N.Y. General Municipal Law § 136: Regulation of automobile junk yards

§ 136. Regulation of automobile junk yards. 1. Legislative intent. A

clean, wholesome, attractive environment is declared to be of importance

to the health and safety of the inhabitants and the safeguarding of

their material rights against unwarrantable invasion and, in addition,

such an environment is deemed essential to the maintenance and continued

development of the economy of the state and the general welfare of its

citizens. It is further declared that the unrestrained accumulation of

junk motor vehicles is a hazard to such health, safety and welfare of

citizens of the state necessitating the regulation, restraint and

elimination thereof. At the same time, it is recognized that the

maintenance of junk yards as hereinafter defined, is a useful and

necessary business and ought to be encouraged when not in conflict with

the express purposes of this section.

2. Definitions. For the purposes of this section, "junk yard" shall

mean any place of storage or deposit, whether in connection with another

business or not, where two or more unregistered, old, or secondhand

motor vehicles, no longer intended or in condition for legal use on the

public highways, are held, whether for the purpose of resale of used

parts therefrom, for the purpose of reclaiming for use some or all of

the materials therein, whether metal, glass, fabric or otherwise, for

the purpose of disposing of the same or for any other purpose; such term

shall include any place of storage or deposit for any such purposes of

used parts or waste materials from motor vehicles which, taken together,

equal in bulk two or more such vehicles provided, however, the term junk

yard shall not be construed to mean an establishment having facilities

for processing iron, steel or nonferrous scrap and whose principal

produce is scrap iron, steel or nonferrous scrap for sale for remelting

purposes only.

"Municipality" as used in this section shall mean a city of less than

one million in population, town or village.

"Motor vehicle" shall mean all vehicles propelled or drawn by power

other than muscular power originally intended for use on public

highways.

3. Requirement for operation or maintenance. No person shall operate,

establish or maintain a junk yard until he (1) has obtained a license to

operate a junk yard business and (2) has obtained a certificate of

approval for the location of such junk yard.

4. Application for license and certificate of approval. Application

for the license and the certificate of approved location shall be made

in writing to the governing board of the municipality where it is

proposed to locate the junk yard, and, in municipalities having a zoning

ordinance or local law and a zoning board, the application shall be

accompanied by a certificate from the zoning board that the proposed

location is not within an established district restricted against such

uses or otherwise contrary to the prohibitions of such zoning ordinance

or local law. The application shall contain a description of the land to

be included within the junk yard.

5. Hearing. A hearing on the application shall be held within the

municipality not less than two nor more than four weeks from the date of

the receipt of the application by the legislative body. Notice of the

hearing shall be given to the applicant by mail, postage prepaid, to the

address given in the application and shall be published once in a

newspaper having a circulation within the municipality, which

publication shall be not less than seven days before the date of the

hearing.

6. License requirements. At the time and place set for hearing, the

governing board shall hear the applicant and all other persons wishing

to be heard on the application for a license to operate, establish or

maintain the junk yard. In considering such application, it shall take

into account the suitability of the applicant with reference to his

ability to comply with the fencing requirements or other reasonable

regulations concerning the proposed junk yard, to any record of

convictions for any type of larceny or receiving of stolen goods, and to

any other matter within the purposes of this section.

7. Location requirements. At the time and place set for hearing, the

governing board shall hear the applicant and all other persons wishing

to be heard on the application for certificate of approval for the

location of the junk yard. In passing upon same, it shall take into

account, after proof of legal ownership or right to such use of the

property for the license period by the applicant, the nature and

development of surrounding property, such as the proximity of churches,

schools, hospitals, public buildings or other places of public

gathering; and whether or not the proposed location can be reasonably

protected from affecting the public health and safety by reason of

offensive or unhealthy odors or smoke, or of other causes.

8. Aesthetic considerations. At the hearing regarding location of the

junk yard, the governing board may also take into account the clean,

wholesome and attractive environment which has been declared to be of

vital importance to the continued general welfare of its citizens by

considering whether or not the proposed location can be reasonably

protected from having an unfavorable effect thereon. In this connection

the governing board may consider collectively the type of road servicing

the junk yard or from which the junk yard may be seen, the natural or

artificial barriers protecting the junk yard from view, the proximity of

the proposed junk yard to established residential and recreational areas

or main access routes thereto, as well as the reasonable availability of

other suitable sites for the junk yard.

9. Grant or denial of application; appeal. After hearing the governing

board shall, within two weeks, make a finding as to whether or not the

application should be granted, giving notice of their finding to the

applicant by mail, postage prepaid, to the address given on the

application. If approved, the license, including the certificate of

approved location, shall be forthwith issued to remain in effect until

the following April first. Approval shall be personal to the applicant

and not assignable. Licenses shall be renewed thereafter upon payment of

the annual license fee without hearing, provided all provisions of this

chapter are complied with during the license period, the junk yard does

not become a public nuisance under the common law and the applicant is

not convicted of any type of larceny or the receiving of stolen goods.

The determination of the governing board may be reviewed under article

seventy-eight of the civil practice law and rules.

10. License fees. The annual license fee shall be twenty-five dollars

to be paid at the time the application is made and annually thereafter

in the event of renewal. In event the application is not granted, the

fee shall be returned to the applicant. A municipality, in addition to

the license fee, may assess the applicant with the costs of advertising

such application and such other reasonable costs incident to the hearing

as are clearly attributable thereto and may make the license conditional

upon payment of same.

11. Fencing. Before use, a new junk yard shall be completely

surrounded with a fence at least eight feet in height which

substantially screens and with a suitable gate which shall be closed and

locked except during the working hours of such junk yard or when the

applicant or his agent shall be within. Such fence shall be erected not

nearer than fifty feet from a public highway. All motor vehicles and

parts thereof stored or deposited by the applicant shall be kept within

the enclosure of the junk yard except as removal shall be necessary for

the transportation of same in the reasonable course of the business. All

wrecking or other work on such motor vehicles and parts and all burning

of same within the vicinity of the junk yard shall be accomplished

within the enclosure.

Where the topography, natural growth of timber or other considerations

accomplish the purposes of this chapter in whole or in part, the fencing

requirements hereunder may be reduced by the legislative body, upon

granting the license, provided, however, that such natural barrier

conforms with the purposes of this chapter.

12. Effect of local ordinances or local laws. This section shall not

be construed to affect or supersede zoning ordinances or local laws or

any other ordinances or local laws for the control of junk yards now in

effect or hereafter enacted in any municipality within the proper

exercise of the police power of such a municipality and shall not be

deemed to apply to any municipality which has any ordinance or local law

or regulation to license or regulate junk yards.

13. Established junk yards. For the purposes of this section the

location of junk yards already established shall be considered approved

by the governing board of the municipality where located and the owner

thereof deemed suitable for the issuance of a license. Within sixty days

from the passage of this section, however, the owner shall furnish the

governing board the information as to location which is required in an

application, together with the license fee, and the governing board

shall issue him a license valid until the next April first, at which

time such owner may apply for renewal as herein provided. Such owner

shall comply with all other provisions of this section including the

fencing requirements set forth in subdivision eleven of this section.

14. Notwithstanding any of the foregoing provisions of this section,

no junk yard, hereafter established, shall be licensed to operate of

such yard or any part thereof shall be within five hundred feet of a

church, school, hospital, public building or place of public assembly.

15. Violators of any of the portions of this section shall be guilty

of an offense punishable by a fine not exceeding one hundred dollars and

each week that such violation is carried on or continues shall

constitute a separate violation.