[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Mount Pleasant 4-8-1969.
Amendments noted where applicable.]
This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Mount Pleasant
Anti-Litter Ordinance."
A.Â
When not inconsistent with the context, words used in
the present tense include the future, words used in the plural number include
the singular number, and words used in the singular number include the plural
number. The word "shall" is always mandatory and not merely directory.
B.Â
AIRCRAFT
AUTHORIZED PRIVATE RECEPTACLES
COMMERCIAL HANDBILL
(1)Â
(2)Â
(3)Â
(4)Â
GARBAGE
HANDBILL
LITTER
NEWSPAPER
PARK
PERSON
PRIVATE PREMISES
PUBLIC PLACE
REFUSE
RUBBISH
TOWN
VEHICLE
For the purpose of this chapter, the following terms,
phrases, words and their derivations shall have the meanings given herein:
Any contrivance now known or hereafter invented. used or designated
for navigation or for flight in the air. The word "aircraft" shall include
helicopters and lighter-than-air dirigibles and balloons.
A litter-storage and collection receptacle which will contain litter
in such a manner as to prevent it from being carried or deposited by the elements
upon any street, sidewalk or other public place or upon any private property.
Any printed or written matter, any sample device, dodger, circular,
leaflet, pamphlet, paper, booklet or any other printed or otherwise reproduced
original or copies of any manner of literature.
Which advertises for sale any merchandise, product, commodity or thing.
Which directs attention to any business or mercantile or commercial
establishment or other activity for the purpose of either directly or indirectly
promoting the interest thereof by sales.
Which directs attention to or advertises any meeting, theatrical performance,
exhibition or event of any kind for which an admission fee is charged for
the purpose of private gain or profit; but the terms of this subsection shall
not apply where an admission fee is charged or a collection is taken up for
the purpose of defraying the expenses incident to such meeting, theatrical
performance, exhibition or event of any kind, when either of the same is held,
given or takes place in connection with the dissemination of information which
is not restricted under the ordinary rules of decency, good morals, public
peace, safety and good order, provided that nothing contained in this subsection
shall be deemed to authorize the holding, giving or taking place of any meeting,
theatrical performance, exhibition or event of any kind without a license
where such license is or may be required by any law of this state or under
any ordinance of this town.
Which, while containing reading matter other than advertising matter,
is predominantly and essentially an advertisement and is distributed or circulated
for advertising purposes or for the private benefit and gain of any person
so engaged as advertiser or distributor.
Putrescible animal and vegetable wastes resulting from the handling,
preparation, cooking and consumption of food.
Any printed or written matter, any sample or device, dodger, circular,
leaflet, pamphlet, newspaper, magazine, paper, booklet or any other printed
or otherwise reproduced original or copies of any manner of literature not
included in the aforesaid definitions of a commercial handbill or newspaper.
Garbage, refuse and rubbish, as defined herein, and all other waste
material which, if thrown or deposited as herein prohibited, tends to create
a danger to public health, safety and welfare.
Any newspaper of general circulation as defined by general law, any
newspaper duly entered with the Post Office Department of the United States
in accordance with federal statute or regulation and any newspaper filed and
recorded with any recording officer provided by general law; and in addition
thereto, shall mean and include any periodical or current magazine regularly
published with not less than four issues per year and sold to the public.
A park, reservation, playground, beach, recreation center or any
other public area in the town, owned or used by the town and devoted to active
or passive recreation.
Any person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, company
or organization of any kind.
Any dwelling house, building or other structure designed or used
either wholly or in part for private residential purposes, whether inhabited
or temporarily or continuously uninhabited or vacant, and shall include any
yard, grounds, walk, driveway, porch, steps, vestibule or mailbox belonging
or appurtenant to such dwelling house, building or other structure.
Any and all streets, sidewalks, boulevards, alleys or other public
ways and any and all public parks, squares, spaces, grounds and buildings.
All putrescible and nonputrescible solid wastes (except body wastes),
including garbage, rubbish, ashes, street cleanings, dead animals, automobiles
not having a current valid New York State motor vehicles inspection certificate,
except currently registered out-of-state vehicles, and solid market and industrial
wastes.
Nonputrescible solid wastes consisting of both combustible and noncombustible
wastes, such as paper, wrappings, cigarettes, cardboard, tin cans, yard clippings,
leaves, wood, glass, bedding, crockery and similar materials.
The Town of Mount Pleasant.
Every device in, upon or by which any person or property is or may
be transported or drawn upon a highway, including devices used exclusively
upon stationary rails or tracks.
No person shall throw or deposit litter in or upon any street, sidewalk
or other public place within the town except in public receptacles, in authorized
private receptacles for collection or in official town sanitary landfill sites.
Persons placing litter in public receptacles or in authorized private
receptacles shall do so in a manner as to prevent it from being carried or
deposited by the elements upon any street sidewalk or other public place or
upon private property.
No person shall sweep into or deposit in any gutter, street or other
public place within the town the accumulation of litter from any building
or lot or from any public or private sidewalk or driveway. Persons owning
property or occupying property shall keep the sidewalk in front of their premises
free of litter.
No person owning or occupying a place of business shall sweep into or
deposit in any gutter, street or other public place within the town the accumulation
of litter from any building or lot or from any public or private sidewalk
or driveway. Persons owning or occupying places of business within the town
shall keep the sidewalk in front of their business premises free of litter.
No person, while a driver or a passenger in a vehicle, shall throw or
deposit litter upon any street or other public place within the town or upon
private property.
No person shall drive or move any truck or other vehicle within the
town unless such vehicle is so constructed or loaded as to prevent any load
contents or litter from being blown or deposited upon any street, alley or
other place, nor shall any person drive or move any vehicle or truck within
the town, the wheels or tires of which carry onto or deposit in any street,
alley or other place mud, dirt, sticky substances, litter or foreign matter
of any kind.
No person shall throw or deposit litter in any park within the town
except in public receptacles and in such a manner that the litter will be
prevented from being carried or deposited by the elements upon any part of
the park or upon any street or other public place. Where public receptacles
are not provided, all such litter shall be carried away from the park by the
person responsible for its presence and properly disposed of elsewhere, as
provided herein.
No person shall throw or deposit litter in any fountain. pool, pond,
lake, stream, creek, bay or any body of water within the town.
A.Â
No person shall throw or deposit any commercial handbill
in or upon any sidewalk, street or other public place within the town, nor
shall any person hand out or distribute or sell any commercial handbill in
any public place; provided, however, that it shall not be unlawful on any
sidewalk, street or other public place within the town for any person to hand
out or distribute, without charge to the receiver thereof, any noncommercial
handbill to any person willing to accept it.
B.Â
No person shall throw or deposit any commercial or noncommercial
handbill in or upon any vehicle; provided, however, that it shall not be unlawful
in any public place for a person to hand out or distribute, without charge
to the receiver thereof, a noncommercial handbill to any occupant of a vehicle
who is willing to accept it.
C.Â
No person shall throw or deposit any commercial or noncommercial
handbill in or upon any private premises which are temporarily or continuously
uninhabited or vacant.
D.Â
No person shall throw, deposit or distribute any commercial
or noncommercial handbill upon any private premises if requested by anyone
thereon not to do so or if there is placed on said premises in a conspicuous
position near the entrance thereof a sign bearing the words "No trespassing,"
"No Peddlers or Agents," "No Advertisements" or any similar notice indicating
in any manner that the occupants of said premises do not desire to be molested
or have their right of privacy disturbed or to have any such handbills left
upon such premises.
E.Â
Private premises; exception.
(1)Â
Placement. No person shall throw, deposit or distribute
any commercial or noncommercial handbill in or upon private premises which
are inhabited, except by handing or transmitting any such handbill directly
to the owner, occupant or other person then present in or upon such private
premises; provided, however, that in case of inhabited private premises which
are not posted as provided in this chapter, such person, unless requested
by anyone upon such premises not to do so, may place or deposit any such handbill
in or upon such inhabited private premises if such handbill is so placed or
deposited as to secure or prevent such handbill from being blown or drifted
about such premises or sidewalks, streets or other public places, except that
mailboxes may not be so used when so prohibited by federal postal law or regulations.
(2)Â
Exemption for mail and newspapers. The provisions of
this section shall not apply to the distribution of mail by the United States
nor to newspapers (as defined herein), except that newspapers shall be placed
on private property in such a manner as to prevent their being carried or
deposited by the elements upon any street, sidewalk or other public place
or upon private property.
No person in an aircraft shall throw out, drop or deposit within the
town any litter, handbill or any other object.
No person shall post or affix any notice, poster or other paper or device
calculated to attract attention of the public to any lamppost, public utility
pole or shade tree or upon any public structure or building, except as may
be authorized or required by law.
No person shall throw or deposit litter on any occupied private property
within the town, whether owned by such person or not, except that the owner
or person in control of private property may maintain authorized private receptacles
for collection in such a manner that litter will be prevented from being carried
or deposited by the elements upon any street, sidewalk or other public place
or upon private property.
The owner or person in control of any private property shall at all
times maintain the premises free of litter; provided, however, that this section
shall not prohibit the storage of litter in authorized private receptacles
for collection.
No person shall throw or deposit litter on any open or vacant private
property within the town, whether owned by such person or not.
A.Â
Notice to remove. The Building Inspector of the town
is hereby authorized and empowered to notify the owner of any open or vacant
private property within the town, or the agent of such owner, to properly
dispose of litter located on such owner's property which is or may become
dangerous to public health, safety or welfare. Such notice shall contain a
description of the property affected, sufficiently definite in terms to identify
it, and a notice that, unless the litter is properly disposed of within 10
days after service of notice, the town will proceed with the removal and proper
disposition of such litter and shall cause the costs of such removal and disposition
to be charged as a municipal lien against the premises.
B.Â
Service of notice to remove. The notice referred to in Subsection A above may be served upon an owner, resident in the town, in person or by leaving it at his usual place of residence with a member of his family above the age of 14 years. If an owner shall not reside in the town, notice may be served upon him personally or mailed to his last known post office address by registered or certified mail, or it may be served upon the occupant of the property or upon the agent of the owner in charge thereof. If the owner of the property is unknown or service cannot for any reason be made as above directed, notice thereof shall be published at least once, not less than 10 days before the proposed removal or proper disposition, in a newspaper circulating in the town. There may be inserted in the advertisement notice to the owners of several different parcels of land. Notice to infant owners or owners of unsound mind shall be served upon their guardians. Where lands are held in trust, service shall be made upon the trustee. Where lands are held by joint tenants, tenants in common or tenants by the entirety, service upon (1) of the owners shall be sufficient and deemed and taken as notice to all.
C.Â
Filing of proof of service. Proof of service of such
notices shall be filed within 10 days thereafter or within 10 days of the
publication of such notices with the officer having charge of the record of
tax liens in the town, but failure to file the same shall not invalidate the
proceedings if service has actually been made as herein provided.
D.Â
Municipal liens. When the town has effected the removal
or proper disposition of such dangerous litter or has paid for its removal
and proper disposition, an accurate account of the cost and expense thereof
shall be kept, and a true statement under oath or affirmation shall be filed
by the officer of the town in charge of such removal or proper disposition
with the Town Clerk. The Town Board shall examine the same and, if it is properly
made, shall confirm it and file such report with the Town Clerk, who shall
record it in a book to be kept for that purpose. When so recorded, the costs
and charges stated in said statement shall constitute a municipal lien against
the premises. Such statement recorded in accordance with the provisions hereof
shall be prima facie evidence that all legal formalities have been complied
with and that the work has been done properly and satisfactorily and shall
be full notice to every person concerned that the amount of the statement
constitutes a municipal lien against the property affected and that the same
is due and collectible as hereinafter provided. The amount so charged shall
forthwith become a lien upon such lands and shall be added to and become and
form a part of the taxes next to be assessed and levied upon such lands, the
same to bear interest at the same rate as taxes, and shall be collected and
enforced by the same officers and in the same manner as taxes.
[Amended 11-22-1988[1] ]
Any person who shall violate any provision of this chapter shall be
be fined in an amount not exceeding $1,000 or be imprisoned in the county
jail for a term not exceeding 15 days, or both, upon conviction of such violation.
Each day such violation is committed or permitted to continue shall constitute
a separate violation and shall be punishable as such hereunder.
Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to abrogate or impair the
powers of any department of the town to enforce any of its ordinances or regulations
nor prevent or punish for violations thereof. The provisions of this chapter
shall be in addition and supplemental to the provisions of any other law or
ordinance.