Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinance #3015 ORDINANCE NO. 3015 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF HUNTINGTON BEACH AMENDING TITLE 12 OF THE HUNTINGTON BEACH MUNICIPAL CODE TO ADD CHAPTER 12 .37 PERTAINING TO NEWSRACKS The City Council of the City of Huntington Beach does ordain as follows: SECTION 1: Title 12 of the Huntington Beach Municipal Code is amended by adding Chapter 12 .37 to read as follows : CHAPTER 12 .37 NEWSRACKS 12.37. 010 DEFINITIONS 12 .37. 020 PROHIBITION 12 .37. 030 REGISTRATION 12 .37.040 STANDARDS 12 .37. 050 IDENTIFICATION 12 .37. 060 VIOLATIONS 12 .37 . 070 APPLICATIONS 12 .37 .080 INFRACTION 12 .37. 090 HOLD HARMLESS 12 .37. 100 INSURANCE 12.37.010 DEFINITIONS Definitions as used in this section: (a) "Newsracks" shall mean any self-service or coin-operated box, container, storage unit or other dispenser installed, used, or maintained for the display and sale of newspapers or new periodicals. (b) "Street" shall mean all that area dedicated to public use for public street purposes and shall include, but not be limited to, roadways, parkways, alleys and sidewalks . (c) "Roadway" shall mean that portion of a street improved, designed, or ordinarily used for vehicular travel . -1- 3015 (d) "Parkway" shall mean that area between the sidewalks and the curb of any street, and where there is no sidewalk, that area between the edge of the roadway and the property line adjacent thereto. Parkway shall also include any area within a roadway which is not open to vehicular travel . (e) "Sidewalk" shall mean any surface provided for the primary use of pedestrians . 12.37.020 PROHIBITIONS (a) No person shall install, use or maintain any newsrack or other structure which projects onto, into or over any part of the roadway of any public street, or which rests, wholly or in part, upon, along or over any portion of the roadway of any public street . (b) No person shall install, use or maintain any newsrack which in whole or in part rests upon, in or over any public sidewalk or parkway, when such installation, use or maintenance endangers the safety of persons or property, or when such site or location is used for public utility purposes, public transportation purposes or other governmental use, or when such newsrack unreasonably interferes with or impedes the flow of pedestrian or vehicular traffic, including any legally parked or stopped vehicle, the ingress into or egress from any residence or place of business, or the use of poles, posts, traffic signs or signals, hydrants, mailboxes, or other objects permitted at or near said location, or when such newsrack interferes with the cleaning of any sidewalk by the use of mechanical sidewalk cleaning machinery. -2- 3015 12*37*030 REGISTRATION OF LOCATION (a) No person shall install or maintain any newsrack which in whole or in part rests upon, in or over any public sidewalk or parkway without first obtaining a permit from the Director of Public Works or his designated representative after providing the following: (1) The location of each newsrack to be installed or maintained in the City by the application; and (2) The name, address and telephone number of the applicant . (b) No more than one notification shall be required per applicant, regardless of the number of newsracks the applicant maintains in the City. (c) From the above information the Director of Public Works or his designated representative shall designate locations and shall be guided therein solely by the standards and criteria set forth in Section 12 .37 .040 hereof . Such application may be granted either in whole or in part when more than one location is proposed by the applicant, and in any event, when denial is solely as to location, it shall be without prejudice to amend such application to state a different location or locations . 12.37.040 STANDARDS FOR INSTALLATION, MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION Any newsrack which in whole or in part rests upon, in or over any public sidewalk or parkway shall comply with the following standards : (a) No newsrack shall exceed forty-eight inches in height, thirty inches in width, or two feet in thickness. (b) All newsracks will be bolted to the sidewalk per City approval . -3- 3015 (c) Newsracks shall only be placed pursuant to approval by the Director of Public Works or his designated representative near a curb or adjacent to the wall of a building. Newsracks placed near the curb shall be placed no less than eighteen inches nor more than twenty-four inches from the edge of the curb. Newsracks placed adjacent to the wall of a building shall be placed parallel to such wall and not more than six inches from the wall . No newsrack shall be placed or maintained on the sidewalk or parkway opposite a newsstand or another newsrack. (d) No newsrack shall be chained, or otherwise attached to any property not owned by the owner of the newsrack or to any permanently fixed object. (e) Newsracks may be chained or otherwise attached to one another; however, no more than three newsracks may be joined together in this manner, and a space of no less than eighteen inches shall separate each group of three newsracks so attached. (f) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection(b) of Section 12 .37. 020, no newsrack shall be placed, installed, used or maintained: (1) Within five feet of any marked crosswalk; (2) Within fifteen feet of the curb return of any unmarked crosswalk; (3) Within five feet of any fire hydrant, fire call box, police call box or other emergency facility; (4) Within five feet of any driveway; (5) Within five feet ahead of, and twenty-five feet to the rear of any sign marking a designated bus stop; (6) Within six feet of any bus bench; -4- 3015 (7) At any location whereby the clear space for the passageway of pedestrians is impeded; (8) Within fifty feet of any other newsrack containing the same publication. (g) No newsrack shall be used for advertising signs or publicity purposes other than that dealing with the display, sale or purchase of the newspaper or news periodical sold therein. (h) Each newsrack shall be maintained in a clean, neat and attractive condition and in good repair at all time. (i) No more than eight newsracks shall be located on any public right-of-way within a space of two hundred feet in any direction within the same block of the same street; provided, however, that no more than sixteen newsracks shall be allowed on any one block. As used herein, "block" shall mean both sides of a street between two consecutive intersecting streets . In determining which newsracks shall be permitted to remain, the Director of Public Works, or his designated representative, shall be guided solely by the following criteria: (1) First priority shall be given to newsracks used for the sale of publications which have been adjudicated to be newspapers of general circulation for Orange County, pursuant to the procedure set forth in Division 7, Article 21 of the California Government Code. (2) Second priority shall be given to newsracks used for the sale of daily publications (those published on five or more days in a calendar week) which have not been adjudicated to be newspapers of general circulation for Orange County. -5- (3) Third priority shall be given to newsracks used for the sale of weekly publications (those published on at least one but less than five days in a calendar week) which have not been adjudicated to be newspapers of general circulation for Orange County. In the event that there is a conflict between newspapers within the same priority seeking the same location, and there are insufficient newsrack spaces remaining to accommodate the conflicting newspapers after first filling as many spaces as possible by utilizing the criteria set forth above, then the Director of Public Works or his designated representative shall assign the space or spaces at random by placing the names of all applicants for the remaining spaces at a location into a container from which the names shall be drawn, one at a time until the particular locations remaining number of unfilled newsracks has been filled. Such drawing shall be open to the public at a time and date designated by the Director of Public Works or his designated representative. (j ) No person shall display or exhibit in any public newsrack or other display device, any material which is defined by California Penal Code §313 as harmful to minors unless such material is : (1) displayed in an area from which minors are excluded and, (2) is covered by a device, commonly known as a "blinder rack" , such that the lower two thirds (2/3) of the material is not exposed to view. -6- (k) No person shall display or exhibit in any public newsrack or other display device, other than in locations from which minors are excluded, material which exposes or exhibits to public view, any depiction of human genitalia, the pubic, or anal region, or the breast of a female person other than a child under the age of puberty, or any description, pictorial or otherwise, of explicit sexual acts, sexual organs or excrement where such depiction or description has as its purpose or effect sexual arousal or affront. 12.37.050 NEWSRACKS IDENTIFICATION REQUIRED Within thirty days after this article becomes effective, every person or other entity which places or maintains a newsrack on the streets of the City of Huntington Beach shall have his or its name, address and telephone number affixed thereto in a place where such information may be easily seen. Prior to the designation of a location by the Director of Public Works or his designated representative, the applicant shall present evidence of compliance with this section. 12.37.060 NEWSRACK VIOLATIONS (a) Any newsrack installed, used or maintained in violation of the provisions of this article shall be tagged with a "notice of violation" stating the violation, date of tagging, notice of intention to remove the newsrack if the violation is not corrected within ten days, and procedure for obtaining a hearing before the Director of Public Works or his designated representative, if -7- 3015 desired. (b) Notwithstanding subsection (a) , in the case of violations of this article relative to restrictions upon attachments of newsracks to property other than that owned by the owner of the newsrack, to fixed objects, or to each other, and upon location of newsracks, the Director of Public Works or his designated representative may, as an alternative to tagging such newsrack, move, align, remove such attachment, or otherwise move such rack or racks in order to restore them to a legal condition. (c) Any newsrack which has been tagged and remains in violation of the provisions stated on the tag past the ten-day correction period, and no hearing has been requested, said newsrack shall be removed by the Director of Public Works or his designated representative and stored in any convenient place. The Director of Public Works or his designated representative shall notify the owner thereof by mailing a "notice of removal" to the last know address of the owner. Such notice shall state the date the newsrack was removed, the reasons therefore, the location and procedure for claiming the newsrack, and the procedure for obtaining a post-removal hearing before the Director of Public Works or his designated representative, if desired. Any such newsrack removed and stored pursuant to these provisions shall be released to the owner thereof if claimed within forty-five days after such removal an upon the payment of reasonable charges of removal and storage therefor. Upon failure of the owner to claim such newsrack and pay the reasonable charges within forty-five days after the mailing of written notice of removal, such newsrack shall be deemed to be unclaimed property in possession of the Department of Public Works -8- 3015 and may be disposed of pursuant to the provisions of this code. (d) Any newsrack in violation of the provisions of this article, which violation creates an immediate danger to the health, safety or welfare of the public, which violation cannot be corrected by moving or otherwise reposition of the newsrack, said newsrack may be summarily removed and stored in a convenient location so as to eliminate the danger to the health, safety and welfare of the public. The Director of Public Works or his designated representative shall notify the owner thereof by mailing a "notice of removal" to the last known address of the owner. Such notice shall state the date the newsrack was removed, the reasons therefor,the location and procedure for claiming the newsrack, and the procedure for obtaining a post-removal hearing before the Director of Public Works or his designated representative, if desired. Any such newsrack removed and stored pursuant to this subsection shall be released to the owner thereof if claimed within forty-five days after the mailing of written notice of removal and upon the payment of reasonable charges of removal and storage. 12.37.070 SAME, APPLICABILITY The provisions of this article shall apply to all newsracks, whether installed and maintained prior to or after the effective date of any of the provisions herein. Those newsracks installed prior to the effective date of any provision enacted hereunder shall be brought into compliance with said provisions within thirty days of the effective date thereof . -9- 3015 Any newsrack not brought into compliance within the aforementioned time period shall be deemed to be in violation of this article. 12.37.080 NEWSRACK VIOLATIONS: INFRACTION Any act which is prohibited or declared unlawful or the doing of any act which is required, or the failure to do any act which is declared to be unlawful, shall be an infraction, and any person convicted of such infraction shall be punished by a fine not exceeding $250 .00 . 12.37.090 HOLD HARMLESS Every person or other entity which places or maintains a newsrack on a public sidewalk or parkway in the City of Huntington Beach shall file a written statement with the Director of Public Works or his designated representative which complies with the current City policy, rules and/or regulations on Hold Harmless clauses . 12.3 7. 0� INSURANCE The City requires every person or other entity which places or maintains a newsrack on a public sidewalk or parkway in the City of Huntington Beach to provide insurance as required by current City policy, rule and/or regulations. -10- 3015 PASSED AND ADOPTED by the City Council of the City of Huntington Beach at a regular meeting thereof held on the 21st day of Augu5;t,1989 . Mayor ATTEST: APPROVED AS TO FORM: 4wz i City Clerk City Attorneys -Z�f��� REVVIIE,WED _AND APPROVED: INITIATED AND APPROVED: City Administrator Director 3f Public Works -11- Ord. No. 3 015 STATE OF CALIFORNIA ) COUNTY OF ORANGE ss: CITY OF HUNTINGTON BEACH I, CONNIE BROCKWAY, the duly elected, qualified City Clerk of the City of Huntington Beach and ex-officio Clerk of the City Council of the said City, do hereby certify that the whole number of members of the City Council of the City of Huntington Beach is seven; that the foregoing ordinance was read to said City Council at a regular meeting therof held on the 7 th day of August 1989 and was again read to said City Council at a regular meeting therof held on the 21 s t day of August 19 89 , and was passed and adopted by the affirmative vote of at least a majority of all the members of said City Council . I f AYES: Councilmembers: MacAllister, Green, Winchell , Bannister, Mays , Silva, Erskine NOES: Councilmembers: None ABSENT: Councilmembers: None 1,C=% bodcway CITY CLEW of ft City of Nw pn 0e4ch end ex-officio Clot of to Gity Cmxp,do he"tardfy that a synopsis of f Ci ty Clerk and ex-offi ci o Clrerk oditm has been p4shedin0*Daily Mot on of the City Council of the City of Huntington Beach, California In accordara ti h tt a 0014 Chine.W aaiu Vi'y. Connie Brocknv y -� City Cleric