§ 136 — Regulation of automobile junk yards

§ 136. Regulation of automobile junk yards. 1. Legislative intent. A\nclean, wholesome, attractive environment is declared to be of importance\nto the health and safety of the inhabitants and the safeguarding of\ntheir material rights against unwarrantable invasion and, in addition,\nsuch an environment is deemed essential to the maintenance and continued\ndevelopment of the economy of the state and the general welfare of its\ncitizens. It is further declared that the unrestrained accumulation of\njunk motor vehicles is a hazard to such health, safety and welfare of\ncitizens of the state necessitating the regulation, restraint and\nelimination thereof. At the same time, it is recognized that the\nmaintenance of junk yards as hereinafter defined, is a useful and\nnecessary business and ought to be encouraged when not in conflict with\nthe express purposes of this section.\n 2. Definitions. For the purposes of this section, "junk yard" shall\nmean any place of storage or deposit, whether in connection with another\nbusiness or not, where two or more unregistered, old, or secondhand\nmotor vehicles, no longer intended or in condition for legal use on the\npublic highways, are held, whether for the purpose of resale of used\nparts therefrom, for the purpose of reclaiming for use some or all of\nthe materials therein, whether metal, glass, fabric or otherwise, for\nthe purpose of disposing of the same or for any other purpose; such term\nshall include any place of storage or deposit for any such purposes of\nused parts or waste materials from motor vehicles which, taken together,\nequal in bulk two or more such vehicles provided, however, the term junk\nyard shall not be construed to mean an establishment having facilities\nfor processing iron, steel or nonferrous scrap and whose principal\nproduce is scrap iron, steel or nonferrous scrap for sale for remelting\npurposes only.\n "Municipality" as used in this section shall mean a city of less than\none million in population, town or village.\n "Motor vehicle" shall mean all vehicles propelled or drawn by power\nother than muscular power originally intended for use on public\nhighways.\n 3. Requirement for operation or maintenance. No person shall operate,\nestablish or maintain a junk yard until he (1) has obtained a license to\noperate a junk yard business and (2) has obtained a certificate of\napproval for the location of such junk yard.\n 4. Application for license and certificate of approval. Application\nfor the license and the certificate of approved location shall be made\nin writing to the governing board of the municipality where it is\nproposed to locate the junk yard, and, in municipalities having a zoning\nordinance or local law and a zoning board, the application shall be\naccompanied by a certificate from the zoning board that the proposed\nlocation is not within an established district restricted against such\nuses or otherwise contrary to the prohibitions of such zoning ordinance\nor local law. The application shall contain a description of the land to\nbe included within the junk yard.\n 5. Hearing. A hearing on the application shall be held within the\nmunicipality not less than two nor more than four weeks from the date of\nthe receipt of the application by the legislative body. Notice of the\nhearing shall be given to the applicant by mail, postage prepaid, to the\naddress given in the application and shall be published once in a\nnewspaper having a circulation within the municipality, which\npublication shall be not less than seven days before the date of the\nhearing.\n 6. License requirements. At the time and place set for hearing, the\ngoverning board shall hear the applicant and all other persons wishing\nto be heard on the application for a license to operate, establish or\nmaintain the junk yard. In considering such application, it shall take\ninto account the suitability of the applicant with reference to his\nability to comply with the fencing requirements or other reasonable\nregulations concerning the proposed junk yard, to any record of\nconvictions for any type of larceny or receiving of stolen goods, and to\nany other matter within the purposes of this section.\n 7. Location requirements. At the time and place set for hearing, the\ngoverning board shall hear the applicant and all other persons wishing\nto be heard on the application for certificate of approval for the\nlocation of the junk yard. In passing upon same, it shall take into\naccount, after proof of legal ownership or right to such use of the\nproperty for the license period by the applicant, the nature and\ndevelopment of surrounding property, such as the proximity of churches,\nschools, hospitals, public buildings or other places of public\ngathering; and whether or not the proposed location can be reasonably\nprotected from affecting the public health and safety by reason of\noffensive or unhealthy odors or smoke, or of other causes.\n 8. Aesthetic considerations. At the hearing regarding location of the\njunk yard, the governing board may also take into account the clean,\nwholesome and attractive environment which has been declared to be of\nvital importance to the continued general welfare of its citizens by\nconsidering whether or not the proposed location can be reasonably\nprotected from having an unfavorable effect thereon. In this connection\nthe governing board may consider collectively the type of road servicing\nthe junk yard or from which the junk yard may be seen, the natural or\nartificial barriers protecting the junk yard from view, the proximity of\nthe proposed junk yard to established residential and recreational areas\nor main access routes thereto, as well as the reasonable availability of\nother suitable sites for the junk yard.\n 9. Grant or denial of application; appeal. After hearing the governing\nboard shall, within two weeks, make a finding as to whether or not the\napplication should be granted, giving notice of their finding to the\napplicant by mail, postage prepaid, to the address given on the\napplication. If approved, the license, including the certificate of\napproved location, shall be forthwith issued to remain in effect until\nthe following April first. Approval shall be personal to the applicant\nand not assignable. Licenses shall be renewed thereafter upon payment of\nthe annual license fee without hearing, provided all provisions of this\nchapter are complied with during the license period, the junk yard does\nnot become a public nuisance under the common law and the applicant is\nnot convicted of any type of larceny or the receiving of stolen goods.\nThe determination of the governing board may be reviewed under article\nseventy-eight of the civil practice law and rules.\n 10. License fees. The annual license fee shall be twenty-five dollars\nto be paid at the time the application is made and annually thereafter\nin the event of renewal. In event the application is not granted, the\nfee shall be returned to the applicant. A municipality, in addition to\nthe license fee, may assess the applicant with the costs of advertising\nsuch application and such other reasonable costs incident to the hearing\nas are clearly attributable thereto and may make the license conditional\nupon payment of same.\n 11. Fencing. Before use, a new junk yard shall be completely\nsurrounded with a fence at least eight feet in height which\nsubstantially screens and with a suitable gate which shall be closed and\nlocked except during the working hours of such junk yard or when the\napplicant or his agent shall be within. Such fence shall be erected not\nnearer than fifty feet from a public highway. All motor vehicles and\nparts thereof stored or deposited by the applicant shall be kept within\nthe enclosure of the junk yard except as removal shall be necessary for\nthe transportation of same in the reasonable course of the business. All\nwrecking or other work on such motor vehicles and parts and all burning\nof same within the vicinity of the junk yard shall be accomplished\nwithin the enclosure.\n Where the topography, natural growth of timber or other considerations\naccomplish the purposes of this chapter in whole or in part, the fencing\nrequirements hereunder may be reduced by the legislative body, upon\ngranting the license, provided, however, that such natural barrier\nconforms with the purposes of this chapter.\n 12. Effect of local ordinances or local laws. This section shall not\nbe construed to affect or supersede zoning ordinances or local laws or\nany other ordinances or local laws for the control of junk yards now in\neffect or hereafter enacted in any municipality within the proper\nexercise of the police power of such a municipality and shall not be\ndeemed to apply to any municipality which has any ordinance or local law\nor regulation to license or regulate junk yards.\n 13. Established junk yards. For the purposes of this section the\nlocation of junk yards already established shall be considered approved\nby the governing board of the municipality where located and the owner\nthereof deemed suitable for the issuance of a license. Within sixty days\nfrom the passage of this section, however, the owner shall furnish the\ngoverning board the information as to location which is required in an\napplication, together with the license fee, and the governing board\nshall issue him a license valid until the next April first, at which\ntime such owner may apply for renewal as herein provided. Such owner\nshall comply with all other provisions of this section including the\nfencing requirements set forth in subdivision eleven of this section.\n 14. Notwithstanding any of the foregoing provisions of this section,\nno junk yard, hereafter established, shall be licensed to operate of\nsuch yard or any part thereof shall be within five hundred feet of a\nchurch, school, hospital, public building or place of public assembly.\n 15. Violators of any of the portions of this section shall be guilty\nof an offense punishable by a fine not exceeding one hundred dollars and\neach week that such violation is carried on or continues shall\nconstitute a separate violation.\n