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HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 15 - Peddlers and SolicitorsMEMO TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL FROM: ROGER NELSON, CITY MANAGER)O MEETING DATE: JANUARY 20, 2004 SUBJECT: ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER 17 PEDDLERS AND SOLICITORS RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends that the City Council approve an ordinance amending Chapter 17 Peddlers and Solicitors by adding the definition of peddler. BACKGROUND: March 18, 2003, the City Council adopted Ordinance No. 2003-14 that amended Chapter 17 Peddlers and Solicitors in its entirety. After Staff review of Chapter 17, it is recommended that the definition of peddler be added to Section 17-1 and that the remainder of Chapter 17 be amended to include peddler where appropriate. The proposed ordinance is attached with the addition of peddler in bold print to the appropriate sections. LH January 13, 2004 (9:41 AM) ORDINANCE NO. q4` ' AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF GRAPEVINE, TEXAS AMENDING CHAPTER 17 OF THE CODE OF ORDINANCES, RELATING TO PEDDLERS AND SOLICITORS; PROVIDING FOR THE REPEAL OF ALL INCONSISTENT ORDINANCES; PROVIDING A PENALTY NOT TO EXCEED THE SUM OF TWO THOUSAND DOLLARS ($2,000.00) FOR EACH OFFENSE AND A SEPARATE OFFENSE SHALL BE DEEMED COMMITTED EACH DAY DURING OR ON WHICH AN OFFENSE OCCURS OR CONTINUES; PROVIDING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE; DECLARING AN EMERGENCY AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE WHEREAS, the City of Grapevine, Texas, is a home -rule city acting under its charter adopted by the electorate pursuant to Article XI, Section 5 of the Texas Constitution and Chapter 9 of the Local Government Code; and WHEREAS, there are serious safety issues involved when individuals solicit in or on public streets, street right-of-ways, and medians within the City of Grapevine, including concerns for the physical safety of those who participate in solicitation activities, as well as the traveling public; and WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Grapevine, Texas finds and concludes it is necessary to adopt reasonable rules and regulations relative to licenses issued for peddler and solicitor activities for the protection of the residents and citizens of the City of Grapevine; and WHEREAS, due to the necessity of conducting background checks on peddler and solicitor permit applicants, it is necessary for the City to adopt reasonable fees that match the actual cost of processing peddler and solicitor licenses; and WHEREAS, pursuant to §215.031 of the Texas Local Government Code, as amended, the City Council has the power and authority to license, tax, suppress, prevent, or otherwise regulate peddlers and hawkers; and WHEREAS, the City Council finds that the passage of this Ordinance is necessary to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public and will benefit said public. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF GRAPEVINE, TEXAS: Section 1. That all of the above premises are found to be true and correct and are incorporated into the body of this ordinance as if copied in their entirety. Section 2. That Chapter 17 of the Code of Ordinances, Peddlers and Solicitor is hereby amended as follows: A. Section 17-1 Definitions is hereby amended by the addition of the definition of "peddler" as follows: "Peddler means any person, traveling by foot, wagon, vehicle or any other type of conveyance from street to street carrying, conveying, or transporting goods, wares or merchandise and offering or exposing them for sale, or making sales and delivering articles to purchasers; or who, without traveling from place to place, exhibits, displays, sells or offers for sale such products from a wagon, handcart, pushcart, motor vehicle, conveyance or from his person while on the public ways of the City of Grapevine. A "peddler" also includes any street vendor, hawker, huckster, itinerant merchant or transient vendor. " B. Sec. 17-2. License—Required is hereby amended in its entirety and replaced as follows: "(a) It shall be unlawful for any person to conduct themselves as a peddler or solicitor without having first obtained a license therefor from the city, except that where the person who will be peddling or soliciting is under the age of 16, such person shall be supervised by a person who is over the age of 18 and who shall obtain a license on behalf of the person to be supervised. (b) Upon issuance, the license shall be carried with any licensee at all times during which peddling or solicitation activity is being conducted. Further, the licensee must ensure that the license is properly displayed while conducting peddling or solicitor activities. Properly displayed shall mean attached to or hung so that the license is clearly visible to the public and law enforcement officials. (c) It shall be unlawful for any person to conduct themselves as a peddler or solicitor without wearing an orange traffic safety vest. (d) It shall be unlawful for any person to peddle or solicit on, in, upon, or around City Right of Way, with or without a license." C. Sec. 17-3. Same—Application is hereby amended by amending subsections (a)(3) and (4) to read as follows: "(3) Kind, type and character of goods he will offer for sale, or type of peddling or solicitation he will undertake; (4) The specific location(s) where he will peddle or solicit;" ORD. NO. 2 D. Sec. 17-4. Same—License fees; term; exemptions from license fees is hereby amended and replaced as follows: "The license fee for a peddler or solicitor under this chapter shall be $50.00. Provided, however, when a person engages in any such activity, through one or more agents or employees, such person shall, in addition to the $50.00 fee above mentioned, pay a license fee of $20.00 for each agent or employee so engaged, all of which licenses shall be valid for one year from the date of their issuance. The fee for a replacement license that is within one year from the date of original issuance of license shall be $20.00. In addition to the license fee, each applicant must pay the investigation fee provided for in Section 17-5. The license fee shall not be required of charitable solicitations." E. Sec. 17-5. Same --Investigation of applicant is hereby amended by replacing the second paragraph to read as follows: "It shall be the duty of the chief of police to investigate each applicant for a license under this chapter and make a report thereof to the city manager before issuance of such a license. The chief of police's report shall include a recommendation as to the propriety of issuing a peddler or solicitor permit to the applicant based on a review of the applicant's background." F. Sec. 17-9. Hours of operation is hereby amended and replaced by the following: "It shall be unlawful for any person acting as a peddler or solicitor to go in or upon the premises of a private residence in the city prior to 9:00 a.m. or after 5:00 p.m. of any day, Monday through Saturday, or at any time on Sunday or any other Federally designated holiday, or, on any day where the Department of Homeland Security has declared an Orange or Red State of Alert. This section shall not apply to a visit to the premises as a result of a request or invitation made by the occupant." G. Sec. 17-12. Prohibited conduct is hereby amended and replaced by the following: "it shall be a violation of this ordinance and unlawful for any peddler or solicitor to: (1) Misrepresent the purpose of the peddling or solicitation; (2) Misrepresent the affiliation of those engaged in the peddling or solicitation; (3) Continue efforts to peddle to or solicit from an individual once that individual informs the peddler or solicitor that he does not wish to give anything to or to buy anything from that peddler or solicitor; or ORD. NO. 3 (4) Represent the issuance of any license under this chapter as an endorsement or recommendation of the peddling or solicitation; or (5) Peddle or solicit at any residence or building which has posted a no peddling or solicitor sign; or (6) Act in any manner which is contrary to local, State, or Federal law." H. Sec. 17-14. Penalties; civil remedies; license forfeiture is hereby amended by amending subsection 17-14(d) to read as follows: "(d) In addition to the sanctions provided for above, any person, firm, or corporation violating any term or provision of this chapter shall be subject to forfeiture of their peddler or solicitor license. In the event of such forfeiture of license, no part of such license fee as may have been so paid shall be refunded to such person, and no further license shall be issued to such person for the remaining period of such license year under this chapter." Section 3. That all ordinances or any parts thereof in conflict with the terms of this ordinance shall be and hereby are deemed repealed and of no force or effect; provided, however, that the ordinance or ordinances under which the cases currently filed and pending in the Municipal Court of the City of Grapevine, Texas shall be deemed repealed only when all such cases filed and pending under such ordinance or ordinances have been disposed of by a final conviction or a finding of not guilty, nolo contendere or dismissal. Section 4. Any person, firm or corporation violating any of the provisions of this ordinance shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall be fined in a sum not to exceed Two Thousand Dollars ($2,000.00) and a separate offense shall be deemed committed upon each day during or on which a violation occurs or continues. Section 5. If any section, article, paragraph, sentence, clause, phrase or word in this ordinance, or application thereto any person or circumstance is held invalid or unconstitutional by a Court of competent jurisdiction, such holding shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this ordinance; and the City Council hereby declares it would have passed such remaining portions of the ordinance despite such invalidity, which remaining portions shall remain in full force and effect. Section 6. The fact that the present ordinances and regulations of the City of Grapevine, Texas, are inadequate to properly safeguard the health, safety, morals, peace, and general welfare of the public creates an emergency which requires that this ordinance become effective the 4th day of April, 2003. ORD. NO. 4 P " PASSED AND APPROVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF GRAPEVINE, TEXAS on this the 20th day of January, 2004. ATTEST: ORD. NO. 5