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Town of Bar Harbor, ME
Hancock County
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[Adopted 10-2-1990 as § .08.06 of the 1990 Code]
The purpose of this chapter is to regulate businesses in Bar Harbor which offer food and/or merchandise for sale so as to prevent, to the extent possible, the congestion of pedestrian and/or vehicular traffic; to keep public ways as clean as possible and free of discarded food, merchandise, wrappings, bags, packages and other items of litter; to protect public safety; and to improve aesthetics and maintain the appearance of the Town.
[Amended 4-20-1993]
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
AREA FULLY ENCLOSED WITHIN A STRUCTURE
A space totally enclosed by walls, a floor or slab, and a ceiling or roof. The walls may be interrupted only by permanently installed operable or fixed windows or doors.
MERCHANDISE
Includes the wares, goods and/or commodities customarily bought and sold, either at retail or wholesale, by merchants in the exercise of trade or business.
OUTDOOR
Any area visible from any public street, sidewalk, way or park that is not fully enclosed within a structure.
OUTDOOR DISPLAY
Any outdoor display of goods, materials, merchandise, or other stock-in-trade intended for sale, exchange or advertising purposes, but not including a sign as defined in Chapter 125, § 125-109, of this Code or otherwise lawful outdoor seating provided by a restaurant. A vending machine constitutes an outdoor display.
PERSON
Includes individuals, firms, associations, partnerships, corporations, trusts and other legal entities.
SALE
The exchange of any item of merchandise or food for any form of money, whether at retail or wholesale, regardless of whether a profit is made.
STRUCTURE
Anything constructed or erected, the use of which requires location on, above or below the surface of the ground or any body of water, or which is attached to something having a location on, above or below the surface of the ground or any body of water.
STRUCTURES WHICH ARE OF A MOVABLE OR PORTABLE NATURE
Structures which are designed to be or are equipped with wheels so as to be readily movable from one location to another or structures which are constructed in any other manner as to be readily movable from one location to another.
[Amended 4-20-1993]
A. 
Food to be sold and merchandise to be sold, leased or rented within structures.
[Amended 4-2-1998; 3-6-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-01]
(1) 
Except for sales conducted at farmers' markets that comply with Chapter 125, Land Use, it shall be unlawful for any person or persons conducting or causing to be conducted any business within the Town of Bar Harbor to offer or cause to be offered for sale, either at retail or wholesale, items of food to persons without providing the following facilities with respect to the sale of said food: an area and/or means of consuming said food on the premises where sold.
(2) 
The structure in or from which said items of food are sold or merchandise is sold, leased or rented shall be so constructed as to be permanently attached to the land on which it is located and not of a movable or portable nature.
B. 
Use of streets, sidewalks and parks for sales and displays prohibited. It shall be unlawful for any person within the Town of Bar Harbor to offer or cause to be offered for sale any food or merchandise:
(1) 
In such a manner as to require or permit sales to occur on or within a public street, sidewalk, way or park.
(2) 
Which is displayed within the confines of any public street, sidewalk way or park.
C. 
Exceptions. The provisions of Subsections A and B shall not:
(1) 
Outdoor seating at restaurants. Be deemed to prohibit restaurants from providing outside seating on private property so long as such seating complies will all other codes, ordinances and laws.
(2) 
Eleemosynary, educational and philanthropic organizations. Apply to sales conducted by eleemosynary, educational and philanthropic organizations with the written permission of the Town Council of Bar Harbor, or in the case of public parks as defined by § 144-4, with the permission of the permitting authority responsible for issuing a special event permit under § 144-25, which permission shall be given by said Council or permitting authority upon a finding that:
[Amended 3-4-2003 by Ord. No. 2003-1]
(a) 
The organization conducting the sale is in fact eleemosynary, educational or philanthropic;
(b) 
The sale will be of a temporary nature lasting not more than two days;
(c) 
The sale will not be conducted in such a manner and/or place as to create congestion of the public streets, sidewalks or other public ways; and
(d) 
Said sale would not be in violation of any state statute or other local ordinance, rule or regulation.
(3) 
Vending machines. Be construed to prohibit outdoor vending machines on private property.
[Amended 4-20-1993; 5-18-1993]
A. 
No merchant, storekeeper, shopkeeper or operator of any business, calling or pursuit shall, by himself or by another under his direction, stand or remain in any public street, sidewalk or park, or in any doorway or other place adjacent to a public street, sidewalk or park, within the Town of Bar Harbor and by calls, cries, ringing of bells, blowing of horns, or by the operation of any noisemaking, noise-producing or noise-amplifying device, or by reaching out into the street, sidewalk or other place adjacent to a public street or sidewalk, attract attention to or solicit passersby to enter into any street, shop, or place of business or commercial pursuit.
B. 
Airborne advertising prohibited. No person shall by himself, or by another under his direction, operate an aircraft for the purposes of towing or otherwise displaying banners or signs in a manner to attract the attention of users or inhabitants of public or private lands within the Town of Bar Harbor.
[Added 4-20-1993]
All outdoor displays, as defined by this chapter and occurring in the area described in Subsection A, are subject to the requirements set forth in Subsection B:
A. 
Regulated area. The requirements set forth in Subsection B shall apply to all outdoor displays on both sides of the street within the following portions of the Shoreland General Development I and Downtown Village Districts:
[Amended 6-8-2010]
(1) 
Main Street from West Street south to Atlantic Avenue and Newton Way;
(2) 
Mount Desert Street from Main Street west to School Street;
(3) 
Cottage Street from Main Street west to Rodick Street; and
(4) 
West Street from the Town Pier west to the Downtown Village District boundary between lots 3-4-10 and 3-4-11.
B. 
Outdoor display regulations.
(1) 
Three-foot setback. Outdoor displays shall be set back three feet from the front property lines.
(2) 
Facades and doorways. Regardless of building setback, no merchandise or outdoor display shall be attached, hung or affixed to any door, doorway or outdoor surface of any building facade.
(3) 
Exits and exit discharges. No merchandise shall be displayed within the exit or exit discharge of any building. For purposes of this section, the terms "exit" and "exit discharge" shall have be defined as in such edition of the Code for Safety to Life in Buildings and Structures (ANSI/NFPA 101) published by the National Fire Protection Association as may be adopted by the Bar Harbor Town Council pursuant to Chapter 36 of the Bar Harbor Code or as may be required or recognized by the State of Maine.
[Amended 4-20-1993]
A. 
Code Enforcement Officer. The provisions of this chapter shall be enforced by the Code Enforcement Officer pursuant to Chapter 125, Article X of this Code and 30-A M.R.S.A. § 4452, as the same may be amended, provided that neither the Code Enforcement Officer nor the Town Council shall permit a consent decree which has the effect of allowing a violation of this chapter to continue.
B. 
Nuisance. In addition to any other penalty provided by the law, the commission of acts prohibited by this chapter shall constitute a nuisance and may be abated by the Town seeking an injunction to prohibit further and continued violation thereof.
C. 
Each day separate offense. Each day that such unlawful act or violation continues shall be considered a separate offense.