Date: Fri 08-Aug-1997

Publication: Bee

Author: STEVEB

Quick Words:

council-litter-ordinance

Full Text:

Council Panel Hopes To Crack Down On Littering

BY STEVE BIGHAM

People are rarely caught in the act of littering. It's the trash they leave

behind that everyone sees.

That is why the town's Ordinance Committee believes the police should have the

authority to stop littering before it happens, more specifically, stopping

those who do not properly cover their commercial vehicles while on their way

to the dump.

Legislative Council member Will Rodgers, who has begun an anti-litter

ordinance draft for Newtown, believes this would limit the potential for

litter. Nip it in the bud, so to speak.

The ordinance would also give police and some town employees the right to cite

or warn a driver if trash is seen falling off a vehicle. The driver would also

be responsible for cleaning up the mess.

Mr Rodgers is using ordinances from the towns of Branford and East Haven to

guide him as he creates an ordinance that the residents of New Lebbon Road

whole-heartedly requested last spring. They were fed up with all the illegal

dumping that goes on in that area of town.

The Ordinance Committee said the anti-litter ordinance they create will

address the concerns of those who must drive past abandoned rusty pipes,

toilets and stoves. Last week, the board agreed that there is indeed a

difference between "littering" and "dumping" and that the enforcement and

fines should reflect that. The ordinance will likely impose a sort of "super

fine" for those who are caught illegally dumping.

Ironically, Mr Rodgers was unable to find any other town in the state that had

an ordinance that differentiated between "littering" and "dumping."

Newtown's anti-litter ordinance is expected to be very specific, mandating

that merchants sweep their sidewalks clean of litter, requiring residents to

pull their trash cans in from the street a day after pick-up, and prohibiting

the distribution of handbills.

The ordinance will also have a section that will give the town the right, but

not the obligation, to clean up a lot full of junk. Once the property is

cleaned, the town can turn around and charge the homeowner for the work. If it

is not paid, then a lien can be put on the house.

"It's all well and good to have an ordinance that simply says, `don't litter,'

but you have to put some teeth into it," Mr Rodgers said.

As he points out, some Connecticut towns have short anti-litter ordinances

which are limited in scope. They simply state, "do not litter." That is not

enough, according to Mr Rodgers.

The Ordinance Committee members agreed that Newtown did not need a pooper

scooper law, which several other towns have included in their anti-litter

ordinances.

The litter ordinance would have to be approved by the Ordinance Committee, and

then by the Legislative Council after a public hearing.

Anti-Porn Ordinance

The Ordinance Committee has begun its preliminary work on an anti-pornographic

ordinance. First Selectman Bob Cascella proposed the idea for the ordinance in

May, hoping to avoid the problem currently being faced in Monroe when an

X-rated shop moved in.

Completely prohibiting a business from moving in is a violation of the rights

provided under the US Constitution. However, the ordinance could prohibit

where such businesses can be operated within Newtown's borders.

"We don't want to have a situation where one of these establishments opened up

in a place where kids were walking by," said Ordinance Committee Chairman Bill

Brimmer. "We want to protect people's privacy. We can't prohibit this kind of

business from coming into town, but an ordinance can make it as difficult as

possible."

The board recently received several copies of ordinances from other towns in

the state, including Monroe's, which was created only after the porn shop

moved in along Route 25.

The Ordinance Committee's next meeting is in September.