[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Marlborough as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Advertising — See Ch. 222.
Parks and recreation areas — See Ch. 456.
Property maintenance — See Ch. 485.
Solid waste — See Ch. 540.
Streets and sidewalks — See Ch. 551.
[Adopted as Secs. 10-5 and 10-6 of the 1965 Code (Ch. 110 of the 1986 Code)]
It shall be unlawful for any person, by himself or his agents or servants, to deposit or place in or upon any street, square, park, common lane, alleyway or other public place any wastepaper, trash, vegetable or animal matter, ashes, waste, dirt, stones, tin cans, filth or garbage of any nature whatsoever.
No person, either by himself or his agents or servants, other than employees of the City acting for the City, shall in any streets, alleys or public places carry or transport kitchen swill, garbage consisting of any refuse accumulation of meat, fish, fowl, fruit or other vegetable matter, house offal or other refuse material, except with a permit from the Commissioner of Public Works approved by the Board of Health.
[Adopted 9-11-1978 by Ord. No. 18360 (Ch. 128 of the 1986 Code)]
This article shall be known and may be cited as the "City of Marlborough Anti-Litter Ordinance."
A. 
For the purposes of this article, the following terms, phrases, words and their derivations shall have the meanings given herein. When not inconsistent with the context, words used in the present tense include the future, words used in the plural number include the singular number, and words used in the singular number include the plural number. The word "shall" is always mandatory and not merely directory.
B. 
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
AIRCRAFT
Any contrivance now known or hereafter invented, used or designated for navigation or for flight in the air. The word "aircraft" shall include helicopters and lighter-than-air dirigibles and balloons.
AUTHORIZED PRIVATE RECEPTACLE
A litter storage and collection receptacle as required and authorized in the State Sanitary Code, Article II, Regulation 15.1.
CITY
The City of Marlborough, County of Middlesex, Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
COMMERCIAL HANDBILL
Any printed or written matter, any sample or device, dodger, circular, leaflet, pamphlet, paper, booklet or any other printed or otherwise reproduced original or copies of any matter of literature which:
(1) 
Advertises for sale any merchandise, product, commodity or thing;
(2) 
Directs attention to any business or mercantile or commercial establishment, or other activity, for the purpose of either directly or indirectly promoting the interest thereof by sales; or
(3) 
Directs attention to or advertises any meeting, theatrical performance, exhibition or event of any kind, when either of the same is held, given or takes place in connection with the dissemination of information which is not restricted under the ordinary rules of decency, good morals, public peace, safety and good order, or any charitable function, provided that nothing contained in this clause shall be deemed to authorize the holding, giving or taking place or any meeting, theatrical performance, exhibition or event of any kind without a license, where such license is or may be required by law of this commonwealth or under any ordinance of this City.
GARBAGE
Putrescible animal and vegetable wastes resulting from the handling, preparation, cooking and consumption of food.
LITTER
Garbage, refuse and rubbish, as defined herein, and all other waste material which, if thrown or deposited, as herein prohibited, tends to create a danger to public health, safety and welfare.
NEWSPAPER
Any newspaper of general circulation as defined by general law, any newspaper duly entered with the Post Office Department of the United States, in accordance with federal statute or regulation, and any newspaper filed and recorded with any recording officer as provided by general law and, in addition thereto, shall mean and include any periodical or current magazine regularly published with not less than four issues per year and sold to the public.
NONCOMMERCIAL HANDBILL
Any printed or written matter, any sample or device, dodger, circular, leaflet, pamphlet, newspaper, magazine, paper, booklet or any other printed or otherwise reproduced original or copies of any matter of literature not included in the aforesaid definitions of a "commercial handbill" or "newspaper."
PARK
A park, reservation, playground, beach, recreation center or any other public area in the City owned or used by the City and devoted to active or passive recreation.
PERSON
Any person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, company or organization of any kind.
PRIVATE PREMISES
Any dwelling, house, building or other structure, designed or used either wholly or in part for private residential purposes, whether inhabited or temporarily or continuously uninhabited or vacant, and shall include any yard, grounds, walk, driveway, porch, steps, vestibule or mailbox belonging or appurtenant to such dwelling, house, building or other structure.
PUBLIC PLACE
Any and all streets, sidewalks, boulevards, alleys or other public ways and any and all public parks, squares, spaces, grounds and buildings.
REFUSE
All putrescible and nonputrescible solid wastes (except body wastes), including garbage, rubbish, ashes, street cleanings, dead animals, abandoned automobile and solid market and industrial wastes.
RUBBISH
Nonputrescible solid wastes, consisting of both combustible and noncombustible wastes, such as paper, wrappings, cigarettes, cardboard, tin cans, yard clippings, leaves, wood, glass, bedding, crockery and similar materials.
VEHICLE
Every device in, upon or by which any person or property is or may be transported or drawn upon a highway, including devices used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks.
No person shall throw or deposit litter in or upon any street, sidewalk or other public place within the City except in public receptacles, in authorized private receptacles for collection or in official City dumps.
Persons placing litter in public receptacles or in authorized private receptacles shall so do in such a manner as to prevent it from being carried or deposited by the elements upon any street, sidewalk or other public place or upon private property.
No person shall sweep into or deposit in any gutter, street or other public place within the City the accumulation of litter from any building or lot or from any public or private sidewalk or driveway. Persons owning or occupying property shall keep the sidewalk in front of their premises free of litter.
No person owning or occupying a place of business shall sweep into or deposit in any gutter, street or other public place within the City the accumulation of litter from any building or lot or from any public or private sidewalk or driveway. Persons owning or occupying places of business within the City shall keep the sidewalk in front of their business premises free of litter.
[Added 10-19-1987 by Ord. No. 87-1738B]
A. 
The owners, landlords or tenants in control of commercial areas to which the public is invited, including shopping centers, restaurants, auto agencies, gas stations, muffler shops, supermarkets, stores, office buildings and hotels and any other such premises, shall maintain their parking areas and grounds free of litter, rubbish and refuse.
B. 
Any said owner, landlord or tenant in control of commercial areas to which the public is invited found not to be in compliance with this section shall be notified in writing by the enforcing officer to comply with said section. Within 10 days of receipt of said notice, said owner, landlord or tenant in control of said commercial areas shall cause said area to be free from all litter, rubbish or refuse. Failure to comply with the notice shall result in a violation of this section, and each day that the party remains in violation shall constitute a separate offense.
No person, while a driver or passenger in a vehicle, shall throw or deposit litter upon any street or other public place within the City or upon private property.
No person shall drive or move any truck or other vehicle within the City unless such vehicle is so constructed or loaded as to prevent any load, contents or litter from being blown or deposited upon any street, alley or other public place, nor shall any person drive or move any commercial vehicle or truck within the City, the wheels or tires of which carry onto or deposit in any street, alley or other public place mud, dirt, sticky substances, litter or foreign matter of any kind.
No person shall throw or deposit litter in any park within the City except in public receptacles and in such a manner that the litter will be prevented from being carried or deposited by the elements upon any part of the park or upon any street or other public place. Where public receptacles are not provided, all such litter shall be carried away from the park by the person responsible for its presence and properly disposed of elsewhere as provided herein.
No person shall throw or deposit litter in any fountain, pond, lake, stream or any other body of water in a park or elsewhere within the City.
No person shall throw or deposit any commercial or noncommercial handbill in or upon any sidewalk, street or other public place within the City, nor shall any person hand out or distribute or sell any commercial handbill in any public place; provided, however, that it shall not be unlawful on any sidewalk, street or other public place within the City for any person to hand out or distribute, without charge to the receiver thereof, any noncommercial handbill to any person willing to accept it.
No person shall throw or deposit any commercial or noncommercial handbill in or upon any vehicle; provided, however, that it shall not be unlawful in any public place for a person to hand out or distribute without charge to the receiver thereof a noncommercial handbill to any occupant of a vehicle who is willing to accept it.
No person shall throw or deposit any commercial or noncommercial handbill in or upon any private premises which are temporarily or continuously uninhabited or vacant.
No person shall throw, deposit or distribute any commercial or noncommercial handbill upon any private premises if requested by anyone thereon not to do so or if there is placed on said premises in a conspicuous position near the entrance thereof a sign bearing the words "no trespassing," "no peddlers or agents," "no advertisement" or any similar notice, indicating in any matter that the occupants of said premises do not desire to be molested or have their right of privacy disturbed or to have any such handbills left upon such premises.
A. 
No person shall throw, deposit or distribute any commercial or noncommercial handbill in or upon private premises which are inhabited, except by handling or transmitting any such handbill directly to the owner, occupant or other person then present in or upon such private premises; provided, however, that in case of inhabited private premises which are not posted, as provided in this article, such person, unless requested by anyone upon such premises not to do so, may place or deposit any such handbill in or upon such inhabited private premises if such handbill is so placed or deposited as to secure or prevent such handbill from being blown or drifted about such premises or sidewalks, streets or other public places, and except that mailboxes may not be so used when so prohibited by federal postal law or regulations.
B. 
Exemption for mail and newspapers. The provisions of this section shall not apply to the distribution of mail by the United States nor to newspapers (as defined herein), except that newspapers shall be placed on private property in such a manner as to prevent their being carried or deposited by the elements upon any street, sidewalk or other public place or upon private property.
No person in an aircraft shall throw out, drop or deposit within the City any litter, handbill or any other object.
No person shall throw or deposit litter on any occupied private property within the City, whether owned by such person or not, except that the owner or person in control of private property may maintain authorized private receptacles for collection in such a manner that litter will be prevented from being carried or deposited by the elements upon any street, sidewalk or other public place or upon any private property.
No person shall throw or deposit litter on any open or vacant private property within the City limits, whether owned by such person or not.
A. 
Notice to remove. The Building Commissioner or his agent is hereby authorized and empowered to notify the owner of any open or vacant private property within the City limits or the agent of such owner to properly dispose of litter located on such owner's property which is dangerous to public health, safety or welfare. Such notice shall be by registered mail, addressed to said owner at his last known address.
[Amended 10-6-2014 by Ord. No. 14-1005921A]
B. 
Action upon noncompliance. Upon the failure, neglect or refusal of any owner or agent so notified to properly dispose of litter dangerous to the public health, safety or welfare within 10 days after receipt of written notice provided for in Subsection A above or within 30 days after the date of such notice in the event that the same is returned to the office of the City Building Commissioner because of its inability to make delivery thereof, provided that the same was properly addressed to the last known address of such owner or agent, the Building Commissioner or his agent is hereby authorized and empowered to pay for the disposing of such litter or to order its disposal by the City.
[Amended 10-6-2014 by Ord. No. 14-1005921A]
C. 
Charge included in tax bill. When the City has effected the removal of such dangerous litter or has paid for its removal, the actual cost thereof, plus accrued interest at the rate of 8% per annum from the date of the completion of the work, if not paid by such owner prior thereto shall be charged to the owner of such property on the next regular tax bill forwarded to such owner by the City, and said charge shall be due and payable by said owner at the time of payment of such bill.
D. 
Recorded statement constitutes lien. Where the full amount due the City is not paid by such owner within 30 days after the disposal of such litter, as provided for in Subsections A and B above, then, and in that case, the Treasurer shall cause to be recorded in the Registry of Deeds, Middlesex County, a sworn statement showing the cost and expense incurred for the work, the date the work was done and the location of the property on which said work was done. The recordation of such sworn statement shall constitute a lien and privilege on the property and shall remain in full force and effect for the amount due in principal and interest, plus costs of court, if any, for collection, until final payment has been made. Said costs and expenses shall be collected in the manner fixed by law for the collection of taxes and, further, shall be subject to a delinquent penalty of 8% in the event that the same is not paid in full on or before the date the tax bill upon which said charge appears becomes delinquent. Sworn statements recorded in accordance with the provisions hereof shall be prima facie evidence that all legal formalities have been complied with and that the work has been done properly and satisfactorily and shall be full notice to every person concerned that the amount of the statement, plus interest, constitutes a charge against the property designated or described in the statement and that the same is due and collectible as provided by law.
Any person violating any of the provisions of this article shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined in an amount not exceeding $200. Each day such violation is committed or permitted to continue shall constitute a separate offense and shall be punishable as such hereunder.