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HomeMy Public PortalAbout72-240 ORDINANCE NO. 72-240 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF CARSON REGULATING SOLICITATION, DISTRIBUTION OF LITERATURE, AND REAL ESTATE ADVERTISING AND AMENDING THE CARSON MUNICIPAL CODE. THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CARSON DOES ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS: Section 1 . A new Chapter 4 of Article IV of the Carson Municipal Code is hereby adopted to read: CHAPTER 4. SOLICITATION, DISTRIBUTION OF LITERATURE, AND REAL ESTATE ADVERTISING SIGNS. 4400. Short Title. Chapter 4 of Article IV of the Carson Municipal Code may be cited as the "Solicitation, Distribution of Literature, and Real Estate Advertising Sign Ordinance" of the City of Carson. 4401 . Findings and Purposes of Chapter. The City Council finds and declares as follows: (a) That the distribution of commercial advertising material upon residential property in the City creates widespread litter which is unsightly, unhealthy, and difficult to remove. (b) That door-to-door commercial solicitation of unwilling recipients by salesmen of goods and services jeopardizes the right of residents in this City to enjoy the privacy of their homes in tranquility and security, and serious public offenses have been committed by purported solicitors. (c) That unscrupulous real estate salesmen have used and threaten to use hand- bills and door-to-door techniques to directly or indirectly induce panic sales of real estate based on supposed changes in the racial, economic and social character of a neighborhood. (d) That such practices are injurious and inimical to the public health, safety and welfare of residents of this City and that such problems are becoming increasingly direct and substantial. (e) That such practices are, therefore, declared to be a public nuisance. (f) That such practices should be regulated to protect the public health, safety, and general welfare of the residents of this City. (g) That as a necessary means of preventing such practices, the regulation of real estate advertising signs is required. PART 1 . SOLICITATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF LITERATURE. 4410. Distribution of Literature to Unwilling Recipients. It shall be unlawful to pass out, give away, circulate, distribute, or deliver any printed or written handbill, circular, or advertising literature offering to sell or buy any goods, wares, merchandise, or commercial services or offering or soliciting to buy, sell, exchange, lease, rent or list any real property when the intended recipient thereof, or the owner, occupant, or resident of any property where such literature is left or intended to be left, has notified the distributor or disseminator of such material that such intended recipient, owner, occupant or resident does not wish to receive any literature. Ord. No. 72-240/Page 2 of 4 4411 . Notice to Solicitors and Distributors. The notice referred to in the preceding section may be given to a distributor or disseminator of printed or written material by an owner, occupant, or resident of property by anyone or more of the following means: (a) By posting the property on or near the front door or main entrance thereof with a sign at least twelve (12) square inches in area stating, in effect, "No Handbills, " or words of similar meaning. (b) By written or oral communication to the distributor or disseminator of such material. 4412. Littering Forbidden; Lawful Methods of Distribution. (a) It shall be unlawful to throw, cast or scatter any printed or written material of any type whatsoever in or onto any public place; into, or upon any automobile, vehicle or conveyance; or in, into or on the yard or grounds or on the doorstep, parch or vestibule of any residence, apartment or dwelling; or upon any vacant lot or other private property within the City. (b) Any printed or written material which may be passed out, given away, circulated or delivered in the City, pursuant to law, shall be: (1) Placed in the hand of the intended recipient; or (2) Bound, folded or weighted in such a manner that the material cannot be blown away, scattered or fragmented by the action of the elements and/or normal pedestrian or vehicular traffic; or (3) Affixed to the premises for which it is intended by being tied to or slipped over a doorknob or other protrusion, or other means calculated to prevent the material from being blown away, scattered or fragmented by action of the elements. 4413. Newspapers Excepted. The foregoing provisions of this Part shall not apply to the distribution of folded newspapers of general circulation, as the same are defined in the Government Code of the State of California. 4414. Real Estate Solicitation. It shall be unlawful for any person offering or soliciting to buy, sell, exchange, lease, rent or list any real property to go upon, ring the bell or knock on the door of, or attempt to gain admittance to the premises of any residence, dwelling, or apartment within the City unless previous to such entry, bell ringing, or knocking, such person has been requested or invited by the owner or adult occupant of the premises to be thereupon for such purpose. 4415. Refusal to Leave on Request. It shall be unlawful for a peddler or solicitor or person distributing literature of any kind, to refuse to leave any residence, dwelling or apartment or other private property within the City when requested to leave by the owner, occupant, resident or person in control thereof. PART 2. REAL ESTATE ADVERTISING SIGNS 4420. Permit Required for Certain Real Estate Advertising Signs. Prior to the posting of any real estate advertising sign described in Section 9132 of this Code, the owner of the property upon which a sign is to be placed or the real estate broker involved in the prospective sale, lease or rental of the property in question, shall apply to the Director of Finance for a permit authorizing the use of such a sign and shall comply with all the provisions of this Part. Ord. No. 72-240/Page 30f 4 4421 . Application. The application for a permit shall be signed and verified by the applicant, and shall set forth the following information: (a) The full name(s) of the owner(s) of the property to be sold. (b) The name of the real estate broker involved in the sale, lease or rental of the property in question. (c) The street address of the property to be sold, leased or rented. (d) A verified statement, under penalty of perjury, by the real estate broker involved in the sale, lease or rental of the property in question that he did not solicit or induce the sale, lease, or the listing for sale or lease, of residential property on the ground, wholly or in part, of loss of value, increase in crime, or decline of the quality of the schools, due to the present or prospective entry into the neighborhood of a person or persons of any particular race, color, religion, ancestry or national origin. (e) A verified statement by the owner(s) of the property in question that the real estate broker involved in the sale, lease or rental of his property did not solicit or induce the sale, lease or the listing for sale or lease, of resi- dential property on the ground, wholly or in part, of loss of value, increase in crime, or decline of the quality of the schools, due to the present or prospective entry into the neighborhood of a person or persons of any particular race, color, religion, ancestry or national origin. 4422. Permit Fee. The fee for filing an application for a permit pursuant to this part shall be five dollars ($5.00) payable in advance. The application fee is non-refundable and is intended to cover the expenses of the City in processing the application and issuing the permit. 4423. Granting, or Refusing of Permit. (a) The Director of Finance shall either grant or refuse a permit within five (5) days of the date of his receipt of an application. If no action has been taken by the Director of Finance within this period of time, the application shall be deemed approved. (b) The Director of Finance shall refuse to grant any permit if he determines that: (1) The application does not contain all of the required information, in which case the application may be resubmitted at no extra cost to the applicant. (2) Any of the information contained in the application is false or inaccurate, in which case that application may not be resubmitted. (c) In the case of refusal to grant a permit, the Director of Finance shall provide the applicant with a written statement stating the reasons for his action. 4424. Display of Permits. If the Director of Finance grants a permit, he shall issue to the applicant a decal, good only for the property in question, which shall be attached to the front of the real estate advertising sign which it authorizes. 4425. Display of Unauthorized Signs. It is unlawful for any person to place or cause to be placed, or to maintain or cause to be maintained any real estate advertising sign described in Section 9132 of this Code, without attaching thereon a valid permit decal as required under Section 4424 above. 4426. Violation Creating Nuisance. All real estate advertising signs which are placed or which exist in violation of the provisions of this Part are public nuisances. Ord. No. 72-240/Page4. of 4 4427. Revocation of Permit. The Director of Finance may revoke a permit for failure by the permittee to comply with the provisions of this Part or if the Director of Finance determines, subsequent to the granting of a permit, that any information contained in the application is false or inaccurate. 4428. Removal of Unauthorized Signs. The Director of Finance, or his authorized agent, may summarily, and without notice, remove any unauthorized real estate advertising sign referred to in Section 4425 of this Code. The Director shall keep such sign for sixty (60) days or until the owner of the sign pays the Director ten dollars ($10.00) for costs incurred in seizing and keeping the sign. If the owner does not pay the above sum within the sixty (60) day period, the Director of Finance may destroy the unauthorized sign. For the purpose of removing an unauthorized sign the Director of Finance, or his authorized agent, may enter upon private property. Section 2. Section 6303.57-1/2 is hereby added to the Carson Municipal Code to read as follows: "6303.57-1/2. Real Estate Solicitor means any person who goes fo any house or place or from house to house or from place to place in the City offering or soliciting to buy, sell, exchange, lease, rent or list any real property. " Section 3. Section 6365.53-1/2 is hereby added to the Carson Municipal Code to read as follows: "6365.53-1/2. Real Estate Solicitor $150.00 PASSED, APPROVED and ADOPTED by the City Council of the City of Carson this 6th day of November 1972. AA I MA O TTEST: ITY CLERK STATE OF CALIFORNIA ) COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES ) ss. CITY OF CARSON ) I, Marilyn R. Cortina, City Clerk of the City of Carson, California, do hereby certify that the whole number of members of the City Council of said City is five; that the foregoing ordinance, being Ordinance No. 72-240, passed first reading on October 16, 1972 1972, was duly and regularly adopted by the City Council of said City at a regular meeting of said Council, duly and regularly held on the 6th day of November , 1972, and that the same was so passed and adopted by the following roll call vote: AYES: COUNCILMEN: Bridgers, Calas, Smith, Yamamoto & Marbut. NOES: COUNCILMEN: None. ABSENT: COUNCILMEN: None. City rk, y of Carson, California.