HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinance 2001-146
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ORDINANCE NO. 2001-146
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF
SUNNY ISLES BEACH, FLORIDA, REPEALING ORDINANCE NO. 98-
24, ESTABLISHING STANDARDS AND REQUIREMENTS FOR
NEWSRACKS LOCATED ON THE PUBLIC RIGHTS-OF-WAY;
PROVIDING FOR PURPOSE; PROVIDING FOR DEFINITIONS;
PROVIDING FOR LOCATION AND PLACEMENT OF NEWSRACKS;
PROVIDING FOR STANDARDS FOR INSTALLATION,
MAINTENANCE AND APPEARANCE OF NEWSRACKS BY THE CITY;
PROVIDING FOR PERMIT AND CONDITIONS FOR PERMIT;
PROVIDING FOR ALLOCATION OF NEWSRACK; PROVIDING FOR
REVOCATION OF PERMITS; PROVIDING FOR APPEAL;
PROVIDING FOR ADMINISTRATIVE FEES; DETERMINING
NEWSRACK ABANDONMENT; PROVIDING FOR
INDEMNIFICATION; PROVIDING FOR REPEAL OF CONFLICTING
PROVISIONS; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY; PROVIDING FOR
INCLUSION OF THE CODE AND AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, on March 12, 1998, the City Commission adopted Ordinance No. 98-24,
which attempted to address the uncontrolled placement of newsracks in public rights-of-way
which presented an inconvenience and threat to the safety and welfare of persons using such
rights-of-way, including pedestrians, persons entering and leaving buildings, and persons
performing essential utility, traffic control and emergency services; and
WHEREAS, substantial growth in the number of newspaper publications and operators
of newsracks in the City, has produced a significant increase in the number of newsracks
installed in the public rights-of-way; and
WHEREAS, the substantial growth of newsracks within the City limits have caused
considerable concern amongst the public and City officials with regard to safety, convenience
and the aesthetics thereof; and
WHEREAS, the City of Sunny Isles Beach has invested significant funds to beautify the
City since its incorporation, including improvements to facilitate pedestrian and vehicular
circulation; and
WHEREAS, the City has adopted a Streetscape Master Plan and a Comprehensive
Master Plan to improve the visual character of the City, including resources necessary to
improve the character and qualit) of the public streets for health, safety and welfare purposes;
and
WHEREAS, the uncontrolled placement of newsracks in public rights-of-way does not
support the investment that the City has made to beautify its infrastructure; and
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WHEREAS, the City Commission finds that there is a need to regulate and establish
procedures regarding installation, placement, size, maintenance and appearance of newsracks
within the City as such regulations and procedures will promote the health, safety, aesthetics and
welfare of the citizens and visitors, as well, in supporting the revitalization and development of
the City; and
WHEREAS, the purpose of this Ordinance is to establish a comprehensive set of
regulations applicable to newsracks and the public rights-of-way, and on other public property;
and by doing so to advance and improve safety and aesthetics by controlling the size,
construction, placement and appearance of newsracks; and
WHEREAS, it is not the intent of this Ordinance to in any way discriminate against, or
. interfere with the publication, circulation, distribution or dissemination of any newspapers within
the City limits.
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE
CITY OF SUNNY ISLES BEACH, FLORIDA, AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1.
reference.
Recitals. The recitals set forth hereinabove, are hereby incorporated herein by
Section 2. PurDose. The purpose of the following is to promote the public health, safety and
welfare through the regulation of placement, type, appearance, servicing, and ensurance of
newsracks on public rights-of-way so as to:
(1 ) Provide for pedestrian and driver safety and convenience.
(2) Restrict unreasonable interference with the flow of pedestrian or vehicular
traffic, including ingress into or egress from any residence or place of business, or
from the street to the sidewalk by person( s) exiting or entering parked or standing
vehicles.
(3) Provide for public and property safety during hurricane conditions.
(4) Provide reasonable access for use and maintenance of poles, posts, traffic
signs or signals, hydrants, mailboxes and access to location use for public
transportation purposes.
(5) Relocate and/or replace newsracks which result in visual blight and/or
excessive space allocation on the public rights-of-way of which unreasonably
detract from the aesthetic of store window displays, adjacent landscaping and
other improvements, as well as to have abandoned newsracks removed.
(6) Maintain and protect the values of surrounding properties, and prevent
damage to grass, landscape, and rights-of-way areas.
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(7) Reduce unnecessary exposure of the public to personal injury or property
damage.
(8) Treat all newspapers equally, regardless of space size, content, circulation,
or frequency of publication.
(9) Maintain and preserve freedom of the press.
Section 3. Definitions. The following words, terms and phrases, when used in this article,
shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly
indicates a different meaning.
(a) Abandoned - means any newsrack which remains empty for a period as
provided for herein, whether otherwise in good condition or not, or any newsrack
upon which no responsible contact persons, address and telephone number has
been posted. A newsrack identified as abandoned, shall be posted as such for a
thirty (30) working day period. If the abandonment has not been remedied, the
newsrack shall be removed and disposed of in any manner provided for herein.
(b) Advertisement Circular - means any publication that contains only
advertising and no news reports.
(c) Building Code of Jurisdiction - means the South Florida Building Code
or any successor applicable building code.
(d) City Manager - means the City Manager of the City of Sunny Isles
Beach or hislher designee.
(e) Commercial Rack - means any container, rack, storage unit or other
dispensers installed, used or maintained for the display or distribution of
publication that advertise, offer or to promote products or sales, without
predominant news, content, such as real estate listing, vehicles or products for
sale, business or service promotions, or commercial flyers.
(f) Director of Code Enforcement and Licensing - means the Department
Director for Code Enforcement of the City of Sunny Isles Beach or hislher
designee.
(g) Distributor - means persons responsible for placing and maintaining
newsracks in a public right-of-way ofthe City.
(h) Intersecting Side Street - means a street intersecting a pedestrian priority
street, or a street intersecting that street, which serves a pedestrian-intensive area,
which has less intensive usage by a pedestrian.
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(i) Modular Newsrack - means a connected grouping of two to eighteen (2
to 18) pockets which may be placed on a pedestal bolted to a paved surface, or be
bolted directly to the paved surface which is installed or used for the display, sale
or distribution of newspapers, news periodicals or advertising circulars.
G) Moveable Fixture - means any newsrack, bench, waste receptacle or
other non-attached fixture excepting any sign.
(k) Newspaper - a typical daily or weekly publication containing recent
news, current events and feature articles, editorials and advertising.
(1) Newsrack - means any self-service or coin operated box, container,
storage unit for all other dispenser installed, used, or maintained for the
display and sale of newspapers or other news periodicals or advertising
circulars, including commercial racks and modular newsracks.
Newsrack Enhancement Areas - means those designated locations
within the City where individual newsracks are not permitted on rights of
ways.
(n) On-Street Parking Area - means those portions of roadway directly
adjacent to a curb or sidewalk where motorized vehicular parking is permitted at
all times during specified hours.
(0) Publishing Entity - means the person or any other legal entity owning a
newsrack in a public right-of-way. The terms "Publishing Entity", "Responsible
Entity", "Owner or Publisher" shall be used conjunctively throughout this article,
and shall apply jointly and severally to those of them owning or maintaining the
newsrack in a public right-of-way.
(P) Pedestrian-Intensive Area or Pedestrian Priority Street - Those
corridors where intensive pedestrian activity exists or is planned to occur as the
result of public investments such as park and breach of land acquisition, widened
sidewalks, decorative crosswalks and special pedestrian signalization, or as a
result of private investment in predominantly ground floor retail or restaurant land
uses, sidewalk, cafes, public plazas and sidewalks, awnings or continuous street
trees, greenways, bike paths or pedestrian paths. The following such areas are
identified:
(1) Collins Avenue
(2) Sunny Isles Boulevard
(3) North Bay Road
(4) 174th Street
(q)
Public Agency - means the City, County, State or Federal Government.
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(r) Public Property - means parks, rights-of-way, squares, plazas and any
and all of the real property owned by the public, any governmental agency, or the
City, streets, roadways, rights-of-way and public easement.
(s) Public Right-of-Way - means a strip of land dedicated to public use or
otherwise owned by a public agency for public purposes, and shall include, but
not be limited to roadways, squares, bike paths and sidewalks.
(t) Roadway - means the portion of a street or highway, including swales
and shoulders for the intended use of vehicles.
(u) Site Triangle - means the distance of a safe site triangle as described by
933-11 of the Code of Miami-Dade County as adopted by 98.38 of the Charter of
the City of Sunny Isles Beach and more specifically, defined as 80' or more of the
right-of-way on an arterial street or 60-70' of the right-of-way on a collector street
from the center line of any street that is not signalized.
Section 4.
Location and Placement of Newsracks.
(A) Any newsrack which rests in whole or in part upon, or any portion of a public
right-of-way, or which projects onto, into or over any part of a public right-of-way, shall
be located in accordance with the provisions of this section:
(I) No newsrack shall be used or maintained which projects onto, into or over
any part of the roadway, bikeway or on street parking area of a public street.
(2) No newsrack shall be chained to a tree, to landscaping material, to a
mailbox or similar facility.
(3) Newsracks shall not be physically attached, chained or bolted to any frame
structure, inlet pipe, or other physical object meant to carry water for draining
purposes, to a utility pole; or to or placed upon any manhole cover; to or place
upon any water meter and/or water meter box; to traffic signals or traffic signs; to
a bench; or to any other City-owned fixture.
(4) No newsracks shall be placed, installed, used or maintained:
(a) On any sidewalk or pedestrian path, or on a pedestrian-priority
corridor or pedestrian-intensive area, where such placement will result in
less than five (5) feet of clear area for pedestrian usage, measured from the
face of the curb inward.
(b)
Within ten (10) feet of any marked crosswalk.
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(B) When in compliance with all the other provisions of this Ordinance,
newsracks may only be placed at the following locations:
(1) On sidewalks or improved pedestrian paths of intersecting side
streets, but not within a site triangle, excepting that where a building
already protrudes into the site triangle, newsracks may be placed flush
with the building and set back from the building line sufficiently to avoid
further intrusion into the line-of-site.
(2) On sidewalks or improved pedestrian paths of intersecting side
streets, and within a site triangle, if the newsracks do not exceed thirty
(30) inches in height.
(3) On sidewalks or pedestrian-priority areas or pedestrian-intensive
areas where a five (5) foot clear sidewalk can be maintained.
Section 5. Standards for Installation. Maintenance and ADDearance. Newsracks, which
in whole or in part rest upon, in or over any public sidewalk or any public pedestrian path, shall
comply with the following standards:
(A) The City shall install newsracks place or maintain on a public rights-of-way,
sidewalk, pedestrian path or any other public property. No other person or corporation or
publishing entity shall install, or fix, erect, construct or maintain a newsrack, on the
public rights-of-way or public property, unless the newsracks meet the following criteria:
(1) No individual newsrack unit shall exceed four (4) feet, six (6) inches in
height, forty (40) inches in width, twenty-four (24) inches depth. Modular
newsracks may not exceed sixty (60) inches in height. The height of the handles
and coin mechanism shall not exceed forty-eight (48) inches from the base of any
newsrack or modular newsrack.
(2) Individual newsracks or modular newsracks shall be black in color, as
approved by the City, exclusive of windows. The design of the newsrack shall be
identical to the design contained in the Sunny Isles Beach Streetscape Master
Plan.
(B) The City shall be responsible for maintaining the newsracks that it has installed in
the public rights-of-way. If the publishing entities install the newsracks, the newsracks
shall be maintained in the following manner:
(1) Coin operated newsracks shall be equipped with:l coin-return mechanism,
maintained in good working order at all times, to permit customers to secure an
immediate refund if newsrack is not operational.
(2) Each newsrack, whether modular or not, shall be maintained in a neat,
clean condition, and in good repair at all times. Specifically, but without limiting
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the generality of the foregoing, each newsrack shall be serviced and maintained
so that:
(a) It is free of graffiti. All graffiti shall be corrected within seven (7)
working days' notice by the City that graffiti exists, or newsrack shall be
removed and disposed of in the manner as provided for herein;
(b) It is reasonably free of dirt and grease.
(c) It is reasonably free of chipped, faded, pealing and/or cracked
paint.
(d) It is reasonably free of rust and/or corrosion.
( e) Clear plastic or glass parts there are, if any, through which the
publication therein are viewed, are unbroken and reasonably free of
cracks, dents, blemishes and discoloration; all such conditions shall be
remedied within fifteen (15) working days' notice by the City, or
newsrack shall be removed and disposed of in a manner as provided for
herein.
(f) The exterior of any newsrack shall not be used for advertising
purposes, and shall display only the name of the publishing entity and/or
publication.
(g) The name, address and telephone number of a responsible person
who the City may contact for notification purposes, shall be permanently
displayed or labeled on each newsrack. Failure to post such information
within thirty (30) days of the effective date of the Ordinance creating this
article shall be deemed abandonment of the newsrack. Abandonment
newsracks shall be posted for a period of thirty (30) days, and removed
and disposed of in the manner provided for herein, if not corrected at the
end of such posting.
(h) The surrounding area upon which the newsrack is placed, will also
be maintained in a neat and orderly condition.
Section 6. Permit and Conditions for Permits. It is unlawful for any person or publishing
entity, absent a specific license agreement with the City, to place, affix, erect, construct, operate
or maintain any newsracks in the public right-of-way, without first obtaining a permit from the
City.
(A) A publishing entity or any person may obtain a permit from the City by filing a
permit application with the City, on a form to be provided by the City. An application
for a permit shall include the following information:
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(1) The name, address and telephone number of the applicant or publishing
entity; and
(2) The name, address and telephone number of a responsible person whom
the City may notify or contact at any time concerning the application or
newsracks located in a public rights-of-way; and
(3) A brief description of the name of the publication to be distributed, if
applicable and the frequency of the publication; and
(4) The number of individual newsracks that the applicant currently has in the
City and a map or diagram depicting the precise locations of all existing
newsracks that the applicant has at the time of the filing of this application
(5) A one-time permit fee of fifty ($50.00) is required with each application
for permit.
(6) The location(s) that the applicant is requesting to operate or install
newsracks. One permit may be issued to include any number of locations.
(B) Upon the submission of a permit application, the Director of Code Enforcement
and Licensing shall review the application and shall approve or deny the application. If
denial is based on unavailability of locations, the applicant may be given an alternate
location. The Director shall be guided therein solely by the standards and criteria set
forth in this Ordinance in approving locations of newsracks. In any case where the
Director disapproves of a particular location, such disapproval shall be without prejudice
to the applicant. The permit application shall be review under the following conditions:
(1 ) All permit applications shall be reviewed within fifteen (15) days by the
Director of Code Enforcement and Licensing.
(2) Renewal of permits shall not be required unless applicant fails to comply
with the requirements of this Ordinance.
(3) If a permit application is denied, the applicant shall be notified within
fifteen (15) days of the City's receipt of the completed application.
(4) Permits are personal and not transferable in any manner to other locations
or applicants.
Section 7. Allocation of Newsracks. The allocation of newsracks or locations on the
public rights-of-way shall be based on the following priority criteria:
(1) First priority shall be given to newspapers of general circulation which are
published at least five (5) times per week for one location of six (6).
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(2) Second priority shall be given to publications published less frequently
than five (5) times per week, with news and editorial content as a primary purpose
of the publication.
(3) Third priority shall be given to commercial racks.
(4) Fourth priority shall be given to publications that have had difficulty
obtaining a site within three (3) city blocks due to the unavailability of space.
(5) Fifth priority shall be given to any second rack of a publication that
already has a first rack within a group of six (6) subject to available space.
Section 8. Revocation of Permits. In the event that the Director of Code Enforcement and
Licensing or his designee determines that a publishing entity is not in compliance with this
Ordinance, a letter or a written statement shall promptly be provided to the publishing entity
specifying the reasons for non-compliance by the entity. The publishing entity shall have thirty
(30) days to comply with this Ordinance. Failure to comply shall result in the revocation of the
permit issued for the noncompliant newsrack.
Section 9. Anneal. Any person or entity aggrieved by a finding, determination, notice, order
or action taken under the provisions of this Ordinance may appeal to the City Commission by
filing a written request to the City Manager. The City Manager or his designee shall place the
appeal on the agenda of a City Commission meeting scheduled to take place within thirty (30)
days from the date of filing the appeal. If the City Commission so determines, it shall direct that
the publishing entity has complied with this Ordinance, or it may grant a waiver for good cause
shown. Any publishing entity whose appeal to the City Commission has been unsuccessful shall
be entitled to recourse in the Circuit Court of the Eleventh Circuit.
Section 10. Administrative Fees. An annual fee of twenty-five ($25.00) per newsrack shall
be paid for each newsrack to defray the cost of administering and enforcing the provisions
hereof. No administrative fee is required at the time of filing a permit application.
Section 11. Abandonment of Newsrack. In the event that a newsrack remains empty for a
period of thirty (30) continuous days, the newsrack shall be deemed abandoned, and the City
shall allocate the abandoned newsrack in accordance with provisions of this Ordinance. In the
event that a publishing entity desires to voluntarily abandon a newsrack location, the publishing
entity shall notify the City Manager in writing of the intent to abandon the location.
Section 12. Indemnification of City. Every owner of a newsrack who places or maintains a
newsrack on a public sidewalk or parkway in the City shall file a written statement with the City
Manager in a form satisfactory to the City Attorney, whereby such owner agrees to indemnify
and hold harmless the City and its officers and employees from any loss, liability or damage,
including expenses and costs, for bodily or personal injury and for property damage sustained by
any person as a result of the installation, use and/or maintenance of a newsrack within the City.
This section shall only be applicable to the same extent required by the City for other public
right-of-way permittees.
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Section 13. Reneal of Conflictinl! Provisions. Ordinance No. 98-24 is hereby repealed and
all other Ordinances or parts thereof in conflict herewith are hereby repealed.
Section 14. Severability. The provisions of this Ordinance are declared to be severable and if
any section, sentence, clause or phrase of this Ordinance shall, for any reason, be held to be
invalid or unconstitutional, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining sections,
sentences, clauses and phrases of this Ordinance but shall remain in effect, it being the
legislative intent and that this Ordinance shall stand notwithstanding the invalidity of any part.
Section 15. Inclusion in the Code. It is the intention of the City Commission of the City of
Sunny Isles Beach, that the provisions of this Ordinance shall become and be made part of the
City of Sunny Isles Beach Code of Ordinances.
Section 16. Effective Date. This Ordinance shall be effective one hundred-twenty (120) days
after second reading.
PASSED AND ADOPTED on first reading this 13th day of November, 2001.
PASSED AND ADOPTED on second reading this '3~ day, f
,2001.
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David Samson, Mayor
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';:, . Richard BrOWn-Morilla, City Clerk
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APPROVED AS TO FORM
AND LEGAL SUFFICIENCY:
Motion on second reading by: ('.DMw\ l <;Sl orJ~'R.. r<'lU~
Second on second reading by: ~SS to f\)U2. c:;O~~
02001-146 Newsrack Ord
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VOTE: 5-0
Mayor David Samson
Vice Mayor Danny Iglesias
Commissioner Norman S. Edelcup
Commissioner Gerry Goodman
Commissioner Lila Kauffinan
02001-146 Newsrack Ord
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(yes) V
(yes) V
(yes) V
(yes)~
(yes) ~
(no)_
(no)_
(no)_
(no)_
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