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HomeMy Public PortalAbout1999_04_13_O009 Amending the Town Code regarding Refuse CollectionThe Town of Leesburg, Virginia ORDINANCE NO. AN ORDINANCE: PRESENTED April 13, 1999 99-0-09 ADOPTED April 13, 1999 AMENDING CHAPTER 8 OF THE LEESBURG TOWN CODE TO ADD REFUSE COLLECTION ON FRIDAY IN A LIMITED AREA OF THE HISTORIC DOWNTOWN DISTRICT WHEREAS, the Historic District of the downtown area is becoming increasingly popular and tourist oriented; and WHEREAS, the Downtown Committee of the Leesburg Economic Development Commission met to discuss enhancing the experience of visitors to the Historic District; and WHEREAS, commercial refuse is collected townwide three times per week on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday; and WHEREAS, concerns were expressed regarding the unsightly conditions within a portion of the Historic Downtown area created by the present practice of placing refuse at the curb on Friday nights for Saturday morning collection; and WHEREAS, it was determined that by providing an additional collection on Friday morning in a limited area on designated streets within the Historic Downtown area, together with the pledged cooperation of business owners within the designated area not to place refuse at the curb for Saturday morning collection until 9:00 p.m. Friday night, the experience of visitors to the area could be enhanced; and WHEREAS, the designated is described as follows: Market Street, from Liberty Street east to Loudoun Street Loudoun Street, from the fire station east to Market Street King Street, from South Street to North Street Wirt Street, from Loudoun Street to Market Street; and WHEREAS, the increased cost to the town for the added collection within the designated area on Friday mornings will be $750 per month, or $9,000 annually. THEREFORE, ORDAINED by the Council of the Town of Leesburg, as follows: -2- AN ORDINANCE: AMENDING CHAPTER 8 OF THE LEESBURG TOWN CODE SECTION I. Sec. 8-1. Purpose of chapter. The purpose of this chapter is to provide regulations for the effective storage, collection, recycling, and disposal of garbage and refuse in a sanitary manner in the tom. SECTION II. Sec. 8-2. Administration of chapter. The municipal manager is hereby delegated the authority to administer this chapter and is authorized to establish such reasonable rules and regulations as are needed to administer this chapter. SECTION III. Sec. 8-3. Violations of chapter. Except as otherwise provided, any person who violates any provision of this chapter, by doing any act prohibited or declared to be unlawful, or who falls to do any act required by any such provision, or who fails to do any act when such provision declares such failure to be unlawful, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not less than $10.00 nor more than $35.00 for each offense. A separate offense shall be deemed committed on each day during or on which a violation occurs or continues. SECTION IV. Sec. 8-4. Definitions. For the purposes of this chapter, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings respectively ascribed to them by this section: Garbage: Wastes resulting from the handling, preparation, cooking and consumption of food and wastes from the handling, storage and sale of produce. Municipal collectors: Persons employed by the town, or the contracted agent for the town, engaged in the collection and transportation of refuse, garbage, and recyclable materials. Private collectors: Persons engaged in the collection and transportation of refuse and garbage from commercial, industrial, institutional or other establishments for compensation, not including the collector contracted by the town. Recyclable Material: Those commodities which, having served their original purpose, have physical or chemical properties that allow them to be transformed into new products, and are designated by the town to be separated and collected on a schedule as designated by the town. Refuse: Combustible trash, including, but not limited to, paper, cartons, boxes, barrels, wood, excelsior, tree branches and yard trimmings; noncombustible trash, including, but not limited to, metals, tin cans, glass, crockery and other mineral -3- AN ORDINANCE: AMENDING CHAPTER 8 OF THE LEESBURG TOWN CODE waste; and street rubbish, including but not limited to, street sweepings, dirt, leaves, catch-basin dirt and the contents of litter receptacles. "Refuse" shall also mean furniture, springs, mattresses, stoves, ranges, refrigerators, dishwashers, dryers, tires, water heaters, toys, porcelain, carpeting tied in bundles of not more than three square feet cross-sectional area, whole christmas trees and similar household commercial and institutional wastes. "Refuse" shall not include earth and wastes from building operations, nor shall it include solid wastes resulting from industrial processes and manufacturing operations. Storage area: An enclosed area on private property of a commercial, industrial, institutional or other establishment used for the storage of garbage or refuse. SECTION V. Sec. 8-5. Container requirements for residences. (a) Refuse and garbage from residences shall be stored in containers approved by the municipal manager, equipped with handles and tight-fitting covers. Non- recyclable refuse may be placed in plastic bags. (b) Approved containers required by this section shall have a maximum gross weight of 75 pounds, when placed for collection. Plastic bags, when placed for collection, shall not be filled to such a weight that they will break or allow spillage during the collection process, and shall be tightly secured at the top. SECTION VI Sec. 8-6. Containers and storage areas for commercial establishments. (a) Each commercial establishment shall be equipped with adequate refuse containers or storage areas. All containers, except those for storage of bulky refuse, shall be vermin and waterproof, of noncorrosive material and equipped with tight lids which shall be kept closed at all times, except when filling or emptying the container. Such containers and storage areas shall be emptied regularly and cleaned sufficiently often to keep them free of obnoxious odors and vermin. (b) All storage areas shall be enclosed by adequate walls or opaque fencing and shall be well drained and fully accessible to collection equipment and to public health and fire inspection personnel. Such areas shall be maintained so as to protect refuse from dispersal by wind or otherwise, and must be kept free of litter and refuse overflow. SECTION VII.Sec. 8-7. Municipal collection generally. (a) All refuse and garbage placed in accordance with subsection 8-16(a) shall be collected by the municipal collector if prepared for collection as required by this chapter. Commercial and condominium garbage and refuse containerized collection service shall be provided by the municipal collector under the following conditions: (1) Where a business elects to purchase containerized garbage and refuse collection service from the municipal collector in lieu of regular curbside municipal collection, the town shall make a -4- AN ORDINANCE: AMENDING CHAPTER 8 OF THE LEESBURG TOWN CODE monthly payment to the municipal collector in an amount equal to the regular commercial curbside charge. The municipal collector's charge for containerized collection to the business shall be reduced by the town's monthly payment. (2) Where a combination of businesses use one or more containers and the total charge by the municipal collector results in a monthly fee less than the combined total of the municipal collector's regular curbside commercial collection fee per business, the town shall pay the full monthly price for the container or containers directly to the municipal collector. If the container service charges are higher than the aggregate of the regular curbside collection charges, the town shall pay the curbside rate per business to the municipal collector who shall reduce its charges for the container or containers by an equal amount. (3) Where residential condominiums include limited public frontage which make curbside collection impractical, the town shall require the municipal collector to collect garbage and refuse from containers furnished by the municipal collectors. The town shall pay the full applicable container service price set out in the then current contract between the town and the municipal collector. (4) The town reserves the right to establish and/or approve the container size, frequency and number of collections for all business and condominium usage subsidized by the town. (b) The town manager or some other officer designated by him shall have charge of the collection of garbage and refuse within the municipality. SECTION VIII. Sec. 8-8. Reserved. SECTION IX. Sec. 8-9. Requirements for collection vehicles. All vehicles used in the collection of refuse shall be kept and maintained in a clean and sanitary condition, and shall be constructed, maintained and operated as to prevent spillage of the type of refuse to be transported therein. All vehicles used in the collection of garbage or combined refuse shall be constructed and maintained with watertight bodies and with covers of metallic or other rigid, impervious material, or, in the alternative, the entire bodies thereof shall be enclosed, with only loading hoppers exposed. Special vehicles used in new or experimental methods of refuse collection may be permitted by the municipal manager, when such permit is in writing. SECTION X. Sec. 8-10. Reserved. -5- AN ORDINANCE: AMENDING CHAPTER 8 OF THE LEESBURG TOWN CODE SECTION XI. Sec. 8-11. Preparation of tree trimmings, bushes and brush for collection. Tree trimmings, bushes, and brash, excluding those produced by commercial trimming of trees and bushes, with a maximum diameter of six inches, will be collected weekly by the municipal collectors. SECTION XII.Sec. 8-12. Collection schedule. (a) Refuse and garbage will be collected by the municipality once per week from residential properties on the following schedule: (1) Monday: Collection from residential properties fronting on King Street and properties to the west of King Street. (2) Tuesday: Collection from residential properties to the east of King Street. (b) Recyclable materials will be collected by the municipality once per week from residential properties on the following schedule: (1) Tuesday: Collection of bulk tree trimmings, bushes and brash townwide. (a) The municipal office shall be notified no later than 4:00 P.M. on Monday of each week to arrange for the collection of such materials each Tuesday. (2) Thursday: Collection from residential properties fronting on King Street and properties to the west of King Street. (3) Friday: Collection from residential properties to the east of King Street. (c) Garbage and refuse will be collected by the municipality from all commercial properties on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday of each week,, and as provided as follows: (1) Upon the streets, within the limits designated below, garbage and refuse will also be collected on Friday of each week, except on the holidays designated in Section XII, paragraph (3)(d) hereof. Market Street, from Liberty Street east to Loudoun Street Loudoun Street, from the fire station east to Market Street King Street, from South Street to North Street Wirt Street, from Loudoun Street to Market Street (d) No garbage and refuse collection will be scheduled for Sundays or the following holidays: New Years, Memorial Day, July 4th, Thanksgiving and Christmas. AN ORDINANCE: -6- AMENDING CHAPTER 8 OF THE LEESBURG TOWN CODE (e) When weather conditions prevent the collection of garbage and refuse or when a regularly scheduled day falls on a holiday specified above, collection will be made on the next day. SECTION XIII. Sec. 8-13. Special collections for large items. For collection of, large items of refuse such as barrels, wood, stoves, ranges, refrigerators, dishwashers, dryers, tires and water heaters, excluding any items listed under Section 18 hereof, the municipal office shall be notified no later than 4:00 p.m. on Friday of each week, so that a special pickup may be arranged for a day of the following week to be designated by the manager. A separate charge, to be established by the municipal manager, will be made for each such special collection, provided that regular refuse collection service to any residence or commercial establishment for which such special collection is performed will be suspended if payment therefor is not made within 30 days of receipt of invoice for such collection. SECTION XIV. Sec. 8-14. Special collections for spring and fall clean-up. In the spring and fall of each year, the municipality will sponsor a clean-up and collection period during which large discarded items, yard litter, and the like will be picked up by the municipal collectors. Specific dates for such periods shall be set by the municipal manager and advertised through the news media. No charge will be rendered for this service to residents of the municipality. SECTION XV. Section 8-15. Recycling. Residents of all single-family detached and single-family attached (duplex and townhouse) residential units shall participate in the town-wide curbside recycling of recyclable materials. Recyclable materials will be picked up at curbside and shall be placed at the curb, between 4 p.m. on the day preceding collection and 6 a.m. on the morning of collection, in approved containers, separate from other refuse. Newspapers shall be securely tied in bundles or placed in paper bags. Grass clippings shall be placed in approved containers equipped with handles for lifting and tightly- fitting lids, not exceeding 75 pounds in gross weight. There shall be no charge to the town residents required to participate in this program, for this additional service. All other town residents and businesses, not included in this program or covered under a separate recycling contract with a private collector, should continue to utilize recycling drop-off centers to dispose ofrecyclable materials. SECTION XVI. Sec. 8-16. Points of collection. (a) All refuse and garbage to be collected by the municipal collectors shall be placed out- of-doors immediately behind the curbline (in case no curbing is present, at least three feet away from the edge of the pavement) at a location easily accessible to the collector. At no time will any refuse or garbage or its containers be placed on pavement used for vehicular traffic or on the sidewalk or on any other portion of a street where it will impede vehicular or pedestrian traffic. All refuse and garbage from the same property shall be placed at the same point of collection. .?- AN ORDINANCE: AMENDING CHAPTER 8 OF THE LEESBURG TOWN CODE (b) Collection may be made from points other than prescribed above in areas where the general health, welfare and safety of the municipality is best protected, but only upon written request by the property owner or tenants and approval by the municipal manager. The municipality retains the right to refuse, revise or alter such requests at any time. (c) No municipal collector will be permitted to enter garages, carports, porches, basements or other buildings for the purpose of collecting garbage and refuse. (d) The municipality reserves the right to designate the point of collection at all locations. SECTION XVII. Section 8-17. Placement for collection; removal of containers after collection. All garbage and refuse shall be placed at the point of collection by 4:00 a.m. of the day of collection, but not before 4:00 p.m. of the day prior to collection. (b) Garbage and refuse containers shall not be placed, left or stored upon any sidewalk, street, alley or public place, except where specifically permitted bY this chapter, and shall be removed from the curbline within twelve hours after collection and stored behind the front line of the building. SECTION XVIII. Section 8-18. Materials not acceptable for collection. The following materials will not be acceptable for collection by the town: Poisons, acids, caustics, explosives and other dangerous material, soil, rocks, stumps and other material substances that may accumulate as the result of constmction or repairs. SECTION IXX. Section 8-19. Tagging and removal of defective containers. Defective garbage and refuse containers will be tagged by the town collectors, indicating that they are no longer suitable for use. These will be removed by the collectors, if left in an upside down position at the collection point. SECTION XX. Section 8-20. Unlawful deposits, accumulations or disposal. (a) It shall be unlawful for any person to deposit any garbage or refuse in any street, alley or public or private place in the town, except as provided in this chapter. (b) It shall be unlawful for any person to accumulate or permit to be accumulated any garbage, or refuse, filth, offal or obnoxious or offensive matter on any property within the town, except in containers or storage areas meeting the requirements of this chapter. (c) It shall be unlawful for any person to deposit any refuse in a manner where it may be scattered by the elements. (d) It shall be unlawful for any person to dump, destroy or otherwise dispose of any garbage or refuse anywhere in the town, except as provided by this chapter. -8- AN ORDINANCE: AMENDING CHAPTER 8 OF THE LEESBURG TOWN CODE (e) No receptacle for garbage or refuse shall be filled more than level full. SECTION XXI. Section 8-21. Removal of dangerous accumulations. (a) The owners of property in the tom shall, at such time or times as the council may prescribe, remove therefrom any and all trash, garbage, refuse, litter and other substances which might endanger the health of other residents of the town. (b) Whenever the council deems it necessary, the town may, after reasonable notice, have trash, garbage, refuse, litter and other like substances which might endanger the health of other residents of the town removed by the agents or employees of the town, in which event the cost or expenses thereof shall be chargeable to and paid by the owners of such property and may be collected by the town as taxes and levies are collected· SECTION XXII. Section 8-22. Dumping trash, etc., on highway, right-of-way or private property. (a) Any person shall be guilty of a misdemeanor who shall dump or otherwise dispose of trash, garbage, refuse or other unsightly matter, on a public highway, right-of-way, property adjacent to such highway or right-of-way, or on private property, without the written consent of the owner thereof or his agent. (b) An officer may comply with the provisions of section 10-21 of the Town Code in making an arrest for a violation of this section. (c) Any person convicted of a violation of this section shall be punished as if guilty of a class 1 misdemeanor. (d) Upon the conviction of any person for a violation of this section, the court may suspend the imposition of any sentence on conditions that the defendant volunteer his services for such period of time as the court may designate to remove litter from any town highway or right-of-way. SECTION XXIII. This ordinance shall be effective April 23, 1999. PASSED this 13~ day April, 1999. Jagfes E. Clem, Mayor T~)wn of Leesburg