[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors of the Township
of Potter 10-9-1995 by Ord. No. 2-1995 (Ch. 10, Part 1, of the 1998 Code
of Ordinances). Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Solid waste — See Ch. 170.
The following words and phrases shall be construed throughout
this chapter to have the meanings herein indicated:
The Board of Supervisors of Potter Township, Centre County,
Pennsylvania.
Any discarded material or article and shall include, but
not be limited to, abandoned, junk or scrapped and scrappable motor
vehicles (see definition of "scrappable motor vehicles and machinery"),
machinery, paper, containers and structures, scrap material and other
waste material and rubbish but shall specifically exclude garbage
or refuse kept by a person on his own property in a proper container
for the purpose of immediate disposal and manure piles on an operating
farm.
A natural person, association, partnership, firm or corporation.
The singular shall include the plural and the masculine shall include
the feminine and the neuter.
Excluded shall be:
Vehicles or machinery housed in a garage or barn or where said
machinery is not normally visible in any part from a public road;
Vehicles or machinery either originally intended or subsequently
modified for use in agricultural or forestry pursuits; provided, said
machinery is demonstrably operable and owned by a person engaged in
agricultural or forestry pursuits;
Any vehicle having up-to-date registration with the Department
of Motor Vehicles.
Potter Township, Centre County, Pennsylvania.
This chapter may be cited and shall be known as "Potter Township
Junk and Rubbish Ordinance."
A.
From and after the effective date of this chapter, it shall be unlawful
for any person to maintain, accumulate, hold, dump or locate or permit
or cause to be maintained, accumulated, held, dumped or located on
any property, public or private, within the Township, any junk as
defined in this chapter.
B.
The maintenance, accumulation, holding, dumping or locating of junk,
as defined herein, on any property, public or private, within the
Township, shall be considered a nuisance at law and shall be subject
to all remedies available at law and equity for the abatement thereof.
C.
From and after the effective date of this chapter, it shall also
be unlawful to transport junk, as defined herein, into the Township
to be left on the property of another or on public property. Any person
transporting material, herein defined as junk, into the Township and
leaving or dumping the same on any property, public or private, shall
be guilty of an offense hereunder and may be prosecuted in the same
manner as an owner or tenant.
D.
Rubbish or junk with names and addresses thereon or of which ownership
may be traced shall constitute prima facie evidence that the person
whose name appears thereon, or to whom ownership can be traced, caused
or permitted the junk to be dumped on the site.
In order to carry out the intent and purpose of the Second Class
Township Code, as amended, and the provisions of this chapter, the
Supervisors hereby adopt the following regulations and procedure for
enforcement:
A.
Whenever junk, as defined herein, shall be found on a property, the
property owner and/or tenant or person alleged to have dumped the
junk shall be tendered written notice of violation by certified mail,
personal service, publication, service by the Sheriff of Centre County
or other means lawful under the Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure
for service of process. This notice shall be called "Notice of Violation"
and shall contain the following information:
(1)
Name of the reputed owner and/or tenant or person alleged to have
dumped the junk.
(2)
A general description of the offending material. This description
need only specify the general type and amount of offending material.
As long as the offending material can be reasonably identified from
the description, insufficiently specific description shall not be
a defense to prosecution under this chapter.
(3)
A due date for the removal of the material and reexamination of the
property to determine compliance. Such due date shall be not less
than 30 days from the date of service of process.
(4)
A recital of the penalties contained herein for noncompliance.
(5)
Reference to the applicable provisions of this chapter.
(6)
The name, address and telephone number of the Township officials
to contact for further information.
(7)
A recital that if the condition persists after 30 days from the date
of service of process, the Township may take further legal action.
B.
The owner and/or tenant or person alleged to have dumped the junk,
so notified, shall have 30 days from the date of service of process
and/or receipt of the notice of violation, whichever is less, to bring
the property into compliance with this chapter.
C.
At any time after the due date, but in no event more than 180 days
after the due date as set forth in the notice of violation, the Board
of Supervisors, or any of them, or their duly appointed representative,
shall view the property to ascertain compliance.
D.
Should the owner and/or tenant or person alleged to have dumped the junk have failed to bring the property into compliance with this chapter at the time of the viewing referred to in Subsection C, above, the Township shall notify the owner and/or tenant or person alleged to have dumped the junk by any means as set forth in Subsection A, above, that he is still in violation and that the penalty period shall commence upon receipt of notice. This notice shall be called "Notice of Penalty Period" and shall contain the following information:
(1)
Name of the reputed owner and/or tenant or the person alleged to
have dumped the junk.
(2)
A general description of the offending material. This description
need only specify the general type and amount of offending material.
As long as the offending material can be reasonably identified from
the description, insufficiently specific description shall not be
a defense to prosecution under this chapter.
(3)
A statement that the property has been examined for compliance after
the due date, specifying the date, time and identity of the examiner.
(4)
A recital of the penalties contained herein for noncompliance.
(5)
Reference to the applicable provisions of this chapter.
(6)
The name, address and telephone number of the Township officials
to contact for further information.
(7)
A statement that the penalty period shall commence with receipt of
this notice and that the Township may at any time proceed with action
against the owner and/or tenant or person alleged to have dumped the
junk.
E.
For purposes of assessing fines and other penalties hereunder, the
penalty period shall be deemed to commence upon receipt by the owner
and/or tenant or person alleged to have dumped the junk of notice
of penalty period as set forth above. The Township may proceed with
legal action against the owner and/or tenant or person alleged to
have dumped the junk at any time after the notice of penalty period
is received.
A.
The Board of Supervisors, or any of them, may examine properties
for compliance hereunder. In addition, the Board may employ a representative
or representatives, by motion of the Board, to examine properties
for compliance hereunder and to perform other acts as are needed to
enforce this chapter. This representative may be compensated. This
representative, or the Supervisors, or any other person charged with
the enforcement of this chapter, may enter upon private property to
inspect or enforce the provisions of this chapter.
B.
The examiner, as set forth above, shall identify as offending material anything defined as junk in § 109-1 of this chapter.
C.
The owner and/or tenant or person alleged to have dumped the junk
may alleviate the condition and request reexamination of the property
at any time in order to stop proceedings hereunder.
D.
Appeal from decisions of the Board of Supervisors may be made to
the Court of Common Pleas of Centre County or as otherwise authorized
by the laws of the commonwealth.
[Amended 8-12-1996 by Ord. No. 3-1996; 3-16-1998 by Ord. No. 2-1998]
Any person, firm or corporation who shall violate any provision
of this chapter, upon conviction thereof in an action brought before
a Magisterial District Judge in the manner provided for the enforcement
of summary offenses under the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure,
shall be sentenced to pay a fine of not more than $1,000 plus costs
and, in default of payment of said fine and costs, to a term of imprisonment
not to exceed 90 days. Each day that a violation of this chapter continues
or each section of this chapter which shall be found to have been
violated shall constitute a separate offense.
