[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of
the City of Paterson 12-18-1979 by Ord. No. 79-111 as Ch. 9, Art. 12,
of the 1979 Revised General Ordinances of Paterson. Amendments noted
where applicable.]
The purpose of this chapter is to raise revenue
and to regulate the business referred to in this chapter.
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
A person who establishes and maintains or intends to establish
and maintain, within the City as a business, a yard, space or place
for the exclusive purpose of buying and dismantling of used automobiles
and of buying and selling used automobile parts.
[Amended 5-25-2004 by Ord. No. 04-041]
A.
No person shall conduct or engage in the business
of motor vehicle junk dealer without first obtaining a license thereof
issued by the Licensing Division after approval thereof by the Municipal
Council, in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.
B.
No motor vehicle junk dealer license shall be granted
after the effective date of this section, unless and until the number
of such licenses issued and outstanding shall be less than four. When
the number of such licenses issued and outstanding shall be less than
four, additional licenses may be granted, but only in sufficient numbers
so that the total number of motor vehicle junk dealer licenses issued
and outstanding will equal but not exceed four.
An application for a motor vehicle junk dealer
license shall be made by the applicant, in writing, addressed to the
Council on forms approved by the Council and furnished to the applicant
at the office of the Licensing Division. The application shall be
filed with the Licensing Division and shall be accompanied by the
required license fee.
[Amended 4-19-1983 by Ord. No. 83-031]
A.
Upon the filing of the application accompanied by
the prescribed license fee, the Council shall fix a reasonable time
for a public hearing to be held before it on the application, and
the Licensing Division shall notify the applicant of the same.
B.
The applicant for the license shall, at least five days prior to the time appointed for the public hearing on the application, give notice of such hearing, as provided in § 287-7, to all property owners within 200 feet of the property lines of the proposed location of the business to be conducted by the applicant. At the hearing, the applicant and all interested persons shall have a reasonable opportunity to be heard in person or by agent or by attorney.
[Amended 6-27-1989 by Ord. No. 89-039]
A.
Notice of a hearing requiring public notice pursuant to § 287-6 shall be given by:
(1)
Serving a copy of said notice on the property owner
as shown on the current tax duplicate, or his agent in charge of the
property; or
(2)
Mailing a copy thereof by certified mail to the property
owner at his address as shown on the current tax list. Notice to a
partnership owner may be made by service upon any partner. Notice
to a corporate owner may be made by service upon its president, secretary
or other person authorized by appointment or by law to accept service
on behalf of the corporation. Notice to a condominium association,
horizontal property regime, community trust or homeowners' association,
because of its ownership of common elements or areas located within
200 feet of the property which is the subject of the license, may
be made in the same manner as to a corporation without further notice
to unit owners, co-owners or homeowners on account of such common
elements or areas.
B.
The form of the notice shall include the name of the
applicant, the location which is the subject of the license and the
date and time of the hearing, if any, to be held before the City Council.
C.
The applicant shall by affidavit present satisfactory
proof to the Council, at least two days prior to the hearing, that
said notices have been duly served.
B.
Except as otherwise provided in this section, no motor
vehicle junk dealer license shall be granted under this chapter to
any person who has been convicted of the crime of receiving stolen
goods, nor shall a license be issued to any corporation which includes
as stockholder, director or officer a person who has been convicted
of such crime. If, at the time of the application, more than five
years have elapsed since the date of such a conviction and it appears,
to the satisfaction of the Council, that the convicted person has
conducted himself in a law-abiding manner during that period and his
association with the junk business will not be contrary to the public
interest, the Council may, in its discretion, remove such person's
disqualification from holding a license and grant the license.
After the Council has approved the application
for a motor vehicle junk dealer license, the license shall be issued
by the Licensing Division. The license shall state the name of the
licensee and the location of the premises where the business shall
be conducted.
Each location of the business licensed under
this chapter as a junkyard shall during the entire license term be
enclosed by a suitable enclosure of not less than eight feet in height
which shall be constructed in such a manner that the interior of such
yard and the contents thereof shall not be visible from the outside.
The premises named in the license shall at all
times be maintained in a safe manner with due regard for the public
health and safety of persons and property in the vicinity in which
the licensed premises are located.
No licensee under this chapter shall keep or
place or cause to be kept or placed any material on the sidewalk or
street or any part thereof or on or above the fence or between the
fence and the sidewalk or between any building and the sidewalk.
Every licensee under this chapter shall provide
and keep on the premises named in the license a book in which shall
be written at the time of each purchase a description of the articles
purchased, the name and residence of the person from whom the purchase
was made and the date of purchase. The book shall, at all reasonable
times, be open to inspection by the Chief of Police or his representatives.
The license issued under this chapter shall
not be transferable from person to person except in accordance with
the following procedure:
A.
An applicant for a transfer to him of an existing
license shall make application, in writing, addressed to the Council
and filed with the City Clerk at least 10 days prior to the next meeting
of the Council. The application shall be accompanied by the transfer
fee of $50, which fee is imposed for revenue purposes. In the event
that the transfer is not granted by the Council, said transfer fee
shall be returned to the applicant.
B.
The applicant for a transfer of license shall cause
to be published once in a local newspaper, at least seven days prior
to the meeting of the Council, a notice of his intention to apply
for the transfer. Such newspaper notice shall specify the name and
address of the present licensee, the location of the licensed premises
and the date and time of said meeting of the Council.
C.
The applicant for the transfer of license shall prove
to the satisfaction of the Council that he is of good moral character.
In addition to the penalty prescribed in § 287-16, any license issued under this chapter may be suspended or revoked by the Council, after hearing, upon due notice, where an individual licensee or a stockholder, director or officer of a corporate licensee or a corporate licensee:
[Amended 12-19-1995 by Ord. No. 95-068]
Any person who violates any provision of this
chapter shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine not
exceeding $1,000, by imprisonment for a term not exceeding 90 days
or by a period of community service for a period not exceeding 90
days, or any combination thereof. A separate offense shall be deemed
committed on each day during or on which a violation occurs or continues.
