[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors
of the Township of Exeter 12-11-1968 by Ord. No. 90. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
This chapter shall be known and may be cited
as "Exeter Township Junkyard and Refuse Ordinance."
Unless otherwise expressly stated the following
words and phrases shall be construed throughout this chapter to have
the meanings herein indicated:
The Board of Supervisors of Exeter Township, Berks County,
Pennsylvania.
Any discarded material or article such as is not ordinarily
disposed of as rubbish or refuse, and shall include, but not be limited
to, scrap metal, scrapped, abandoned or junked motor vehicles or parts
therefrom, machinery, equipment, paper, glass, containers, and structures.
It shall not include, however, refuse or garbage kept in proper containers
for the purpose of prompt disposal.
Any person, as hereinbefore defined, who shall engage in
the business of selling, buying, salvaging and dealing in junk, and
who maintains and operates a junkyard within the Township of Exeter.
Any place where any junk as herein defined is stored, disposed
of, or accumulated.
The permit granted to a person who accumulates, stores, or
disposes of junk as hereinbefore defined.
Any individual, partnership, association, firm, and corporation.
Exeter Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania.
No person shall engage in business as a junk
dealer or maintain a junkyard without first having first obtained
a license from the Board, for which license a fee in accordance with
the schedule hereinafter set forth shall be paid to the Township for
the use of the Township. The license shall be issued for the twelve-month
period of each calendar year. Each license must be renewed before
December to be effective for the next year.
The license provided for in this chapter shall
be issued by the Board after written application shall have been made
therefor by the person desiring to be licensed. Such license shall
state the name of the person to whom such license is to be issued
and the premises on which such business is to be conducted, or such
junkyard is to be maintained. The written application for license
shall be accompanied by a form, every question of which must be answered,
which form will be supplied by the Board. Applicant shall also submit
therewith a plot of the premises used or to be used in connection
with such license.
Upon receipt of an application by the Board,
the Board shall issue a license or shall refuse to issue a license
to the person applying therefor after an examination of the application
and taking into consideration the suitability of the property proposed
to be used for the purpose of the license, the character of the properties
nearby, and the effect of the proposed use upon the Township, both
economic and aesthetic. In the event the Board shall issue a license,
it may impose upon the license and the person applying therefor such
terms and conditions in addition to the regulations herein contained
and adopted pursuant to this chapter as may be deemed necessary to
carry out the spirit and intent of this chapter. Such license issued
by the Board shall be posted conspicuously upon the premises licensed
thereunder.
[Amended 8-13-2007 by Ord. No. 640]
A.
The license fee shall be paid immediately upon the
issuance or renewal of a license. The amount of the license fee shall
be in an amount as established from time to time by resolution of
the Board of Supervisors as determined by the actual land to be used
by the person to whom the license is issued, excluding all setback
areas as provided in the Zoning Ordinance of the Township then in
effect.[1]
B.
No license shall be issued for the use of a tract
of land in excess of four acres, excluding setback areas.
No person licensed under this chapter shall,
by virtue of one license, keep more than one place of business within
the Township or maintain more than one junkyard, for the purpose of
buying, selling and dealing in junk. No person shall engage in business
as a junk dealer in any place other than the place designated upon
his license, or maintain a junkyard in any place other than the place
designated upon his license.
No license issued by the Board shall be transferable by the licensee to any other person unless such a transfer is authorized by the Board. Any person desiring to transfer his license shall notify the Board in writing, which notification shall be accompanied by an application for a license, as described in § 218-4, by the transferee.
[Amended 8-13-2007 by Ord. No. 640]
In the event the Board shall approve the transfer
of a license, the transferee shall immediately pay to the Township
a transfer fee in an amount as established from time to time by resolution
of the Board of Supervisors.
Every person licensed under this chapter shall
provide and shall constantly keep a book in which shall be written
down in the English language at the time of the purchase of any junk,
a description of every article or material purchased or received by
him, the date and hour of such purchase, and the person from whom
such article or material was purchased, received or handled by such
person, which book shall at all times be subject to the inspection
of the Board or its duly authorized representative.
Every person, licensed under this chapter, shall keep and retain upon the licensed premises, for a period of 24 hours after the purchase or receipt thereof, all junk received or purchased by him, and he shall not disturb or reduce the same or alter the original form, shape or condition until such period of 24 hours shall have elapsed unless the junk is an automobile for which a proper junk certificate of title has been issued. Thereafter, the fact of disposal shall be recorded in the record book prescribed in § 218-10, setting forth the date and hour of such disposal, the person, if any, who obtained such article or material, and the method of disposal, such as sale, destruction or change of original form.
[Amended 8-13-2007 by Ord. No. 640]
Every person licensed under this chapter shall
constantly maintain the licensed premises in accordance with any special
provisions imposed by the Board and in the manner prescribed by this
section and any subsequent regulations adopted by resolution of the
Board.
A.
Such premises shall at all times be maintained so
as not to constitute a nuisance or a menace to the health of the community
or of residents nearby or a place for the breeding of rodents and
vermin.
B.
No garbage or other organic waste shall be stored
in such premises.
C.
Whenever any motor vehicle shall be received in such
premises as junk, all gasoline and oil shall be drained and removed
therefrom. Gasoline in an amount not exceeding 10 gallons may be stored
above ground in said junkyards, provided the same be placed in containers
approved by the Board. This subsection shall not apply to motor vehicles
or parts thereof held for resale as operating units.
D.
At least two hand fire extinguishers shall be located
on the inside of said junkyard, one inside the main entrance, and
the other at the point farthest removed from said main entrance.
E.
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, and to facilitate
access for fire-fighting purposes. In any event, junk shall be stacked
only to a maximum height of 10 feet; provided, however, that two passenger
automobiles may be stacked one on top of the other.
F.
All junk kept, stored or arranged on the licensed premises shall at all times be kept, stored and arranged within the junkyard as described in the application for license hereunder, and as limited under Subsection E above.
G.
If the Board, in its sole discretion, deems it to be in the best interest of the Township and adjoining properties, the premises to be licensed shall be set back a minimum distance of 25 feet or the minimum setback distances provided by the applicable section of Chapter 390, Zoning, of the Township then in effect, whichever distance is greater, from the right-of-way lines on all streets or roads and a minimum distance of 25 feet or the minimum side line distances provided by the applicable section of Chapter 390, Zoning, of the Township then in effect, whichever, distance is greater, from all other property lines. In the event that the Board so directs, the area between the set back line and the right-of-way line and all streets and roads and all other property lines shall be at all times kept clear and vacant.
H.
When the Board shall deem it necessary and desirable,
the premises to be licensed shall at the setback lines be enclosed
by a fence of type and style to be determined by the Board or by evergreen
screen plantings or both. The Board may set forth the fence and planting
requirement at the time of the issuance of a license or at the time
of renewal or transfer of a license.
[Amended 4-26-1982 by Ord. No. 174; 8-13-2007 by Ord. No. 640]
A.
Any person, firm or corporation who shall violate
any provision of this chapter, upon conviction thereof in an action
brought before a Magisterial District Judge in the manner provided
for the enforcement of summary offenses under the Pennsylvania Rules
of Criminal Procedure, shall be sentenced to pay a fine of not more
than $1,000 plus costs and, in default of payment of said fine and
costs, to a term of imprisonment not to exceed 90 days. Each day that
a violation of this chapter continues or each section of this chapter
which shall be found to have been violated shall constitute a separate
offense.
B.
The licensed premises shall at all times be subject
to inspection by the Board, or its duly authorized officer, for the
purpose of determining whether the requirements of this chapter are
being complied with. The license shall be subject to suspension by
the Board for failure to comply with this chapter, and a license may
be reinstated by the Board for the balance of the year for which it
was issued, upon compliance with the provisions of this chapter. No
person shall engage in business as a junk dealer in the Township during
the time when the license therefor shall have been suspended.
C.
The Board, in its discretion, may revoke any outstanding license and refuse the issuance of a license, as set forth in § 218-5, to any person who shall be convicted three times within a period of five years for violation of any of the provisions of this chapter.
D.
The Board may refuse to renew the license of any person
who fails to maintain his junkyard in accordance with Township regulations,
or fails to maintain his junkyard so as to conform to the plan under
which his license was issued.
In addition to the remedies provided in § 218-13 above, any junkyard located, used or occupied in violation of this chapter is declared to be a public nuisance and abatable as such by the Township, and if abated, the Township shall collect the cost of such abatement together with a penalty of 10% of such cost in the manner provided by law for the collection of municipal claims, or the Township may seek relief against the violator by a proceeding in a court of equity.
