[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Commissioners of the Township of
Ridley 10-26-1994 by Ord. No. 1726. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
The Captain or Superintendent of Police of the Township of Ridley.
Any parade, march, ceremony, show, exhibition, pageant or procession
or any similar display, in or upon any street, park or other public place
in the Township.
Any person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, company
or organization of any kind.
A.
No person shall engage in, participate in, aid, form
or start any parade unless a parade permit shall have been obtained from the
Captain of Police.
B.
Exceptions. This Chapter shall not apply to:
(1)
Funeral processions.
(2)
Wedding processions.
(3)
Students going to and from school, classes or participating
in educational activities, provided that such conduct is under the immediate
direction and supervision of the proper school authorities.
(4)
A government agency acting within the scope of its functions.
(5)
A nonprofit, Township-based youth organization.
A.
A person seeking issuance of a parade permit shall file
an application with the Captain of Police on forms provided by such officer.
B.
Filing period. An application for a parade permit shall
be filed with the Captain of Police not fewer than 30 days before the date
on which it is proposed to conduct the parade.
C.
Contents. The application for a parade permit shall set
forth the following information:
(1)
The name, address and telephone number of the person
seeking to conduct the parade.
(2)
If the parade is proposed to be conducted for, on behalf
of, or by an organization, the name, address and telephone number of the headquarters
of the organization and of the authorized or responsible persons.
(3)
The date when the parade is to be conducted.
(4)
The route to be traveled or the area within the Township
to be used for the event, including the starting point and termination point.
(5)
The approximate number of persons who, and animals and
vehicles which, will constitute such parade, the type of animals and a description
of the vehicles.
(6)
The hours when such parade will start and terminate.
(7)
A statement as to whether the parade will occupy all
or only a portion of the width of the streets proposed to be traveled.
(8)
The location by streets of any assembly areas for such
parade.
(9)
The time at which units of the parade will begin to assemble
at any such assembly area or areas.
(10)
The interval of space to be maintained between units
of such parade.
(11)
If the parade is designed to be held by and on behalf
of or for any person other than the applicant, the applicant for such permit
shall file with the Captain of Police a communication in writing from the
person proposing to hold the parade authorizing the applicant to apply for
the permit on his/her behalf.
(12)
Any additional information which the Captain of Police
shall find reasonably necessary to a fair determination as to whether a permit
should be issued.
D.
No license application will be considered or reviewed
unless the application has been completed in its entirety and is accompanied
by the requisite fee.
A.
The Captain of Police shall issue a permit as provided
for hereunder when, from a consideration of the application and from such
other information as may otherwise be obtained, he finds that:
(1)
The conduct of the parade will not so substantially interrupt
the safe and orderly movement of traffic within the Township of Ridley on
and contiguous to the proposed route so as to create a real and present danger
to the health, safety and welfare of the residents of the Township of Ridley.
(2)
The conduct of the parade will not create a real and
present danger to the health, safety and welfare of the citizens of the Township
of Ridley by preventing fire-fighting equipment, ambulance services, rescue
vehicles and/or police vehicles from being able to reach any property in the
Township of Ridley.
(3)
The conduct of such parade will not require the diversion
of so great a number of ambulances, police or fire services as to prevent
normal service to portions of the Township other than that to be occupied
by the proposed line of march and areas contiguous thereto.
(4)
The conduct of the parade is not reasonably likely to
cause injury to persons or property, to provoke disorderly conduct or to create
an unreasonable disturbance.
(5)
The parade is scheduled to move from its point of origin
to its point of termination expeditiously and without unreasonable delays
en route.
(6)
The parade is not designed to be held purely for profit.
(7)
The parade will not otherwise substantially interfere
with or be a substantial detriment to the general health, safety, and welfare
of the Township residents.
(8)
No other parade is scheduled on the day of the requested
parade.
(9)
The applicant is in compliance with all state requirements
regarding parades on state highways.
B.
In the case of the approval of a permit, the Captain
of Police may attach such conditions regulating time, place and the manner
in which the event is conducted and such other conditions as will assure the
general health, safety and welfare of the Township residents and the participants
in the parade.
The application for a license shall be accompanied by a nonrefundable
fee as set from time to time by resolution of the Board of Commissioners.
The Captain of Police shall act upon the application for a parade permit within 10 days after the filing thereof. If the Captain of Police disapproves the application, he shall mail to the applicant, within 10 days after the filing date, a notice of his action stating with specificity the reasons for his denial of the permit. Said notice shall also advise the applicant of his/her right to file an appeal and the procedure for doing so by providing a copy of § 199-7, Appeals.
Any person aggrieved shall have the right to appeal the denial of a
parade permit to the Township Board of Commissioners. The appeal shall be
taken by sending a letter to the Township Manager requesting that the Board
hear an appeal of the decision to deny a parade permit. This letter must be
sent by certified mail or delivered to the Municipal Building of the Township
of Ridley at MacDade Boulevard and Morton Avenue, Folsom, PA 19033. Any letter
of appeal must be received within 10 days from the date on which the applicant
received notice of the denial of the application for a parade permit. The
Township Board of Commissioners shall then schedule a hearing on or before
the date of the next Township Board of Commissioners meeting. The Board must
render a decision within 10 days following the date of the hearing.
Where the Captain of Police, after applying the standards set forth in § 199-4 above, shall find that the application for issuance of a permit for a parade on the date, at the time and over the route requested by the application must be denied, he may, in addition to advising the applicant of the denial of the application and right to appeal, also issue an alternate permit which authorizes the conduct of the parade on a date, at a time or over a route different from that named by the application. The alternate permit shall be sent to the applicant by regular mail, together with the letter required by § 199-6 above. Whenever the Captain of Police shall issue an alternate permit, the letter sent to the applicant, in addition to conforming to the requirements of § 199-6 above, shall also advise the applicant that, if the applicant wishes to accept the alternate permit, the applicant must mail or deliver a letter of acceptance to the Township Manager of the Township of Ridley at MacDade Boulevard and Morton Avenue, Folsom, PA 19033, and the Captain of Police. This letter must be received within 10 days after receipt by the applicant of the letter sent to the applicant pursuant to § 199-6 above. The applicant shall also be advised that, unless the applicant accepts the alternate permit within 10 days, the alternate permit will be void and of no effect. Finally, the applicant shall also be advised that the applicant may either accept the alternate permit or pursue an appeal of the denial of a parade permit for the date, time and route requested by the applicant by following the procedure set forth in § 199-7 above. An alternate parade permit issued pursuant to this section shall be issued pursuant to the standards set forth in § 199-4 above and, if accepted by the applicant in the manner provided above, shall have the effect of a parade permit under this chapter.
Immediately upon the issuance of a parade permit, the Captain of Police
shall send a copy thereof to the following:
Each parade permit shall state the following information:
A.
The starting and termination times.
B.
The portions of the streets to be traveled that may be
occupied by the parade.
C.
The maximum length of the parade in miles or fractions
thereof.
D.
Such other information as the Captain of Police shall
find necessary to the enforcement of this chapter.
E.
The minimum and maximum speeds.
F.
The maximum interval of space between the units of the
parade.
A.
A permittee hereunder shall comply with all permit directions
and conditions and with all applicable laws of the Township of Ridley and
the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
B.
The parade chairman or other person heading or leading
such activity shall carry the parade permit upon his person during the conduct
of the parade.
The Captain of Police or his duly appointed agent shall have the right
to suspend or revoke any license issued under this chapter for violations
of one or more of the regulations contained herein.
A.
Interference. No person shall unreasonably hamper, obstruct
or impede or interfere with any parade or parade assembly or with any person,
vehicle, or animal participating or used in a parade issued a license under
this chapter.
B.
Driving through parade. No driver of a vehicle shall
drive between the vehicles or persons comprising a parade when such vehicles
or persons are in motion and are conspicuously designed as a parade.
C.
Parking on parade route. The Captain of Police shall
have the authority, when reasonably necessary, to prohibit or restrict the
parking of vehicles along a highway or part thereof constituting a part of
a route of a parade. The Captain of Police shall post signs to such effect,
and it shall be unlawful for any person to park or leave unattended any vehicle
in violation thereof.
Any person, firm or corporation who violates any of the provisions of
this chapter shall, upon conviction before a District Justice, be sentenced
to pay a fine not exceeding $1,000, plus costs of prosecution, and in default
of payment of such fine and costs shall be imprisoned for a period not to
exceed 30 days. Each day such a violation is committed or permitted to continue
shall constitute a separate offense and shall be punishable as such hereunder.
