[Adopted 10-2-2003 by L.L. No. 4-2003]
In accordance with Subdivision 3 of § 20 of the Municipal Home Rule Law, the local laws, ordinances and certain resolutions of the City of Troy, as codified by General Code Publishers Corp., and consisting of the Charter and Chapters 1 through 285, together with an Appendix, shall be known collectively as the "Code of the City of Troy," hereafter termed the "Code." Wherever reference is made in any of the local laws, ordinances and resolutions contained in the "Code of the City of Troy" to any other local law, ordinance or resolution appearing in said Code, such reference shall be changed to the appropriate chapter title, chapter number, article number or section number where such legislation appears in the Code, as if such local law, ordinance or resolution had been formally amended to so read.
The provisions of the Code, insofar as they are substantively the same as those of local laws, ordinances and resolutions in force immediately prior to the enactment of the Code by this local law, are intended as a continuation of such local laws, ordinances and resolutions and not as new enactments, and the effectiveness of such provisions shall date from the date of adoption of the prior local law, ordinance or resolution. 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 Troy, and it is the intention of said Council that each such provision contained within the Code is hereby reaffirmed as it appears in said Code. Only such provisions of former local laws and ordinances as are omitted from this Code shall be deemed repealed or abrogated by the provisions of § 1-3 below.
All ordinances or parts of ordinances inconsistent
with the provisions contained in the Code adopted by this ordinance
are hereby repealed; provided, however, that such repeal shall only
be to the extent of such inconsistency, and any valid legislation
of the City of Troy which is not in conflict with the provisions of
the Code shall be deemed to remain in full force and effect.
The repeal of local laws and ordinances provided for in § 1-3 of this local law shall not affect the following classes of local laws, ordinances, rights and obligations, which are hereby expressly saved from repeal:
A.
Any right or liability established, accrued or incurred
under any legislative provision of the City of Troy prior to the effective
date of this local law or any action or proceeding brought for the
enforcement of such right or liability.
B.
Any offense or act committed or done before the effective
date of this local law in violation of any legislative provision of
the City of Troy or any penalty, punishment or forfeiture which may
result therefrom.
C.
Any prosecution, indictment, action, suit or other
proceeding pending or any judgment rendered prior to the effective
date of this local law brought pursuant to any legislative provision
of the City of Troy.
D.
Any agreement entered into or any franchise, license,
right, easement or privilege heretofore granted or conferred by the
City of Troy.
E.
Any local law or ordinance of the City of Troy providing
for the laying out, opening, altering, widening, relocating, straightening,
establishing grade, changing name, improvement, acceptance or vacation
of any right-of-way, easement, street, road, highway, park or other
public place within the City of Troy or any portion thereof.
F.
Any local law or ordinance of the City of Troy appropriating
money or transferring funds, promising or guaranteeing the payment
of money or authorizing the issuance and delivery of any bond of the
City of Troy or other instruments or evidence of the City's indebtedness.
G.
Local laws or ordinances authorizing the purchase,
sale, lease or transfer of property or any lawful contract, agreement
or obligation.
H.
The levy or imposition of special assessments or charges.
I.
The annexation or dedication of property.
J.
Any local law or ordinance relating to salaries and
compensation.
K.
Any local law or ordinance amending the Zoning Map.
L.
Any local law or ordinance relating to or establishing
a pension plan or pension fund for City employees.
M.
Any local law or ordinance or portion of a local law
or ordinance establishing a specific fee amount for any license, permit
or service obtained from the City.
N.
Any local law adopted subsequent to July 10, 2002.
If any clause, sentence, paragraph, section,
article, chapter or part of this local law or of any local law, ordinance
or resolution included in this Code now or through supplementation
shall be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid,
such judgment shall not affect, impair or invalidate the remainder
thereof but shall be confined in its operation to the clause, sentence,
paragraph, section, article, chapter or part thereof directly involved
in the controversy in which such judgment shall have been rendered.
A copy of the Code, in loose-leaf form, has
been filed in the office of the City Clerk of the City of Troy and
shall remain there for use and examination by the public until final
action is taken on this local law; and, if this local law shall be
adopted, such copy shall be certified to by the City Clerk of the
City of Troy by impressing thereon the Seal of the City of Troy, and
such certified copy shall remain on file in the office of said City
Clerk to be made available to persons desiring to examine the same
during all times while the said Code is in effect. The enactment and
publication of this local law, coupled with the availability of a
copy 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.
Any and all additions, deletions, amendments
or supplements to any of the local laws, ordinances and resolutions
known collectively as the "Code of the City of Troy" or any new local
laws, ordinances or resolutions, when enacted or 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 additions,
deletions, amendments or supplements. Whenever such additions, deletions,
amendments or supplements to the Code shall be enacted or adopted,
they shall thereafter be printed and, as provided hereunder, inserted
in the loose-leaf book containing said Code as amendments and supplements
thereto. Nothing contained in this local law shall affect the status
of any local law, ordinance or resolution contained herein, and such
local laws, ordinances or resolutions may be amended, deleted or changed
from time to time as the City Council deems desirable.
It shall be the duty of the City Clerk to keep
up-to-date the certified copy of the book containing the Code of the
City of Troy required to be filed in the office of the City Clerk
for use by the public. All changes in said Code and all local laws,
ordinances and resolutions adopted by the City Council subsequent
to the enactment of this local law in such form as to indicate the
intention of said City Council to be a part of said Code shall, when
finally enacted or adopted, be included therein by temporary attachment
of copies of such changes, local laws, ordinances or resolutions until
such changes, local laws, ordinances or resolutions are printed as
supplements to said Code book, at which time such supplements shall
be inserted therein.
Copies of the Code, or any chapter or portion
of it, may be purchased from the City Clerk, or an authorized agent
of the Clerk, upon the payment of a fee to be set by resolution of
the City Council. The Clerk may also arrange for procedures for the
periodic supplementation of the Code.
Any person who, without authorization from the
City Clerk, changes or amends, by additions or deletions, any part
or portion of the Code of the City of Troy or who alters or tampers
with such Code in any manner whatsoever which will cause the legislation
of the City of Troy to be misrepresented thereby or who violates any
other provision of this local law shall be guilty of an offense and
shall, upon conviction thereof, be subject to a fine of not more than
$250 or imprisonment for a term of not more than 15 days, or both.
A.
In compiling and preparing the local laws, ordinances and resolutions for publication as the Code of the City of Troy, no changes in the meaning or intent of such local laws, ordinances and resolutions have been made, except as provided for in Subsection B hereof. In addition, certain grammatical changes and other minor nonsubstantive changes were made in one or more of said pieces of legislation. It is the intention of the City Council that all such changes be adopted as part of the Code as if the local laws, ordinances and resolutions had been previously formally amended to read as such.
B.
Global changes.
(1)
Nomenclature changes. The following changes in nomenclature
were made throughout the Code and Charter:
(a)
"Board of Equalization and Assessment" to "Board
of Real Property Services."
(b)
"City Manager" to "Mayor."
(c)
"City Attorney" to "Corporation Counsel."
(d)
"Dog Warden" to "Animal Control Officer."
(e)
"Building Code" to "Uniform Fire Prevention
and Building Code."
(f)
"Comprehensive Master Plan" and "Master Plan"
to "Comprehensive Plan."
(2)
Penalties. In the following sections, penalties have been updated to a maximum of a fine of $250, imprisonment for a maximum period of 15 days, or both: §§ 47-8; 51-7E(1) and (2) and F(3); 83-16A; 120-9; 148-12; 158-7; 188-19A and C; 201-5; 216-3B; 220-7; 233-3B(1)(f)[2]; 233-5; 247-4; 275-22D; 285-44.
(3)
Statutory references. In the following sections, the statutory references have been updated and revised to reflect the current citation: §§ 26-1; 71-10A; 83-9A; 83-11B; 141-51D; 141-72; 181-1; 233-7; 275-11.
(4)
Fees. In the following sections, fees have been removed and reference made to fees adopted by resolution of governing body: §§ 113-5; 120-4; 128-15.
(5)
Gender-neutral language. Throughout the Code, revisions
have been made to words and sentence construction to accommodate a
change to gender-neutral language. As an example and not by way of
limitation, words such as he/she, his/hers, him/her, himself/herself,
Council member, fire fighter and Chair, among others, have been used
to accomplish this. After initial publication of the Code, revisions
to use gender-neutral language will be made to legislation being included
through the course of normal supplementation of the Code.
C.
In addition, the amendments and/or additions as set
forth in Schedule A[1] attached hereto and made a part hereof are made herewith,
to become effective upon the effective date of this local law. (Chapter
and section number references are to the local laws, ordinances and
resolutions as they have been renumbered and appear in the Code.)
[1]
Editor’s Note: In accordance with § 1-11B, the chapters, parts and sections which were added, amended, adopted or deleted by this local law are indicated throughout the Code by a footnote referring to Chapter 1, General Provisions, Article I. During routine supplementation, footnotes indicating amendments, additions or deletions will be replaced with the following history: “Amended (added, deleted) 10-2-2003 by L.L. No. 4-2003.” Schedule A, which contains a complete description of all changes, is on file in the City offices.
This local law shall take effect immediately
upon filing with the Secretary of State of the State of New York.
In the construction of this Code, and of all
ordinances, the following rules shall be observed, unless such construction
would be inconsistent with the manifest intent of the City Council:
A.
The provisions of this Code shall be liberally construed
to effect the purposes expressed therein or implied from the expression
thereof. In case of doubt or ambiguity in the meaning of such provisions,
the general shall yield to the particular. Reference for interpretation
and construction shall tend to further the accomplishment of the elimination
of the particular mischiefs for which the provisions were enacted.
Words shall be construed in their common and usual significance unless
the contrary is clearly indicated.
B.
City; corporation. Whenever the words "the City,"
"this City," "the corporation" or "this corporation" are used, they
shall be construed as if the words "of Troy, New York," followed them.
C.
City Council. Whenever the words "City Council" are
used, they shall be construed to mean the City Council of the City
of Troy.
D.
Computation of time. Whenever a notice is required
to be given or an act to be done a certain length of time before any
proceeding shall be had, the day on which such notice is given or
such act is done shall be counted in computing the time, but the day
on which such proceeding is to be had shall not be counted.
E.
Corporate limits; corporation limits. Whenever the
words "corporate limits," "corporation limits" or "City limits" are
used, they shall mean the legal boundary of the City of Troy.
F.
Delegation of authority. Whenever a provision appears
requiring the City Council or the head of a department of the City
to do some act or make certain inspections, it is to be construed
to authorize the City Council or the head of the department to designate,
delegate and authorize subordinates to perform the required act or
make the required inspection unless the terms of the provision or
section designates otherwise.
G.
Gender. A word importing the masculine gender only
shall extend and be applied to females and to firms, partnerships
and corporations as well as to males.
H.
Interpretation. In the interpretation and application
of any provision of this Code, it shall be held to be the minimum
requirements adopted for the promotion of the public health, safety,
comfort, convenience and general welfare. Where any provision of the
Code imposes greater restrictions upon the subject matter than the
general provision imposed by the Code, the provision imposing the
greater restriction or regulation shall be deemed to be controlling.
I.
Joint authority. All words giving a joint authority
to three or more persons or officers shall be construed as giving
such authority to a majority of such persons or officers.
J.
Name of officer. Whenever the name of an officer is
given, it shall be construed as though the words "of the City of Troy"
were added.
K.
Nontechnical and technical words. Words and phrases
shall be construed according to the common and approved usage of the
language, but technical words and phrases and such others as may have
acquired a peculiar and appropriate meaning in law shall be construed
and understood according to such meaning.
L.
Number. A word importing the singular number only
may extend and be applied to several persons and things as well as
to one person and thing.
M.
Oath. The word "oath" shall be construed to include
an affirmation in all cases in which, by law, an affirmation may be
substituted for an oath, and in such cases, the words "swear" and
"sworn" shall be equivalent to the words "affirm" and "affirmed."
N.
Or; and. "Or" may be read "and," and "and" may be
read "or" if the sense requires it.
O.
Preceding; following. The words "preceding" and "following"
mean "next before" and "next after," respectively.
P.
Signature or subscription. The "signature" or "subscription"
of a person shall include a mark when the person cannot write.
Q.
Tense. Words used in the past or present tense include
the future as well as the past and present.
As used in this article and in the Code of the
City of Troy, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
The County of Rensselaer in the State of New York.
Include persons, firms, associations, corporations, clubs
and partnerships, whether acting by themselves or through a servant,
agent or employee.
The Mayor of the City of Troy.
The word "month" shall mean a calendar month.
When applied to a building or land, includes any part owner,
joint owner, tenant in common, tenant in partnership, joint tenant,
or tenant by the entirety, of the whole or of a part of such building
or land.
Extends and applies to associations, clubs, societies, firms,
partnerships and bodies politic and corporate as well as to individuals.
Includes every species of property except real property,
as herein described.
Place or places.
Includes real and personal property.
Any park, cemetery, school yard or open space adjacent thereto,
and all beaches, canals or other waterways.
Include lands, tenements and hereditaments.
Construed to mean the place adopted by a person as his place
of habitation, and to which, whenever he is absent, he has the intention
of returning. When a person eats at one place and sleeps at another,
the place where such person sleeps shall be deemed his residence.
The City or Corporate Seal.
Any portion of a street between the curbline and the adjacent
property line, intended for the use of pedestrians, excluding parkways.
Construed to mean the State of New York.
Construed to embrace streets, avenues, boulevards, roads,
alleys, lanes, viaducts and all other public highways in the City.
When applied to a building or land, includes any person holding
a written or oral lease or who occupies the whole or a part of such
buildings or lands, either alone or with others.
Seven days.
Construed to include any representation of words, letters
or figures, whether by printing or otherwise.
A calendar year.
