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Village of East Troy, WI
Walworth County
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
[Adopted 4-3-2000 by Ord. No. 2000-2 as Title 7, Ch. 14, of the 2000 Code]
For the purpose of this article, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning:
HORSE-DRAWN CARRIAGE
Any vehicle drawn by a horse, donkey, mule, or mini mule which is designed or intended for use of passengers for hire.
OPERATE or OPERATION
Operation by the owner or any agent of the owner or by any person with the owner's knowledge, consent or permission, express or implied.
OWNER
An individual, a firm, a copartnership, a corporation, a company or any association of joint stock.
PERMIT
The grant by the Village to operate a horse-drawn vehicle upon the public streets of the Village.
The operation of horse-drawn carriages within and upon the public streets of the Village shall be subject to the conditions, regulations and restrictions set forth in this article. It shall be unlawful for any person to engage in the business of operating a horse-drawn carriage in the Village until the provisions of this article have been complied with.
[Amended 12-16-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-18]
It shall be unlawful to operate or cause to be operated any horse-drawn carriage upon the public streets of the Village where the owner of the vehicle has not been issued a permit and upon which an inspection sticker has not been affixed as provided for in this article. The sticker shall be provided by the Village Clerk's office and shall be affixed to the horse-drawn carriage in a manner prescribed by the Village Clerk and shall be nontransferable from the vehicle for which the same was issued except as may be authorized by the Village Clerk.
A. 
Any person desiring to obtain a permit to operate a horse-drawn carriage in the Village shall submit to the Village Clerk a written application which shall contain the following information:
[Amended 12-16-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-18]
(1) 
The name, address, telephone number and form of business of the applicant. If the applicant is a corporation, it shall also state the names, addresses and occupations of its officers, directors and major stockholders and names and addresses of any parent or subsidiary companies, the date and place of incorporation and, if incorporated outside the state, whether or not it has been qualified to do business within the state. If the applicant is a corporation controlled by another corporation, the names, addresses and occupations of the officers, directors and major stockholders of the controlling corporation shall also be stated. If the applicant is a partnership or other unincorporated association, the names and addresses of each member, whether active or inactive, shall be set forth, and if one or more partners or members are corporations, the names and addresses and occupations of such corporation's officers, directors and major stockholders shall also be stated.
(2) 
The trade name, if any, under which the applicant proposes to do business.
(3) 
A thorough description, including photographs, of the proposed horse-drawn carriage business to be operated; the manner in which the applicant proposes to install, maintain and operate the business; the proposed hours of operation; proposed location from which the business is to be operated; the proposed route or routes to be served or utilized, together with a map or maps describing the proposed routes; the numbers of horse-drawn vehicles to be operated under the proposed business; the types of animal or beast of burden to be used to draw any vehicle; and the kind, make and model of the vehicles to be used in the business, together with the safety and sanitation devices and methods to be applicable.
(4) 
A thorough description of the proposed manner and location in which the applicant proposes to feed, shelter, quarter and stable and otherwise care for the animals to be used in the business; the method to be used in transporting the animals within and without the Village; and a thorough description, with maps if necessary, of the manner and location in which the applicant proposes to load and unload the carriage, animal and equipment, if applicable.
(5) 
A schedule of proposed rates and charges to all classes of passengers.
(6) 
Copies of the veterinarian records required in § 423-38D.
(7) 
An insurance certificate providing that the applicant has met the insurance requirements of this article.
(8) 
A sworn statement acknowledging that any and all drivers employed by the applicant shall be safe and experienced in handling of such vehicles and animals and that the animals so used shall be thoroughly broken and properly restrained. It shall further state that the permittee shall be responsible for the actions of his or her drivers and animals.
(9) 
Any such information the Village shall at any time demand in order to reasonably determine whether the request for a permit should be granted.
B. 
Upon receipt and acceptance of a complete application for a permit, the Village Clerk shall forward copies of the application to the following Village departments and officials: the Chief of Police and Department of Public Works. Each official or department shall evaluate this application for public health, safety and welfare concerns as pertains to his or her department. If the applicant's plan for service meets with the official's approval, he or she shall report the approval in writing to the Village Clerk. If the plan or application does not meet the approval of the reviewing official, he or she shall report disapproval to the Village Clerk with reasons for disapproval listed in writing. Should the application be disapproved by either the Chief of Police or the Department of Public Works, the application for permit shall be denied, and no permit to operate a horse-drawn carriage shall be issued to the applicant.
[Amended 12-16-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-18]
C. 
Any applicant whose application for a permit has been denied may, within 30 days after the denial, appeal to the Village Board of Trustees.
D. 
Once the application has been approved by the necessary departments, the Village Clerk shall issue a permit to the applicant upon payment of the fee set by the Village Board. The permit shall be valid for one year or part thereof remaining at the time of the issuance of permit.
[Amended 6-15-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-02; 12-16-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-18]
E. 
No more than 10 permits shall be issued and active in the Village at any given time.
F. 
If an permit issued under this article is lost or destroyed, the permit holder may obtain a duplicate upon payment of a service charge set by the Village Board.
[Amended 6-15-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-02]
[Amended 12-16-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-18]
Permittees must adhere to the routes, rates and vehicle number and design submitted in their application for permit. Any deviance from the application without the approval of the Village Clerk, Chief of Police and Department of Public Works shall be a violation of this article.
A. 
A permittee shall pay, and by its acceptance of a permit specifically agrees to pay, any and all damages or penalties which the Village may be legally required to pay as a result of the permittee's operation or maintenance of a horse-drawn carriage under this article, whether or not the acts or omissions complained of are authorized, allowed or prohibited by the Village.
B. 
A permittee shall also pay all expenses incurred by the Village in defending itself with regard to any and all damages and penalties mentioned in Subsection A of this section. These expenses shall include all out-of-pocket expenses, including a reasonable attorney's fee and the reasonable value of services rendered by any employee of the Village.
C. 
The permittee shall maintain, throughout the term of the permit, liability insurance insuring the Village and permittee with regard to all damages mentioned in Subsection A of this section caused by the grantee or its agents, in the minimum amounts of:
(1) 
Workers' and unemployment compensation insurance as provided by the laws of this state.
(2) 
One hundred thousand dollars for bodily injury or death to any one person within the limit and $300,000 for bodily injury or death resulting from any one accident and $50,000 for property damage resulting from any one accident.
D. 
The insurance policies obtained by the permittee in compliance with this section shall be issued by a company or companies acceptable to the Village, and a current certificate or certificates of insurance, along with written evidence of payment of all required premiums, shall be filed and maintained with the Village during the term of the permit. The policies shall name the Village as an additional insured and shall contain a provision that written notice of cancellation or reduction in coverage of the policy shall be delivered by registered mail to the Village at least 30 days in advance of the effective date.
A. 
A permittee, having been issued a permit under this article to engage in the business of operating a horse-drawn carriage, shall be subject to all traffic provisions of this Code and all other ordinances, rules and regulations now in effect in the Village or the state and all traffic ordinances, rules and regulations which may pertain to the operation of horse-drawn carriages hereafter enacted or adopted by the Village or the state and such rules and regulations formulated and promulgated under authority of this article.
B. 
Horse-drawn carriages shall not stand or park upon any street in any business district at any place other than a designated areas, except that this provision shall not prevent the driver of any such vehicle from temporarily stopping for the purpose of and while actually engaged in loading and unloading passengers.
Each permittee shall prominently display in each horse-drawn vehicle a card or sign which shall show the schedule of the rates and charges for the transportation services furnished by the permittee, the Village permit number and the name and address of both the permittee and driver of such vehicle. The card or sign shall be posted in a conspicuous place in such vehicle while it is in use as a horse-drawn vehicle for hire, so that it is clearly visible to all passengers in such vehicle. It shall be unlawful for any permittee, operator, agent, lessee or driver of any horse-drawn carriage to charge more than the rate so posted.
All permittees shall comply with the following sanitation requirements:
A. 
All horses, mules and other animals shall be equipped with adequate devices to prevent manure and other excrement from falling upon the streets of the Village. Any excrement which should fall upon the streets of the Village shall be removed at the expense of the permittee.
B. 
All animal waste for disposal shall be promptly transported to sites or facilities legally empowered to accept it for treatment or disposal. The Village reserves the right to approve or disapprove sites, taking into account routes within the Village and the rules and regulations of the governmental body having jurisdiction over said sites and facilities.
C. 
A permittee shall further comply with all applicable health and sanitation provisions of the County Health Department and all rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.
Upon issuance of a permit the Village of East Troy Police Department shall check each vehicle which the permittee intends to operate on the streets of the Village for the following:
A. 
A slow moving vehicle sign on the rear of the carriage.
B. 
Two red reflectors no smaller than three inches in diameter shall be attached, one to each side of the carriage.
C. 
When operated in the hours of darkness, a strobe or flashing light shall be secured to the neck of the horse pulling the carriage and said light shall be visible to other traffic.
D. 
When operated in the hours of darkness, a glowing red light shall be affixed to the rear of the carriage and shall be visible at a distance of 500 feet.
E. 
The carriage shall have brakes capable of stopping the carriage within 50 feet when traveling at 20 miles per hour.
A. 
All carriages must be equipped with a step to allow persons to enter and exit safely. Rubber tires and wheels shall be used on all carriages to provide for maximum passenger comfort and for consideration of passing public.
B. 
All animals shall be thoroughly broken, trained to harness and properly restrained; no animal may be allowed to go untended. All animals shall be equipped with properly fitting and appropriate equipment for street service, including properly fitting shoes for street work. Steel shoes must have borium grabs, and no aluminum shoes will be permitted at any time.
C. 
In addition, animals shall have a minimum of 20 minutes of rest for every two hours of heavy work and shall be offered clean water at least every two hours depending on weather. The permittee shall assure adequate rest periods, feeding schedules, health and related animal performance and well-being for each animal under the permittee's ownership, care or control. This responsibility shall include carriage load limits, hours of operation and daily hours of animal usage, except that no animal shall be required to work more than eight hours per day. No animal shall be left unattended while in service.
D. 
For each animal that will be pulling a permitted vehicle, the permittee shall provide veterinary records from a veterinarian licensed in the State of Wisconsin finding such animal to be free from infectious disease, in good health, and fit for hack and carriage service under this article. Each animal shall thereafter be reexamined annually by a veterinarian licensed in the State of Wisconsin and veterinary records of such examination provided finding such animal to be free from infectious disease, in good health, and fit for hack and carriage service in order for each animal to remain in service. No animal shall be used to draw a horse-drawn vehicle unless the permittee keeps said veterinarian records available for inspection by the Village Police Department at any time.
E. 
It shall be the duty of the permittee to immediately remove any injured, diseased or deceased animal from the streets and to dispose of the same properly.
It shall be unlawful for any grantee or agent or employee of the same willfully to permit any horse-drawn carriage to be used in the perpetration of a crime.
[Amended 12-16-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-18]
A. 
Whenever there is a reasonable cause to believe that a person holding a permit to operate a horse-drawn carriage is violating the provisions of this article, the Village Clerk may, upon written, certified notice of the violation to the permittee, suspend the permits issued to such person until such time as the violations are corrected to the satisfaction of the Village or within a period of 30 days, whichever is less. If the violation is not corrected within 30 days, the permits will be automatically revoked. Any permittee whose permits have been revoked under this subsection may, within 30 days after the revocation, appeal to the Village Board of Trustees.
B. 
If, upon investigation, the Chief of Police finds that the holder of a permit has violated any provision of this article or has been convicted of the following, then the Village Clerk shall revoke the permit: murder, kidnapping, aggravated battery, burglary, robbery, sexual battery, prostitution, exposure of sexual organs, lewd, lascivious or indecent assault or act upon or in the presence of a child, any crime involving the sale of controlled substance, manslaughter or negligent homicide resulting from the use of a motor vehicle. Any person having his or her permit so revoked may appeal, by filing notice thereof, with the Village Clerk within 30 days from the time of such revocation. Such appeal as filed shall not act as superseding until such time as the Village Board of Trustees shall take final action on such appeal.
Drivers of all horse-drawn carriages shall have and keep in full effect a valid Wisconsin driver's license. All drivers shall be safe and experienced in handling of the animals and all equipment.