HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinance 14676~~ ~
;~6-27-J 1 A "~ 5~ `ti CVU
~.
ORDINANCE NO l ~~ ~~--'`"
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE CODE OF THE CITY OF FORT
WORTH (1986), AS AMENDED BY THE AMENDMENTS OF APPENDIX
B, "DEPARTMENT OF CITY SERVICES", ARTICLE II, "CODE
COMPLIANCE", BY THE AMENDMENT OF SECTION 11A-7
"DEFINITIONS", BY THE ADDITION OF A DEFINITION FOR "LITTER",
BY THE ADDITION OF SECTION 11A-27 "LITTERING PROHIBITED",
PROVIDING THAT LITTERING IS AN OFFENSE, BY THE ADDITION
OF SECTION 11A-28 "DUTY TO MAINTIAN PROPERTY FREE FROM
LITTER", PROVIDING FOR THE CREATION OF AN OBLIGATION TO
AN OWNER OR OCCUPANT OF PRIVATE PROPERTY TO KEEP THE
PROPERTY FREE FROM LITTER AND PROVIDING FOR THE
DESIGNATION OF A RESPONSIBLE PARTY FOR THE CONDITION OF
A BUILDING SITE TO REMAIN FREE FROM TRASH AND LITTER,
PROVIDING THAT THIS ORDINANCE IS CUMULATIVE, PROVIDING A
SEVERABILITY CLAUSE; PROVIDING A PENALTY CLAUSE,
PROVIDING A SAVINGS CLAUSE, PROVIDING FOR PUBLICATION IN
THE OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER OF THE CITY, AND PROVIDING AN
EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, The City Council of the City of Fort Worth finds that the City of Fort
Worth needs to control litter throughout the entire City, therefore, Appendix B,
"Department of City Services", Article II, "Code Compliance", of the Code of the City of
Fort Worth (1986), as amended, is hereby further amended and shall read as follows
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT WORTH,
TEXAS:
SECTION 1
That Appendix B, "Department of City Services", Article II, "Code Compliance",
Division 1, "Generally", Section 11A-7, "Definitions" of the Code of the City of Fort
Worth (1986), as amended, is hereby further amended by the addition of "Litter" and
shall read as follows
"Litter " Shall mean "Garbage'; "Rubbish", and "Solid Waste" as herein
defined and all other material which when discarded tends to endanger
the public health, safety and welfare "
Further, that Appendix B, "Department of City Services", Article II, "Code
Compliance", Division 3, "Nuisances", of the Code of the City of Fort Worth (1986), as
amended, is hereby further amended by the addition of Section 11A-27 "Littering
Prohibited" and such Section shall read as follows
"Section 11A-27 Littering Prohibited
A person commits an offense if he or she deposits or allows to be
deposited litter on any property within the city, whether owned by the
person or not."
Further, that Appendix B, "Department of City Services", Article II, "Code
Compliance", Division 3, "Nuisances", of the Code of the City of Fort Worth (1986), as
amended, is hereby further amended by the addition of Section 11A-28, "Duty to
Maintain Property Free From Litter" and such Section shall read as follows
"Section 11A-28 Duty to Maintain Property Free From Litter
(a) An owner, occupant, or person in control of private property
commits an offense if he or she fails to maintain the property free of
litter, unless the litter has been deposited in a trash receptacle that
securely contains the litter
(b) Construction sites within the city and sidewalks, streets, alleys and
public or private properties in the vicinity of the construction sites
shall be maintained free of construction trash, litter, and debris that
is not securely contained
2
` 1 Any applicant for a permit for new residential construction
issued by the City of Fort Worth Department of Development
shall identify the owner, occupant, or person in control of the
property on the permit, by name, driver's license number,
and date of birth, who is responsible for maintaining the
construction site in a manner that securely contains all
construction trash, litter, and debris until a final inspection is
delivered or the permit expires
2 A person or owner commits an offense under this section
when the individual identified on a permit under subsection 1
fails to maintain the construction site in such a manner as
described in this section "
SECTION 2
This ordinance shall be cumulative of all provisions of ordinances and of the
Code of the City of Fort Worth, Texas (1986), as amended, except where the provisions
of this ordinance are in direct conflict with the provisions of such ordinances and such
Code, in which event conflicting provisions of such ordinances and such Code are
hereby repealed
SECTION 3
It is hereby declared to be the intention of the City Council that the sections,
paragraphs, sentences, clauses and phrases of this ordinance are. severable, and, if
any phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section of this ordinance shall be declared
unconstitutional by the valid judgment or decree of any court of competent jurisdiction,
such unconstitutionality shall not affect any of the remaining phrases, clauses,
sentences, paragraphs and sections of this ordinance, since the same would have been
enacted by the City Council without the incorporation in this ordinance of any such
unconstitutional phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section
3
SECTION 4
All rights and remedies of the City of Fort Worth, Texas, are expressly saved as
to any and all violations of the provisions of the ordinances amended in Section 1
hereof, which have accrued at the time of the effective date of this ordinance and, as to
such accrued violations and all pending litigation, both civil and criminal, whether
pending in court or not, under such ordinances, same shall not be affected by this
ordinance but may be prosecuted until final disposition by the courts
SECTION 5
Any person, firm or corporation who violates, disobeys, omits, neglects or
refuses to comply with or who resists the enforcement of any of the provisions of this
ordinance shall be fined not more than Two Thousand Dollars ($2,000 00) for each
offense, subject to the enhanced fine provisions found in Article II, Division 5, Section
11 A-100, Criminal Remedies Each day that a violation exists shall constitute a
separate offense
SECTION 6
The City Secretary of the City of Fort Worth, Texas, is hereby directed to publish
the caption, penalty clause and effective date of this ordinance for two (2) days in the
official newspaper of the City of Fort Worth, Texas, as authorized by Section 52 013,
Texas Local Government Code
4
SECTION 7
This ordinance shall take effect upon adoption and publication as required by
law, and it is so ordained
APPROVED AS TO FO D EGAL
Assistant City Attorne
Date ~a~l~r
Adopted ~l2-G~a f
Effective %~ ~ ~
5
City of Fort Worth, Texas
~1-~A~ar wn~l C,uun~il u~rr~eun~cut~ian
DATE REFERENCE NUMBER LOG NAME PAGE
6!26/01 G-13292 21 LITTER 1 of 1
suB~ECT ORDINANCE PROHIBITING LITTERING AND REQUIRING PROPERTY BE
MAINTAINED FREE FROM LITTER
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the City Council adopt the attached ordinance amending Chapter 11 of the City
Code to prohibit littering and require property be maintained free from litter
DISCUSSION
Earlier this year, the City Council heard complaints from citizens living in or near new housing
developments. The complaints were about waste materials from building sites not being collected,
containerized, or disposed of properly and ending up as litter in occupied neighborhoods and along
adjacent roadways The issue was referred to the City Council's Safety and Community Development
Committee The Safety and Community Development Committee subsequently directed staff to
evaluate the effectiveness of current ordinances and determine what else might be done to better
address the problems.
A review of the City Code revealed that littering is currently only prohibited in City parks and on City
airport property The proposed ordinance prohibits littering on all property and requires property be
maintained free from litter It specifically addresses the problem of litter emanating from building sites
by requiring an applicant for a permit for new residential construction to identify an individual who will be
responsible for maintaining the construction site free from litter until final inspection, or until the permit
expires
The proposed ordinance was submitted to the Greater Fort Worth Builders Association for review and
comment. The Greater Fort Worth Builders Association's Executive Director indicated that members
generally approve, but requested that it be enforced with "common sense." During the June 12, 2001
meeting, these comments were shared with the Safety and Community Development Committee at
which time, staff was directed to submit the proposed ordinance to the City Council for consideration
FISCAL INFORMATION/CERTIFICATION
The Finance Director certifies that this action will have no material effect on City funds.
CB k
Submitted for City Manager's FUND ACCOUNT CENTER AMOUNT CITY SECRETARY
Office by: (tO~
APPROVED
Charles Boswell 85]1 CST t GaU1Vl.;~~
Originating Department Head:
JUN A ^ 2001
Jim Keyes 8517 (from)
~~~ ~~~ ~J
Additional Information Contact: ~-3crstary of the
Cit
g
City o;l'ozt'~ve;th,~`exas
Judy Walton 8334
Adop~e~ Ordil~anc~ t~o.l