[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Commissioners of the Township of
South Fayette at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions,
Art. I). Amendments noted where applicable.]
This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "South Fayette Township
Junkyard Ordinance."
A.
In this chapter use of the singular shall include the
plural, and use of the plural shall include the singular. The masculine gender
shall include the feminine and neuter genders.
B.
HIGHWAY OR STATE HIGHWAY
JUNK
JUNK DEALER
JUNKYARD
PERSON
ROAD OR PUBLIC ROAD
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have
the meanings indicated:
A road or highway of the state highway system.
Any and all discarded materials, articles or things, including but
not limited to scrapped motor vehicles, parts of motor vehicles, bodies of
motor vehicles, vehicles which are inoperable and do not have a current and
valid inspection sticker as required by the Motor Vehicle Laws of the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania, scrapped or inoperable machinery and scrapped or inoperable
farm equipment.
Any person who buys, sells, salvages, stores, accumulates and/or
disposes of junk.
Any place in the township where junk is stored or accumulated. Any
premises having two or more unlicensed automobiles thereon shall be deemed
to be a junkyard.
Any natural person, association, partnership, firm, corporation or
other legally recognized entity.
A road of the township.
On or after the effective date of this chapter, no person shall be a
junk dealer or establish a junkyard in the township, except as authorized
by this chapter and only after having obtained a license for the operation
of a junkyard in accordance with this chapter.
Application for a license to operate a junkyard shall be made in writing
by any junk dealer under oath and in the form prescribed by the Board of Commissioners
of the township and shall contain the name and address of the applicant. The
application shall also contain the address and description of the premises
upon which the junkyard is to be operated, the names and addresses of any
owner or owners of said property if other than the applicant, any structures
erected on the premises and a description of the operation plan for said junkyard.
If the applicant is a partnership or association, the application shall furnish
the names and addresses of all partners. If the applicant is a corporation,
the application shall furnish the names and addresses of each officer and
director thereof. The application shall be signed by the applicant, if the
applicant is an individual; by all members of the association or partnership,
if the applicant is an association or partnership; or by the president and
attested by the secretary, if the applicant is a corporation.
No license issued under this chapter shall be transferred or assigned
or used by any person other than the one to whom it was issued, and no junk
dealer's license shall be issued at any location other than the one prescribed
in the application upon which it is issued.
Any junk dealer shall pay an annual license fee, as set by resolution
of the Board of Commissioners, for every junkyard license or renewal thereof
issued under this chapter. All licenses shall be valid for a term of one year
from the date of issuance.
A.
Upon receipt of an application, the Board of Commissioners shall review the license application and operational plans contained therein to determine if the requirements of § 166-8 herein are met. The Board shall determine additionally whether any outstanding notices of violation of township ordinances exist.
B.
Any person who has been denied a license or whose license
has been suspended or revoked may appeal the denial, suspension or revocation
to the Board of Commissioners. Such appeal shall be made, in writing, within
10 days after such decision has been made. The appeal shall be verified by
an affidavit and shall be filed with the Township Manager. The appellant or
his representative shall have the right to appear and be heard, if such right
is requested in the written appeal. The appeal shall be accompanied by the
appeal fee established by resolution or ordinance of the Board of Commissioners,
and no appeal shall be considered complete without payment of the appeal fee.
A prompt decision on such appeal shall be made by the Board of Commissioners.
C.
If the application for a license to operate a junkyard
is granted, the Township Manager shall issue a license to the applicant designating
the name of the junk dealer, the address of the junkyard and the applicable
dates of the license.
D.
All junkyard licenses shall be conspicuously posted upon
the premises operated as a junkyard.
All junkyards shall conform to the following requirements:
A.
All structures and junk shall be set back from any adjoining
public roadways a minimum of 50 feet. A fence shall be constructed or planted
along parts of the junkyard which are adjacent to public highways or roads
or residential areas. Said fence shall be of solid construction, natural materials
or living materials and shall be designed not to permit the sight of the junk
from outside the junkyard. The applicant for a license under this chapter
shall submit a plan for the proposed construction materials, natural materials
or living materials to the Board of Commissioners of the township for approval
prior to construction, and said approval shall not be unreasonably withheld.
B.
The junkyard shall at all times be maintained so as not
to constitute a nuisance or impair the health, safety and welfare of the township
residents.
C.
All junk shall be stored and arranged so as to permit
access by fire-fighting and other emergency equipment and to prevent the accumulation
of stagnant water. Junked automobiles shall be spaced in rows with at least
15 feet between each double row. Junk shall not be piled to a height of more
than seven feet from the ground.
D.
All gasoline shall be drained from any junked automobile
into containers and removed from the vehicle within 24 hours from arrival
on the premises and shall be stored at only one location of the licensed premises.
This location shall be marked and identified by signs for fire-fighting and
emergency purposes.
E.
Every licensee hereunder shall maintain records, in the
English language, at the time of acquisition of junk, of a full and complete
description thereof, including but not limited to the trade name, serial and/or
manufacturer's numbers, if any, the date and time of purchase or acquisition
and the name and address of the person from whom such junk was purchased,
acquired or received. Such records shall be retained for a period of five
years and shall be subject to inspection by the township.
F.
Every licensee hereunder shall keep and retain on the
licensed premises for a period of 48 hours after purchase, acquisition or
receipt thereof, every item of junk acquired and the original form, shape
or condition of said junk shall not be destroyed, disturbed or reduced for
a period of 48 hours.
G.
No garbage or other organic waste shall be stored on
such premises.
H.
No hazardous materials shall be stored on the premises.
For the purposes of this provision, "hazardous materials" shall be those defined
as such by regulations of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
I.
Operation of the junkyard shall comply with all applicable township ordinances, including but not limited to Chapter 240, Zoning, and state and federal regulations.
J.
All batteries shall be removed from any junked vehicle
within 24 hours from arrival on the premises. The batteries shall be stored
as defined by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection in one
location marked and identified by signs for fire-fighting and emergency purposes.
Any person operating a junkyard without obtaining a license as provided
for by this chapter or in violation of any of the requirements of this chapter
shall, upon conviction, be subject to a fine not more than $600, plus costs
of prosecution, or, in default of payment thereof, to a term of imprisonment
of not more than 30 days. Each day's violation shall be considered a
separate offense.
The Board of Commissioners is hereby empowered to take any action at
law or equity to enforce the provisions of this chapter, and this chapter
shall in no way impair or restrict remedies otherwise provided by any other
law or ordinance.
The Board of Commissioners of the township or the duly authorized agent
thereof may at any time enter upon and inspect the licensed premises for which
an application under this chapter is pending.
