[HISTORY: Adopted by the Council of the City
of Easton as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
[Adopted 2-11-2009 by Ord. No. 5149]
Pursuant to Section 1014.1 (53 P.S. § 36014.1) of the Third Class City Code, and §
C-2.16 of the City of Easton Home Rule Charter, the codification of a complete body of legislation for the City of Easton, County of Northampton, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, as revised, codified and consolidated into titles, chapters and sections by General Code, LLC, and consisting of Chapters
1 through
595, together with a Charter and an Appendix, are hereby approved, adopted, ordained and enacted as a single ordinance of the City of Easton, which shall be known and is hereby designated as the "Code of the City of Easton," hereinafter referred to as the "Code."
The provisions of this Code, insofar as they are substantively the same as those of ordinances in force immediately prior to the enactment of this ordinance, are intended as a continuation of such ordinances and not as new enactments, and the effectiveness of such provisions shall date from the date of adoption of the prior ordinance. All such provisions are hereby continued in full force and effect and are hereby reaffirmed as to their adoption by the City Council of the City of Easton, and it is the intention of said City Council that each such provision contained within the Code is hereby reenacted and reaffirmed as it appears in said Code. Only such provisions of former ordinances as are omitted from this Code shall be deemed repealed or abrogated by the provisions of §
1-3 below, and only new or changed provisions, as described in §
1-6 below, shall be deemed to be enacted from the effective date of this Code, as provided in §
1-14.1 below.
[Amended 3-23-2022 by Ord. No. 5775]
All ordinances or parts of ordinances of a general and permanent nature adopted by the City Council of the City of Easton and in force on the date of the adoption of this Code and not contained in the Code are hereby repealed as of the effective date given in §
1-14.1 below, except as hereinafter provided.
The adoption of this Code and the repeal of ordinances provided for in §
1-3 of this ordinance shall not affect the following ordinances, rights and obligations, which are hereby expressly saved from repeal; provided, however, that the repeal of ordinances pursuant to §
1-3 or the saving from repeal of ordinances pursuant to this section shall not be construed so as to revive any ordinance previously repealed, superseded or no longer of any effect:
A. Any
ordinance adopted subsequent to 10-22-2008.
B. Any
right or liability established, accrued or incurred under any legislative
provision of the City prior to the effective date of this ordinance
or any action or proceeding brought for the enforcement of such right
or liability or any cause of action acquired or existing.
C. Any
offense or act committed or done before the effective date of this
ordinance in violation of any legislative provision of the City or
any penalty, punishment or forfeiture which may result therefrom.
D. Any
prosecution, indictment, action, suit or other proceeding pending
or any judgment rendered prior to the effective date of this ordinance,
brought pursuant to any legislative provision of the City.
E. Any
franchise, license, right, easement or privilege heretofore granted
or conferred by the City or any lawful contract, obligation or agreement.
F. Any
ordinance appropriating money or transferring funds, promising or
guaranteeing the payment of money or authorizing the issuance and
delivery of any bond of the City or other instruments or evidence
of the City's indebtedness.
G. Any
ordinance adopting an annual budget or establishing an annual tax
rate.
H. Any
ordinance providing for the levy, imposition or collection of special
taxes, assessments or charges.
I. Any
ordinance authorizing the purchase, sale, lease or transfer of property
or acquiring property by acceptance of deed, condemnation or exercise
of eminent domain.
J. Any
ordinance annexing land to the City.
K. Any
ordinance providing for or requiring the construction or reconstruction
or opening of sidewalks, curbs and gutters.
L. Any
ordinance or part of an ordinance providing for laying out, opening,
altering, widening, relocating, straightening, establishing grade,
changing name, improvement, acceptance or vacation of any right-of-way,
easement, street, road, highway, sidewalk, park or other public place
or property or designating various streets as public highways.
M. Any
ordinance establishing water, sewer or other special purpose districts
and designating the boundaries thereof; providing for a system of
sewers or water supply lines; or providing for the construction, extension,
dedication, acceptance or abandonment of any part of a system of sewers
or water supply lines.
N. Any
ordinance providing for the making of public improvements.
O. Any
ordinance providing for the salaries and compensation of officers
and employees of the City or setting the bond of any officer or employee.
P. Any
ordinance concerning changes and amendments to the Zoning Map.
Q. Any
ordinance relating to or establishing a pension plan or pension fund
for municipal employees.
R. Ordinances
establishing specific no parking zones.
All ordinances of a general and permanent nature adopted subsequent to the date given in §
1-4A and/or prior to the date of adoption of this ordinance are hereby deemed to be a part of the Code and shall, upon being printed, be included therein. Attested copies of all such ordinances shall be temporarily placed in the Code until printed supplements are included.
A. In
compiling and preparing the ordinances of the City for adoption and
revision as part of the Code, certain nonsubstantive grammatical and
style changes were made in one or more of said ordinances.
B. Certain
nomenclature changes were also made during the course of the codification,
as follows:
(1) "Department of Environmental Resources (DER)" has been changed to
"Department of Environmental Protection (DEP)."
(2) "Department of Community Affairs" has been changed to "Department
of Community and Economic Development."
(3) "District Magistrate" has been changed to "Magisterial District Judge."
(4) "Justice of the Peace" has been changed to "Magisterial District
Judge."
(5) "Department of Public Services" has been changed to "Department of
Public Works."
(6) "Director of Public Services" has been changed to "Director of Public
Works."
(7) "City Health Officer" has been changed to "Chief Health Administrator."
C. It
is the intention of the City Council that all such changes be adopted
as part of the Code as if the ordinances so changed had been previously
formally amended to read as such.
In interpreting and applying the provisions of the Code, they
shall be held to be the minimum requirements for the promotion of
the public health, safety, comfort, convenience and general welfare.
Where the provisions of the Code impose greater restrictions or requirements
than those of any statute, other ordinance, resolution or regulation,
the provisions of the Code shall control. Where the provisions of
any statute, other ordinance, resolution or regulation impose greater
restrictions or requirements, the provisions of such statute, other
ordinance, resolution or regulation shall control.
A. Chapter
and article titles, headings and titles of sections and other divisions
in the Code or in supplements made to the Code are inserted in the
Code and may be inserted in supplements to the Code for the convenience
of persons using the Code and are not part of the legislation.
B. Editor's
notes indicating sources of sections, giving other information or
referring to the statutes or to other parts of the Code are inserted
in the Code and may be inserted in supplements to the Code for the
convenience of persons using the Code and are not part of the legislation.
At least one copy of the Code in a post-bound volume shall be
filed with the Ordinance Book in the office of the City Clerk and
shall remain there for use and examination by the public. Upon adoption,
such copy or copies shall be certified to by the City Clerk, as provided
by law, and such certified copy or copies shall remain on file in
the office of the City Clerk, available to persons desiring to examine
the same during all times while said Code is in effect.
Any and all additions, deletions, amendments or supplements
to the Code, when passed and adopted in such form as to indicate the
intention of the City Council to be a part thereof, shall be deemed
to be incorporated into such Code so that reference to the Code shall
be understood and intended to include such changes. Whenever such
additions, deletions, amendments or supplements to the Code shall
be adopted, they shall thereafter be printed and, as provided hereunder,
inserted in the post-bound book containing said Code as amendments
and supplements thereto.
It shall be the duty of the City Clerk or someone authorized
and directed by him or her to keep up-to-date the certified copy or
copies of the book containing the Code required to be filed in the
office of the City Clerk for the use of the public. All changes in
said Code and all legislation adopted by the City Council subsequent
to the effective date of this codification which the City Council
shall adopt specifically as part of the Code shall, when finally adopted,
be included therein by reference until such changes or new legislation
are printed as supplements to said Code books, at which time such
supplements shall be inserted therein.
The City Clerk, pursuant to law, shall cause to be published
in the manner required a notice of the introduction and of the adoption
of the Code in a newspaper of general circulation in the City. The
enactment and application of this ordinance, coupled with the publication
of the notices of introduction and adoption, as required by law, and
the availability of a copy or copies of the Code for inspection by
the public, shall be deemed, held and considered to be due and legal
publication of all provisions of the Code for all purposes.
It shall be unlawful for anyone to improperly change or amend,
by additions or deletions, or to alter or tamper with the Code or
any part or portion thereof, in any manner whatsoever, which will
cause the law of the City to be misrepresented thereby. Anyone violating
this section of this ordinance shall, upon conviction thereof, be
punished by a fine not exceeding $600, plus costs of prosecution,
and, in default of payment thereof, by imprisonment for a term not
exceeding 90 days.
The provisions of this ordinance and of the Code adopted hereby
are severable, and if any clause, sentence, subsection, section, article,
chapter or part thereof shall be adjudged by any court of competent
jurisdiction to be illegal, invalid or unconstitutional, such judgment
or decision shall not affect, impair or invalidate the remainder thereof
but shall be confined in its operation and application to the clause,
sentence, subsection, section, article, chapter or part thereof rendered
illegal, invalid or unconstitutional. It is hereby declared to be
the intent of the City Council that this ordinance and the Code would
have been adopted if such illegal, invalid or unconstitutional clause,
sentence, subsection, section, article, chapter or part thereof had
not been included therein.
All provisions of this ordinance and of the Code shall be in
force and effect on and after 30 days following adoption by Council
and amend the Codified Ordinances of the City of Easton effective
as of October 22, 2008.
[Adopted 3-25-1965 by Ord. No. 1865 (Art.
101 of the 1965 Codified Ordinances)]
[Amended 12-27-1989 by Ord. No. 3064]
In the construction of the Code the following
rules shall control, excepting those inconsistent with the manifest
intent of Council as disclosed in a particular provision, section
or article:
A. Authority. Whenever in the Code authority is given
to an officer or an act is required to be performed, such authority
may be exercised and such act may be performed, at the instance of
such officer, by a deputy or subordinate, unless contrary to law or
to the clear intent of any such particular provision.
B. Calendar; computation of time. "Month" and "year"
mean the calendar month or year. The time expressed in days within
which an act is to be done or a period is to expire shall be computed
by excluding the first and including the last day, except, if the
last day is Sunday, it shall be excluded. If time is expressed in
hours, the whole of Sunday shall be excluded.
C. City and municipality. "City" and "municipality" mean
the City of Easton, Pennsylvania.
D. Conjunctions. "And" shall include "or" and "or" shall
include "and" if the sense so requires.
E. Council. "Council" means the Council of the City of
Easton, Pennsylvania.
F. County. "County" means the County of Northampton,
Pennsylvania.
G. "Fire Department" means the Fire Department of the
City of Easton, Pennsylvania.
[Amended 3-23-2022 by Ord. No. 5775]
H. Gender. Words importing the masculine shall extend
and be applied to the feminine and neuter genders.
I. General rule. Except as otherwise provided in this
section, words and phrases shall be construed according to the common
usage of language; provided, however, that technical words and phrases
and such others as may have acquired a special meaning in the law
shall be construed according to such technical or special meaning.
J. Joint authority. Words giving authority to a board,
commission, authority or to three or more officers or employees or
other persons shall be construed as giving authority to a majority
thereof, unless otherwise specifically provided.
K. Keeper or proprietor. "Keeper" or "proprietor" means
and includes persons, firms, associations, corporations, clubs and
copartnerships, whether acting by themselves or as a servant, agent
or employee.
L. Land or real estate. "Land" or "real estate" includes
rights and easements of incorporeal nature.
M. Number. Words in the plural include the singular,
and in the singular include the plural number.
N. Oath. "Oath" includes affirmation. When an oath is
required or authorized by law, an affirmation in lieu thereof may
be taken by a person having conscientious scruples to taking an oath.
An affirmation shall have the same force and effect as an oath.
O. Owner. "Owner," when applied to property, includes
a part owner, joint owner or tenant in common, of the whole or any
part of such property.
P. Person. "Person" extends to and applies to associations,
clubs, corporations, firms, partnerships and bodies politic, as well
as to individuals.
Q. "Police Department" means the Police Department of
the City of Easton, Pennsylvania.
[Amended 3-23-2022 by Ord. No. 5775]
R. Premises. "Premises," when used as applicable to property,
extends to and includes land and buildings.
S. Property. "Property" includes real and personal and
any mixed and lesser estates or interests therein. "Personal property"
includes every kind of property except real property. "Real property"
includes lands, tenements and hereditaments.
T. Reasonable time. In all cases where provision is made
for an act to be done or notice to be given within a "reasonable time,"
it shall be deemed to mean such time only as may be necessary for
the prompt performance of such act or giving of such notice.
U. Sidewalk. "Sidewalk" means any portion of a street
between the curbline and the adjacent property line intended for the
use of pedestrians, excluding parkways.
V. State or commonwealth. "State" or "commonwealth" means
the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
W. Street. "Street" shall be construed to include alleys,
avenues, boulevards, lanes, roads, streets and other public ways in
the City.
X. Tenant or occupant. "Tenant" or "occupant," as applied
to building or land, extends and applies to any person holding a written
or oral lease of or who occupies the whole or any part of a building
or land, alone or with others.
Y. Tenses. The use of any verb in the present tense includes
the future.
Z. Third Class City Code. "The Third Class City Code"
means the Pennsylvania Act of June 28, 1951, P.L. 662, as amended. The sections of the Third Class City Code may be cited
herein as "3rd Class, _____."
AA. Written. "Written" or "in writing" shall be construed
to include any representation of words, letters or figures, whether
by printing or otherwise.
BB. Equivalent dwelling unit (sewer). "Equivalent dwelling
unit" for the purpose of determining fees means that part of a residential
dwelling or commercial or industrial or other establishment with sewage
flows equal to 250 gallons per day.
[Amended 1-25-2006 by Ord. No. 4770]
CC. Equivalent dwelling unit (water). "Equivalent dwelling
unit" for the purposes of determining fees means that part of a residential
dwelling or commercial or industrial or other establishment with water
flows equal to 200 gallons per day.
[Amended 1-25-2006 by Ord. No. 4770]
Whenever in the Code or in any ordinance of
the City any act is prohibited or is made or declared to be unlawful
or an offense, or whenever in the Code or in any ordinance the doing
of any act is required or the failure to do any act is declared to
be unlawful, where no specific penalty is provided therefor, the violator
of any such provision or any ordinance shall be fined not more than
$300 and, in default of payment of fine and costs, imprisoned for
not more than 90 days. Each day's continued violation shall constitute
a separate offense.