HomeMy WebLinkAbout21- Administrator's Office CITY OF SAN BERNARDINO - REQUEST FOR COUNCIL ACTION
From: Fred Wilson, City Administrator Subject: Abandoned Shopping Carts
Dept: Administrator's Office M
Date: September 16, 1998 C O F U
Synopsis of Previous Council Action:
9/14/98 - Draft Ordinance which brings the City's Abandoned Shopping Cart policy into compliance with
State legislation was presented to the Legislative Review Committee.
Recommended Motion:
That the City Attorney's Office be directed to finalize the Abandoned Shopping Cart ordinance and bring
it back for consideration by the Mayor and Common Council.
Signature
Contact person: Fred Wilson, City Administrator Phone 5122
Supporting data attached: Yes Ward:
FUNDING REQUIRFA ENI'S: Amount: N/A
Source:(Acct. No.)
(Acct. Description)
Finance:
Council Notes:
Agenda Item No. 0'
CITY OF SAN BERNARDINO - REQUEST FOR COUNCIL ACTION
STAFF REPORT
SUBJECT: Abandoned shopping carts continue to be a blighting influence in the City
of San Bernardino.
BACKGROUND: State Legislation enacted in 1996 preempted local control over the
issue of abandoned shopping carts. California State Business and Professional Code
Section 22435.7 (Attachment "A") requires local government agencies to formally notify
the owner of the cart, and wait three days before collecting an abandoned shopping cart.
In the event that the cart owner fails to collect the cart within the specified amount of
time, or if the location of the cart impedes emergency services, local agencies are
authorized to retrieve the cart from public or private property. However, they are
mandated to maintain a storage facility for the impounded carts that is open at least six
hours per business day in a location that is "convenient" to retailers. Fees, not-to-exceed
$50, may be charged for each occurrence in excess of three during a specified six-month
period for failure to retrieve shopping carts by owner.
In the case of unidentified abandoned shopping carts,the City or its authorized contractor
may remove same from public property. Such carts are to be tagged with date and
location and shall be impounded for thirty calendar days at a location selected by the City.
Carts may be claimed by person demonstrating proof of ownership, and by paying the
City's tagging and retrieval fee.
The City's proposed ordinance incorporates the mandates of the State legislation. It also
states that upon discovery of owner-identified shopping carts on public property, the City
or its authorized contractor may remove such carts and promptly return them to the
owner or premises identified thereon, or store same for safekeeping and promptly notify
the owner where cart(s) may be retrieved at no charge or cost if so retrieved within three
business days of receipt of actual notice.
A draft ordinance which brings the City's abandoned shopping cart policy into compliance
with State Legislation was prepared(Attachment "B"),and was presented at the Legislative
Review Committee meeting on September 14, 1998.
Recommendation: The Legislative Review Committee recommended that the City
Attorney's Office be directed to finalize the abandoned shopping cart ordinance for
consideration by the Council.
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DRAFT Chapter 5 26
SHOPPING CARTS
Sections:
5.26.010 Purpose.
5.26.020 Definitions.
5.26.030 Removal of shopping carts from public property.
5.26.040 Disposal.
5.26.050 Tag tampering prohibited.
5.26.060 Unauthorized removal or possession of shopping carts.
5.26.070 Impound appeal.
Sections:
5.26.010 P=ose. Abandoned shopping carts located outside the premises or parking
areas of retail establishments and on public or private properties and viewable from the public
rights-of-way are injurious to the public health, safety, and welfare and constitute a public
nuisance. This nuisance is caused by persons unlawfully removing shopping carts from the
premises or parking areas of retail establishments, by certain retail establishments failing to
maintain adequate supervision of their premises and parking areas and failing to implement
effective cart removal prevention programs or cart retrieval programs. The purpose of this
chapter is to establish reasonable regulations for the collection and impound of abandoned
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shopping carts and to supplement provisions of state law regarding the unauthorized removal of
shopping carts from the premises and parking areas of retail establishments.
5 26.020 Definitions. "Authorized contractor" means a private company providing
shopping cart retrieval services, as designated by the City Council.
"City" means the City of San Bernardino or its designated representatives.
"Owner-identified shopping cart" means a shopping cart that has a permanently affixed
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sign that identifies, in accordance with Business and Professions Code Section 22435.1 the
owner of the cart or the retailer, or both; notites the public of the procedure to be utilized for
authorized removal of the cart from the owner's premises; notifies the public that the
unauthorized removal of the cart from the cart owner's premises or parking area or the
unauthorized possession of the cart, is a violation of the state law; and lists a valid telephone
number or address for returning the cart to the owner or retailer.
"Person" means an individual or entity.
"Public property" means all real property in the City in which a public agency has a fee
simple, easement, lease-hold interest, or any possessory interest. This includes but is not limited
to, streets, sidewalks, parks and flood control facilities.
"Retail establishment" means any establishment utilizing shopping carts outside of the
establishment.
"Shopping cart" or "cart" means a basket that is mounted on wheels or a similar device
generally used in retail establishment by a customer for the purpose of transporting goods of any
kind.
"Unidentified shopping cart" means a shopping cart that is not an owner-identified
shopping cart.
525.030 Removal of shopping carts from public property_. (a) Upon the discovery of
an unidentified shopping cart on public property, the City or its authorized contractor may
remove the cart. Such carts shall be tagged with date and location and shall be impounded for
thirty calendar days at a location selected by the City. A claim for a cart shall be presented to the
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City Administrator or his or her duly authorized representative, and shall be accompanied by
proof of ownership of the cart. A person demonstrating proof of ownership of a cart stored by
the City shall pay the City's tagging and retrieval fee, as set by City Council resolution, prior to
the cart being released.
(b) Upon the discovery of any owner identified shopping cart on public property, the
City or its authorized contractor may remove the cart and promptly return it to the owner or
premises identified thereon, or store the same for safekeeping and promptly notify the owner
where it may be retrieved at no charge or cost if so retrieved within three business days of receipt
of said actual notice. Such safe storage shall not be deemed to be an impoundment, and no
tagging and retrieval fee may accrue as a result thereof.
Any owner-identified shopping cart which is not retrieved within three business days
from the date the owner of the cart, or his or her agent, receives actual notice including, but not
limited to, telephonic notice, from the City of the shopping cart's discovery and location, may be
impounded and stored in accordance with the provisions of Business and Professions Code
Section 22435.7. Each such cart shall be tagged with the date and location of impoundment.
Pursuant to Business and Professions Code Section 22453.7(g) written notice shall be mailed to
the owner of any owner-identified shopping cart which is impounded pursuant to this section,
which shall specify the date and time of such impoundment, the location where the cart may be
retrieved, the cost of retrieval and that failure to retrieve such cart within thirty calendar days
may result in the cart being disposed of as permitted by law.
(c) This section shall not apply to a cart attended by any person who can demonstrate.
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to the satisfaction of the City or its authorized contractor, ownership of the shopping cart or
written permission of the owner, to have the cart in his/her possession.
5.26.040 Disposal. After the expiration of the thirty-day period specified in Section
526.030(a), the City or its authorized contractor with the City's approval, may sell an unclaimed
unidentified shopping cart at public auction or otherwise dispose of the cart.
After the expiration of the thirty-day period specified in Section 526.030(b), the City may
sell or otherwise dispose of any unclaimed owner-identified shopping cart as authorized by
Business and Professions Code Section 22435.7(g)
5.26.050 Tag tampering prohibited. (a) It is unlawful for any person to remove any tag
affixed by the City or its authorized contractor to any shopping cart with the intent of interfering
with the enforcement of this chapter or evading any of its provisions.
(b) It shall be a misdemeanor for any person to obstruct, impede or interfere with any
representative of the City or its authorized contractor who is engaged in tagging, removing or
transporting a shopping cart in accordance with this chapter.
5 26 060 Unauthorized removal or possession of shopping carts. It is unlawful to do
any of the following acts:
(1) Remove an unidentified shopping cart from the premises or parking area of a
retail establishment;
(2) Be in possession of an unidentified shopping cart that has been removed from the
premises or the parking area of a retail establishment;
(3) Leave or abandon a shopping cart on public or private property and at a location
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other than the premises or parking area of the retail establishment;
This section shall not apply to any person who can satisfactorily demonstrate ownership
of the shopping cart, or to any person having written permission of the owner to have the cart in
his or her possession.
Removal, possession and abandonment of owner identified shopping carts, shall be
governed by the provisions of Business and Professions Code Section 22435.2. Any cart in the
possession of any person found to be in violation of Business and Professions Code Section
22435.2 may be impounded by the City provided, however, that written notice shall be given to
the identified owner of the impoundment of such cart. Provided the owner or representative
thereof makes a proper claim for such cart within thirty calendar days of the date of mailing of
such notice, no costs of retrieval shall be imposed upon such owner or representative. In the
event any such cart remains unreprieved for thirty days following the mailing of such notice, the
City may sell or otherwise dispose of such cart.
5 26.070 Imi2ound appeal. (a) Any person who can demonstrate that he or she is a cart
owner may appeal the imposition of a tagging and retrieval fee by presenting evidence that the
cart removal and storage was not performed substantially in accordance with the provisions of
this chapter. Appeals shall be made in writing to the City Administrator or his or her duly
authorized representative within ten calendar days of notification of such assessed fee. An office
hearing will be held within thirty calendar days of the receipt of such appeal request. The
shopping cart owner or authorized representative may appear and be heard on the matter. If the
City Administrator or his or her duly authorized representative determines that the shopping cart
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was not removed and stored in substantial accordance with the provisions of this chapter, the
tagging and retrieval fee shall be waived and the shopping cart shall be returned.
(b) The City Administrator or his or her duly authorized representative shall, within ten
working days after the conclusion of the hearing, give written notice of his or her decision to the
party or parties who filed the appeal. The notice shall contain the decision and the reasons
therefor. The decision of the City Administrator or his or her duly authorized representative shall
be final and conclusive and shall not be subject to any further appeal. Pursuant to Code of Civil
Procedure Section 1094.6, any action to review said decision shall be commenced not later than
the ninetieth day after the date of the written notice of decision.
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