit shall be more than 350
feet from a depository.
J.
Electrical service and connections. Each mobile home
park shall provide weatherproof electrical service connections and outlets
for each park unit, all such connections and outlets to be of a type approved
by the New York State Board of Fire Underwriters, and each park unit shall
be properly grounded.
K.
No mobile home park shall be occupied until the Building
Inspector and/or Code Enforcement Officer has issued an occupancy permit therefor.
Individual building permits shall be required for all mobile homes entering
a mobile home park. Building permits shall also be required for any additions,
porches or any structural changes to a mobile home in a mobile home park.
The owner or operator of each mobile home park shall keep a permanent
record, in writing, of all persons occupying or using the facilities of such
mobile home park, which record shall include the following:
Any peace officer and the Building Inspector and/or Code Enforcement
Officer of the town shall have the right, at any reasonable time, to enter
any mobile home park and shall have the right to inspect all parts of said
premises and to inspect the records required to be kept in any mobile home
park.
If a police officer, Building Inspector and/or Code Enforcement Officer,
Health Officer or any authorized representative of the Town of Moreau finds
that any mobile home park is not being maintained in a clean and sanitary
condition or is not being conducted in accordance with the provisions of this
Article, such facts shall thereupon be reported to the Town Board, and said
Town Board may direct the Town Clerk to serve an order, in writing, upon the
holder of the permit or the person in charge of said park, directing that
the conditions therein specified be remedied within 10 days after the date
of service of such order. If such conditions are not corrected after the expiration
of said ten-day period, the Town Board may cause a notice, in writing, to
be served upon the holder of said permit or the person in charge of such mobile
home park, requiring the holder of the permit to appear before the Town Board
of the Town of Moreau at a time to be specified in such notice and to show
cause why such mobile home park permit should not be revoked. The Town Board
may, after a hearing at which testimony of witnesses may be taken and the
holder of the permit shall be heard, revoke such permit if said Town Board
shall find that said park is not being maintained in a clean and sanitary
condition or if it finds that any provisions of this Article have been violated.
Upon the revocation of such permit, the premises shall forthwith cease to
be used for the purpose of a mobile home park, and all mobile homes shall
forthwith be removed therefrom.
Application for the renewal of any mobile home park permit, if issued pursuant to this Article, must be filed with the Town Clerk on or before the first day of June next preceding the expiration of the permit. The application for the renewal shall be in writing and signed by the applicant and shall contain the same information as required by § 96-5A of this Article in the case of the original application for a permit, except that such renewal application need not be accompanied by a plan of the mobile home park, nor it is necessary that said renewal application be accompanied by the lease of the premises unless a new lease of the premises has been entered into subsequent to the time of filing the previous application, in which event a certified or photostatic copy of the lease shall be attached to the application for renewal. Upon the approval of said application for a renewal of the permit by the Building Inspector and/or Code Enforcement Officer and the Town Board, the Town Clerk shall issue a renewal permit which shall become effective upon the expiration of the prior permit and continue in force for a period of one year. Such renewal permit shall not be transferred or assigned. The applicant shall, at the time of issuance of said renewal permit, pay to the Town Clerk the fee provided for in § 96-5D.
This Article shall apply to all existing mobile home parks located in the Town of Moreau on the effective date of this Article, and such existing mobile home parks shall henceforth be maintained and operated in compliance with all the provisions of this Article and any amendment thereto, except that the provisions of § 96-6B, C and F shall not apply to mobile home parks in existence on the effective date of this Article. Any mobile home park in existence prior to the adoption of this Article, whereon there are between three and 10 mobile homes, shall continue to be deemed a mobile home park and eligible for renewal of permit hereunder, provided that all other provisions of this Article are complied with.
A.
No mobile home shall be parked or allowed to remain upon
any street, alley, highway or other public place for a period longer than
72 hours, except that emergency stopping or parking, occasioned by mechanical
failure, is permitted upon the shoulder of any street or highway for a period
of not longer than 96 hours, subject, however, to any other and further prohibitions,
regulations or limitations imposed by law, parking regulation or ordinance.
B.
No mobile home shall be parked or placed within the town
and outside of a duly licensed mobile home park, except as follows:
(1)
An owner or occupant of a mobile home may, after compliance
with the provisions of this Article, be granted a permit to park or place
such mobile home on premises outside a mobile home park. Said permit shall
be valid for a term of three months, and no additional permit shall be granted
within a period of 12 months from the date of the original permit, except
that the Town Board, after an examination of the facts and after according
the applicant an opportunity to be heard on such application, may, upon a
finding of hardship or sufficient extenuating circumstances, grant an extension
of said permit for a period not to exceed an additional three months.
(2)
An owner of land located within the town who intends
to construct a dwelling house thereon for his own occupancy, after compliance
with the provisions of this Article, may be granted a permit to park or place
a mobile home on said land during the construction of said dwelling house,
not to exceed a period of one year. The Town Board, after an examination of
the facts and after according the applicant an opportunity to be heard, may,
upon a finding of hardship or extenuating circumstances, grant a further extension
of said permit for a period not to exceed one year. However, if material progress
with house construction is not made within 45 days from the issuance of a
permit, or if construction work ceases for a consecutive period of 45 days,
such permit shall become void.
A.
The application for each mobile home permit shall be
in writing, signed by the applicant, and shall state the following:
(1)
The name and address of the applicant.
(2)
The name and address of each partner if the applicant
is a partnership.
(3)
The name and address of each officer and director if
the applicant is a corporation.
(4)
A complete description of the premises upon which the
mobile home is to be located.
(5)
The name and address of the owner or owners of such premises.
B.
The application shall be accompanied by a plan, in duplicate,
drawn to scale and showing the boundaries of the premises, the proposed location
of the mobile home on the premises and the location and plan of the proposed
water supply and sewage disposal system. If the applicant is not the owner
in fee of the premises, then the application must be accompanied by a certified
or photostatic copy of the written lease or, if there is no written lease,
by the written, acknowledged consent of the owner of the premises.
A.
Water supply and sewage disposal system. Any mobile home
parked outside a duly licensed mobile home park shall have an adequate supply
of pure drinking water and a sewage disposal system of a type approved by
the Building Inspector and/or Code Enforcement Officer of the Town of Moreau.
No mobile home so parked or placed shall be occupied until a certificate or
other evidence of the approval of the water supply and sewage disposal system
by said Town Building Inspector and/or Code Enforcement Officer shall have
been filed with the Town Clerk.
B.
Location and setback. No occupied mobile home outside
a duly licensed mobile home park shall be parked or placed within 25 feet
of any public street or highway nor within 10 feet of the side or rear lot
lines of the premises upon which it is so parked or placed.
Building permits shall be required for all additions, porches or other
structural changes to any mobile home outside a mobile home park.
If the Building Inspector and/or Code Enforcement Officer, Health Officer
or any authorized representative of the Town of Moreau finds that any mobile
home outside a mobile home park is not being maintained in a clean and sanitary
condition or is not being maintained in accordance with the provisions of
this Article, such facts shall thereupon be reported to the Town Board, and
said Town Board may direct the Town Clerk to serve an order, in writing, upon
the holder of the permit and/or the owner of the mobile home and/or the owner
of the premises, directing that the condition therein specified be remedied
within five days after the date of service of such order. If such conditions
are not corrected after the expiration of said five-day period, the Town Board
may cause a notice, in writing, to be served upon the holder of such permit
and/or the owner of said mobile home and/or the owner of the premises upon
which it is located, requiring the appearance of the person so served before
the Town Board of the Town of Moreau at a time to be specified in such notice
to show cause why such mobile home permit should not be revoked. The Town
Board may, after a hearing at which testimony of witnesses may be taken and
the person or persons so served shall be heard, revoke such permit if the
Town Board shall find that the said mobile home is not being maintained in
a clean and sanitary condition or if it finds that any provisions of this
Article have been violated or for any other sufficient cause. Upon the revocation
of such permit, said mobile home shall be removed from the premises and disconnected
from its water supply and sewage disposal system.
A.
The provisions of § 96-13 of this Article shall not be applicable to any mobile home parked or placed outside a duly licensed mobile home park on or before the effective date of this Article.
B.
Owners or occupants of mobile homes parked outside a duly licensed mobile home park prior to such effective date shall, however, apply for a permit pursuant to § 96-14 of this Article within 90 days of such effective date. Permits shall be issued to owners or occupants of such existing mobile homes upon proper application for a period expiring on the first day of July next following. Such permits may be renewed annually for a period of one year commencing the second day of July each year. Application for the renewal of such permit shall be in the form prescribed in § 96-14 of this Article, except that no plan will be required unless there has been a change in the location of the mobile home or its facilities.[1]
A.
None of the provisions of this Article shall be applicable
to the business of mobile home sales.
B.
None of the provisions of this Article shall be applicable
to the storage or garaging of mobile homes not being used for living or sleeping
purposes within a building or structure or to the storage of one unoccupied
mobile home on premises owned by the owner of such mobile home; provided,
however, that such unoccupied mobile home shall not be parked between the
street line and the front building line of such premises and provided that
such mobile home shall not be stored on premises owned by the owner for a
period in excess of 60 days. For the purpose of this subsection only, the
term "mobile home" shall not include a recreational vehicle designed for occasional
living or sleeping purposes.
[Amended 7-13-1982]
C.
None of the provisions in this Article shall be applicable
to a mobile home located on the site of a construction project, survey project
or other similar work project and used solely as a field office or work- or
toolhouse in connection with such project, provided that such mobile home
is removed from said site within a reasonable time after the completion of
such project.
D.
The provisions of this Article shall not be applicable
within the Incorporated Village of South Glens Falls.
[Amended 5-10-1988]
A.
Any person who violates any provision of this Article shall be guilty of an unclassified misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of a definite amount of not more than $1,000 or not more than 30 days' imprisonment, or both. When a violation of this Article or any provision thereof is continuous, each week thereof shall constitute a separate and distinct violation for which a separate and additional penalty may be imposed. A violation of this Article shall be prosecuted in the name of the Town of Moreau. The prosecution of a violation of this Article for a civil penalty under Subsection B herein and/or an action to compel compliance with or restrain violation of this Article by injunction under Subsection C herein shall not affect the right of the town to prosecute the person for violation of the unclassified misdemeanor herein.
B.
In addition, the violation of this Article or any of the provisions thereof shall subject any person to a civil penalty in the amount of $500. When a violation of this Article or any of the provisions thereof is continuous, each such 24 hours thereof shall constitute a separate and distinct violation. The penalty shall be recovered by the Town of Moreau in a civil action. The prosecution of a violation of this Article for a criminal penalty under Subsection A herein and/or an action to compel compliance with or restrain a violation of this Article by injunction under Subsection C herein shall not affect the right of the town to obtain the civil relief herein.
C.
In addition, upon the violation of this Article or any provision thereof, the Town Board may maintain an action or proceeding in the name of the town in a court of competent jurisdiction to compel compliance with this Article or restrain by injunction any violation thereof. The prosecution of a violation of this Article for a criminal penalty under Subsection A herein or the prosecution of violation of this Article for a civil penalty under Subsection B herein shall not affect the right of the town to obtain the injunctive relief herein.
D.
The remedies for violation of this Article are cumulative, and the prosecution of an action by the town for criminal penalty pursuant to Subsection A and/or the civil relief pursuant to Subsection B and/or for the injunctive relief pursuant to Subsection C shall not affect the right of the town to obtain any of the other relief, whether criminal, civil or injunctive, provided herein. Any such prosecution for violation of this Article or any of the provisions, herein shall not be deemed to prevent the revocation of any permit issued pursuant thereto or the enforced removal of conditions prohibited by this Article.
The issuance of a permit pursuant to the provisions of this Article
shall not be deemed to waive compliance by the holder thereof, by the property
owner or by any occupant of any mobile home with any statute of the State
of New York or ordinance or health regulation of the Town of Moreau.
[Adopted 1-29-1988 as L.L. No. 1-1988]
A.
By adoption of this Article, the Town Board of the Town
of Moreau declares its intent to protect the health, safety and general welfare
of the community and citizens of the Town of Moreau and to regulate the house
trailer camps and mobile home parks located in the town for the benefit of
the owners or operators and residents of said mobile home parks.
B.
Since mobile home parks were developed in the early 1950's,
there has been a steady growth in the number of mobile homes and mobile home
parks. Some mobile home park owners and operators have not maintained facilities
in a clean, sanitary and safe condition. Because mobile home park tenants
cannot remove their mobile homes to another location without considerable
expenditure, mobile home park tenants are especially vulnerable to substandard
conditions.
C.
When the permit of a mobile home park has been revoked pursuant to § 96-10 of the Mobile Home and Mobile Home Park Ordinance of the Town of Moreau,[1] the owner or operator of the mobile home park does not have an incentive to make any repairs or improve conditions. And, when the permit has been revoked pursuant to § 96-10 of the Mobile Home and Mobile Home Park Ordinance, the tenants of the mobile home park suffer a financial hardship by being compelled to relocate from said park.
D.
Therefore, recognizing the above and the need of the
community to regulate house trailer camps and mobile home parks and the termination
of the operation of such parks, and in the exercise of its statutory authority
under § 130, Subdivision 12, of the Town Law and its police power
over these matters, the Town Board of the Town of Moreau does hereby enact
the following Article.
A.
NOT FIT FOR HUMAN HABITATION
As used in this Article, the following terms shall have
the meanings indicated:
Conditions exist which are dangerous, hazardous or detrimental to
the life, health or safety of persons or residents.
The procedure for the Town Board of the Town of Moreau to declare that
a mobile home park is not fit for human habitation shall be as follows:
A.
When the Town Board of the Town of Moreau has revoked the permit of a mobile home park pursuant to § 96-10 of the Mobile Home and Mobile Home Park Ordinance of the Town of Moreau and the owner or operator thereof fails to correct conditions in the park within 30 days after the revocation of the permit, the Town Board may conduct a hearing as to whether said mobile home park is not fit for human habitation.
B.
The owner of the mobile home park shall be notified in
writing of the date and time and purpose of the hearing before the Town Board
by personal service at least 10 days prior to the date of the hearing.
C.
At the hearing before the Town Board, the sworn testimony
of witnesses may be taken, the owner or operator of the mobile home park may
be represented by counsel and shall have an opportunity to be heard and a
transcript or other record of the proceedings shall be made.
D.
In the event that the Town Board finds after a hearing
that the mobile home park is not fit for human habitation, the Town Board
shall make a finding that the premises are not fit for human habitation, and
said finding shall be incorporated in a resolution.
A.
Where the Town Board of the Town of Moreau has determined that a mobile home park is not fit for human habitation pursuant to § 96-24D herein, the tenants of said mobile home park shall be authorized to withhold payment of rent from the owner of said mobile home park.
B.
In any eviction proceeding or proceeding to obtain possession of the premises by the owner or operator of such a mobile home park against a tenant based upon nonpayment of rent because of a finding by the Town Board of the Town of Moreau pursuant to this Article, said resolution and finding of the Town Board of the Town of Moreau that the premises of the mobile home park are not fit for human habitation pursuant to § 96-24D herein shall be presumptive evidence in any court of law that said mobile home park is not fit for habitation and for the uses reasonably intended by the parties as defined in and pursuant to §§ 233(m) and 235-b(1) of the Real Property Law.
