[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors of the Township
of Towamencin 2-27-1991 by Ord. No. 91-1. (This ordinance supersedes
former Ch. 104, Nuisances, adopted 8-1-1960 by Ord. No. 23, as amended.)
Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
False alarms — See Ch. 44, Art I.
Brush, grass and weeds — See Ch. 49.
Outdoor burning — See Ch. 54.
Dogs — See Ch. 64.
Garbage and other solid waste — See Ch. 84.
Littering — See Ch. 93.
Parks — See Ch. 107.
Property maintenance — See Ch. 117.
Inoperative, unlicensed and junk vehicles — See Ch. 151.
In accordance with the Second Class Township Code, 53 P.S. § 65712,[1] regarding nuisances, Towamencin Township has determined
that the prohibition of nuisances is an important public concern because
of the impact on the public health, safety and welfare, and the Township
believes there is a necessity to establish regulations to prohibit
nuisances, including but not limited to accumulations of garbage and
rubbish, the storage of abandoned or junked automobiles and the depositing
of hazardous substances on public or private property; and to establish
penalties for violation of such regulations.
[1]
Editor's Note: See now 53 P.S. § 66529 (per
reorganization by the Act of 11-9-1995, P.L. 350, No. 60.
This chapter shall be known as the "Ordinance for the Abatement
of Nuisances."
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
The cleanup or removal of deposited hazardous substances,
including such actions as may be necessary to monitor, assess and
evaluate the potential threat of hazardous substances to the public
health, safety and welfare; actions to prevent, minimize and mitigate
damage to the public health and the disposal of removed materials.
Any spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, emptying, discharging,
injecting, escaping, leaching, dumping or disposing.
Any substance or combination of substances which, because
of its quantity, concentration or physical, chemical or infectious
characteristics, may:
Cause or significantly contribute to an increase in mortality
or an increase in serious irreversible or incapacitating reversible
illness;
Otherwise pose a danger to the health, safety or welfare of
the public;
Pose a substantial present or potential hazard to human health
or the environment when improperly treated, stored, transported or
disposed of, or otherwise managed; or
Damage or impede the use of public highways, sewers or other
public improvements.
That which is set up, maintained or continued so as to be
injurious to health or that which is an obstruction to the use of
property by interfering with the health, safety, comfort or repose
of the public.
Any individual, partnership, association, firm, corporation,
joint venture or other private or commercial entity, as well as all
officers, agents, servants, employees or others acting for any of
the same, and shall be taken as applying in the singular or plural
as the case may require.
Any person who creates, continues or maintains any public nuisance
within the Township shall be deemed guilty of a violation of this
chapter and shall be liable for the expense and abatement and remedy
thereof, as well as such fines and penalties as may be imposed.
Without in any manner intending to limit or restrict the generality
of the above definition of and prohibition against a nuisance, the
following are hereby declared to constitute nuisances:
A.Â
Dumping. It shall be unlawful to throw, deposit or dump any paper,
building material, construction material, trash, rubbish, ashes, junk,
waste or discarded materials of any kind on any street, highway or
any public place or on any private property within the limit of Towamencin
Township.
B.Â
Lot maintenance. It shall be unlawful for any owner or occupant upon
any property within Towamencin Township to permit or suffer the accumulation
thereon of any water that stagnates, paper, trash, rubbish, ashes,
junk or waste.
C.Â
Hazardous substances. The existence of hazardous substances deposited
upon public roadways, public lands or private property within the
Township shall be deemed a public nuisance and shall be abated immediately
by the person responsible for such deposit of hazardous substances.
The violation of any of the foregoing sections shall be deemed to be and constitute a nuisance. Whenever it is found that any person maintains such nuisance or nuisances, as prohibited in § 104-5 of this chapter, within the Township, the Board of Supervisors of the Township, by its employees or agents, shall serve notice by any means practicable upon the person responsible for the public nuisance. The notice shall sufficiently describe the condition complained of and shall require the nuisance to be abated within the time as served by the notice, which shall not be less than five days, unless the Board of Supervisors or the Emergency Management Director shall determine that the nature of the hazardous substance deposited is of such nature as to pose an immediate threat to the public health, safety and welfare.
In the event that the Township Emergency Management Director
shall determine the nature of the hazardous substance deposited is
of such nature as to pose an immediate threat to the public health,
safety and welfare, the Township's Emergency Management Director,
or his designee in accordance with Township policy, shall act to abate
said public nuisance, and any cost of the abatement by the Township
or other emergency service organization shall be paid by the person
who causes or contributes to the deposit of the hazardous substance.
Where a nuisance is determined not to pose an immediate threat
to the public health, safety and welfare, and where the person who
maintains such nuisance or nuisances fails, neglects or refuses to
make such conditions safe or to correct or remove such conditions
to the satisfaction of the Township, then the Township may abate or
cause to be abated said nuisance, and the expense of such abatement
shall be paid by the responsible person.
All costs and expenses incurred by the Township in the abatement
of such condition shall be a lien upon the premises, and whenever
a bill therefor remains unpaid for a period of 60 days after it has
been rendered, the Township Solicitor shall file a municipal claim
or an action of assumpsit for such cost and expenses, together with
a penalty of 10%, in the manner provided by law for the collection
of municipal claims.
A.Â
Any person or persons, firms or corporation who shall violate any
of the provisions of this chapter, upon conviction thereof, shall
be liable to pay a fine or penalty not to exceed $1,000 for each and
every offense. All fines and penalties imposed by this chapter are
recoverable by summary proceedings before the District Justice, and
all suits or actions at law instituted for the recovery thereof are
to be in the name and for the use of Towamencin Township, against
which the offenses are committed. In default of payment of any fine
or penalty imposed by any District Justice under the provisions of
this chapter, the person or persons so offending may be committed
to the Montgomery County Prison for a period not exceeding 30 days.
B.Â
Each day a violation is committed shall constitute a separate offense
and shall be punishable as such hereunder.
C.Â
This section shall not preclude the Township from any other remedy
it may have at law or equity.
This chapter shall be construed under the laws of the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania.
The Township may, from time to time, modify the rules and regulations
adopted in accordance with this chapter or modifications to this chapter.
