No person shall operate, establish or maintain a junkyard until
he has obtained a license to operate a junkyard business and has obtained
a certificate of approval for the location of such junkyard.
Application for the license and certificate of approved location
shall be made in writing to the Town Clerk of the Town of Oneonta,
and the application shall be accompanied by a certificate from the
Zoning Board of Appeals of the Town of Oneonta that the proposed location
is not within an established district restricted against such uses
or otherwise contrary to the prohibitions of the Zoning Ordinance.[1] The application shall contain a description of the land
to be included within the junkyard, the description to be of sufficient
clarity in order to establish its location.
The application shall be submitted by the Town Clerk to the
Town Board and a hearing shall be held thereon by the Town Board not
less than two nor more than eight weeks from the date of the receipt
of the application by the Town Board. Notice of the hearing shall
be given to the applicant by mail, postage prepaid, to the address
given in the application, and notice shall be published once in a
newspaper having a circulation within the municipality, which publication
shall be not less than seven days before the day of the hearing.
At the time and place set for the hearing, the Town Board shall
hear the applicant and all other persons wishing to be heard on the
application for a license to operate, establish or maintain a junkyard.
In considering such application, the Town Board shall take into account
the suitability of the applicant with reference to his ability to
comply with the fencing requirements or other reasonable regulations
concerning the proposed junkyard, to any record of convictions for
any type of larceny or receiving stolen goods and to any other matter
within the purposes of this chapter.
At the time and place of the hearing, the Town Board shall take
into account, after proof of legal ownership or right to use the property
set forth in the license application, the nature and development of
the surrounding property, such as the proximity of churches, schools,
hospitals, public buildings or other places of public gatherings,
and whether or not the proposed location can be reeasonably protected
from affecting the public health and safety by reason of offensive
or unhealthy odors or smoke or of other causes.
The Town Board may also take into account the clean, wholesome
and attractive environment, which is considered to be of vital importance
to continued general welfare of the citizens of the Town of Oneonta,
by considering whether or not the proposed location can be reasonably
protected from having an unfavorable effect thereon. In this connection,
the Town Board may consider collectively the type of roads servicing
the junkyard or from which the junkyard may be seen, the natural or
artificial barriers protecting the junkyard from view, the proximity
of the proposed junkyard to established residential and recreational
areas or main access routes thereto, as well as the reasonable availability
of other suitable sites for the junkyard.
After the hearing, the Town Board shall, within two weeks, make
a finding as to whether or not the application should be granted,
giving notice of its finding to the applicant by mail, postage prepaid,
to the address given on the application. If approved, the license,
including the certificate of approved location, shall be forthwith
issued, to remain in effect until the following April 1. Such approval
shall be personal to the applicant and not assignable. Licenses shall
be renewed thereafter upon payment of the annual license fee without
hearing, provided that all provisions of this chapter are complied
with during the license period, the junkyard does not become a public
nuisance under the common law and the applicant is not convicted of
any type of larceny or the receiving of stolen goods. The determination
of the Town Board may be reviewed under the provisions of the Civil
Practive Law and Rules.
The annual license fee shall be $25 or such other amount as
may be established from time to time by resolution of the Town Board,
to be paid at the time the application is made and annually thereafter
in the event of renewal. In the event that the application is not
granted, the fee shall be returned to the applicant. In addition to
the license fee, the applicant shall pay to the Town of Oneonta the
costs and expenses incurred in advertising and posting the notices
of hearing and any and all other expenses clearly attributable to
the processing of the application for a license, and no license shall
be issued until such costs and expenses are repaid to the town. The
Town Board may, in its discretion, require the applicant to either
prepay such expenses or deposit such sum as the Town Board may deem
necessary in anticipation of such expenses. Such expense moneys shall
not be repaid to the applicant even though a license may not be issued.
The license fee shall not be prorated in the event that an application
is made to cover only a part of a year. All renewals shall be issued
for the year beginning April 1 and terminating on the 31st day of
the following March.
