Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutO-1950-404 ..--. ',-A .. -- " '- ,It -- '. .., e . ~ -~..... ;., ORDINANCE NO. 404 "1 THE STATE OF TEXAS COUNTY OF HARRIS CITY OF, LA PORTE AN ORDINANCE PROr.nrillATING AND PRESCRIBING RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR HOUSE MOVING wrTHDl THE CORPORATE LIMITS OF THE CITY OF LA PORTE, TEXAS; ~UIRING . A LICENSE FOR THOSE ENGAGED IN HOUSE MOVING, A FEE TO BE PAID FOR SUCH LICENSE; AND FURTHER ~UIRING A PERMIT TO BE ISSUED BY THE CITY PRIOR TO THE MOVING OR REMOVAL OF ANY HOUSE WITHIN THE CORPORATE LOOTS OF SAID CITY AND FURTHER PRESCRIBING A NEED FOR SUCH PERMIT PROVIDING FOR A FINE OF NOT LESS THAN FIFTY DOLLARS NOR MORE THAN TWO HUNDRED DOLLARS FOR VIOLATION OF ANY OF THE RULES AND RIDULATIONS HEREBY PRESCRIBED AND PROHULGATED, EACH DAY OF VIOLATION CONSTITUTING A SEPARATE OFFEI~SE OF THIS ORDINANCE AND REPEALING ALL ORDINANClj:S OR PORTIONS THEREOF IN CONFLICT HEREWITH. BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF LA PORTE: SECTION I: By the term. "house" as used in this ordinance is meant any building or structure used or designed to be used for human habitation or occupancy in any manner or for any purpose. By the term "house moving" is meant the transportation of a house from place to place along or across any public street within the corporate limits of the city. The term. "street" when used in this Ordinance shall mean any part of the street,. including the side walk area or any public driveway over which the City of La Porte, Texas has jurisdiction. SECTION II: It shall be unlawful for any person to move any house along or across any public street within the corporate limits of the city without being licensed to engage in the business of house moving as provided herein. SECTION III: Any person desiring to engage in the business of house moving shall make application f'or ,~ license to the City Clerk, City Building Inspector or any other officer of the City designated from time to time by the City Commission; such application shall be in writing and shall contain the 'following: (a) The name of the applicant and his residence and business address. If a partnership or association, the appli- cation shall state the names of all partners, their residence addresses and the office address of partnership or association. If a corporation, the application must . state the names and residence addresses of all officers and directors and the principal office of the c.orporation. e e . -, -' (b) That applicant (or officers, if applicant is a corporation) have read and thoroughly understood the terms of this Ordinance and agreed to abide by its terms in the business of house moving. (c) The application shall be signed by the applicant, if an individual; by a partner, if a partnership; by the president, if association or corporation. (d) The application shall contain such other information as may be required by the Director of Public Works or other officers of the City as herein provided. SECTION IV: The applicant shall pay a license fee of Twenty ($20.00) .' Dollars per year. If application is made. subsequent to January 1 of any year, ,t the fee shall be reduced in proportion to the number of months that have expired. Simultaneously, the applicant shall file with the City a bond executed by the applicant and by a good and sufficient corporate insurance company, incorporated under the laws of the state of Texas having a fully paid-up capital stock of at least One Hundred Thousand ($100,000.00) Dollars or a corporation duly authorized to do business in the State of Texas, having a fully paid-up capital stock of at least One Hundred Thousand ($100,000.00) Dollars, which said bond shall be in the sum of Fifteen Hundred ($1500.00) Dollars, conditioned that the principal obligor, if granted a license, would engage in the business of house moving within the corporate limits of the City in strict accordance with the terms of .-., - this Ordinance and will pay to the City any and all damages to the streets, curbs, gutters, water lines, fire hydrants and other public property occasioned in any manner by the principal obligor's moving of houses, and further con- ditioned that the principal obligor will pay to the City as minimum liquidated damages the sum of Fifty ($50.00) Dollars per day for each day or part of day that any house being moved by said obligor shall remain on any street or part of the street in excess of the number of days shown in the permit for moving such house issued such licensee by the City. The said bond shall contain a provision that the parties recognize that the damage to the City occasioned by any house remaining on any street or part of a street in excess of the number of days shown in the permit will in all probability be difficult to ascertain .,- -~ - 2 - e ~ .r ' ,j"" , , \ e \ , ~. ... " . ' ~. . :Wr /~ ~ .~ ...., -e .. - .~. '. .. e and consequently that the parties have agreed on the minimum amount of such damages. However, such bond shall contain a further provision that the amount agreed upon is the minimum amount of damages which the City would sustain in any event, but that the City shall not be prevented from proving and claiming any ascertainable amount in excess of such a minimum sum. Such bond, while made p~able to the City, shall also inure to the benefit of any person damaged or injured in any manner by the said principal obligor by reason of the moving of any house within the corporate limits of the City, except agents, servants or employees of said principal obligor. The said bond shall contain a provision that it shall not be ex- hausted until recovery of the full amount of same shall be obtained. SECTION V: The authorized officer of the City shall examine the application and bond and if he is satisfied that the same are in order and that the surety signing the bond is good and sufficient, he shall issue to the applicant a license to engage in the business of house moving in the City. Such license shall be personal to the licensee, shall not be transferable and shall expire at midnight the following December 31. Upon expiration, a license may be renewed upon filing an application, licensee and a new bond as in the case of original licenses. SECTION VI: Any licensee desiring to move any house shall, pr~or to beginning work, apply to the authorized officer of the City for a permit, show- ~' ing the present location of the house, new location, the proposed route of ~ J moving, the size and type of construction of the house and such other infor- )a. 0/' ~ 1 mation that such authorized City official may require. The licensee shall pay ~ 3 a permit fee of Twenty-Five ($25.00) Dollars for each structure to be moved 't ~f) J~ ,./ where the ground space of such structure does not exceed 400 square feet and for each structure to be moved that has a ground space of more than 400 square feet, the permit fee shall be One Hundred ($100.00) Dollars. The permit fees herein provided for are in addition to the yearly license fee herein before provided. The authorized and designated City official shall examine the appli- . cation, ~d if it is in order, he shall issue the permit. The permit shall show: - 3 - ~ t t ./" - .-- .... t e . (a) The name of the licensee. (b) The present location of the house. (c) The proposed new location. (d) The route of moving, as approved by the City official. (e) The exact date and time during which the house will occup,y the streets and side walks and other public right-of-ways. (f) The time that the house is allowed to remain in the street. (e) The size and type of construction of the house. (g) The receipt of the permit fee. Each permit shall be issued in duplicate and one copy posted on the house to be moved. The acceptance by said licensee of said permit shall constitute a binding obligation and contract on said licensee's part to abide by and comply with the terms of said permit and of this Ordinance. The ~ time during which a house may legally remain in the street, under a 'permit, shall be forty-eight (48) hours. During the entire time that the .house is occupying the street, or any portion of same, the licensee shall keep it continuously in motion for its destination and shall not allow the work of moving to stop during such time. SECTION VII: Immediately upon issuance of the permit, the designated and authorized officer of the City will notify the Chief of Police, the Chief of the Fire Department of the issuance of the permit, stating the route of moving, when moving will begin and end and the number of days allowed. SECTION VIII: Whenever a licensee has completed the work of moving a house under its penait, and the house no longer occupies any part of the street, he shall promptly notif~ the proper officer of the City. The aforesaid officer shall cause inspection to be made of the route of moving and the installation of the house. If he ,finds that the licensee has caused damage to the street, curbs, gutters, side walks or other public property, he shall notify the licensee of such facts, specifying the damage by mailing to him a. written notification at either of the addresses listed in the licensee's application. The licensee shall proceed - 4.- ~"'-"""" - ., . --.....- , e e within two (2) days from the date of such notification to begin the work of )reparing the damage, which shall be promptly done and completed under the supervision of and to the entire and complete satisfaction of the aforesaid officer of the City. In the event that the licensee fails to begin work in two (2) days, or fails to continuously proceed therewith promptly and expeditiously or fails to complete it to the entire and complete satisfaction of the Director of Public Works or other officer des~gnated by the 'City, the aforesaid officer may promptly and at his discretion cause the damage to be repaired on behalf of the City. In such case, the aforesaid officer shall make and execute a certificate, setting out the relevant facts pertaining to the transaction, and shall certify therein the amount of damage sustained by the City and shall file said certificate with the City Clerk. The licensee. by accepting the permit heretofore provided for does thereby constitute and appoint said City Clerk as his agent and representative with full power and authority to bind sa~d licensee and his surety to prepare and file said certificate. Upon the filing of said certificate, the amount stated therein shall be and become a sum, liquidated and certain, owing to the City by the licensee and the surety on his bond and, in any suit involving said sum, the facts recited in said certificate and the amount of damage certified therein shall in all things be presumed to be true and binding upon the licensee and his surety in the absence of clear, convin~ing and unmistakable proof that the said Director has acted arbitrarily and without any evidence whatsoever of such facts. SECTION IX: It shall be unlawful for any licensee engaged in moving a house to cut down any tree growing within any parkway or esplanade of a public street or to cut any branches therefrom without having first obtained permission from the aforesaid City official. SECTION X: It shall be unlawful for any licensee to disconnect any electric light and power connection, gas connection, water connection or telephone connection from any house which he proposes to move without the con- sent of the Public Utility owning such connection. \ - 5 - " , ,4t :,- 1'- ...~ 4ft J'_._~' .' , , ,'-...." 0' t<' " ,.. .~ ce . SECTION XI: It shall be unlawful for any licensee to remove, tear down or destroy any pole or other property belonging to the City, or to any electric light and power company, gas company, telephone or telegraph company or street railway company without the consent of such public utility or other person owning the same. SECTION XII: It shall be unla\'/ful for any licensee to begin or complete the moving of any house on any property in the City unless a permanent location and installation of such house on such property in all respects tom- plies with the building code of the City. SECTION XIII: The designated and authorized City official is empowered to suspend or revoke the license of any licensee who violates any provision of this Ordinance and such suspension or revocation shall not bar a prosectuion for the same offense. SECTION XIV: In any complaint or other legal proceedings brought for the enforcement of any provisions of this Ordinance it shall not be necessary to negative any exception, excuse, proviso or exemption, and the burden of proof of any such exception, excuse, proviso or exemption shall be upon the defendant. SECTION XV: Any person who violates this Ordinance shall be fined not less than Fifty ($50.00) Dollars nor more than Two Hundred ($200.00) Dollars, and any licensee who moved any house upon any street within the corporate limits of the City without having obtained a permit as required hereby shall be fined not less than Fifty ($50.00) Dollars nor more than Two Hundred ($200.00) Dollars. SECTION XVI: That all Ordinances or portions thereof heretofore passed by the City which are in conflict herewith are hereby declared repealed upon the effective date of this Ordinance. SECTION XVII: That the City Clerk of the City of La Porte in accord- ance with the provisions contained in Section 25 of the Charter of said City shall give notice of the passing of this Ordinance by causing the title thereof to be published in the official newpaper in the City of La Porte at least twice within ten (10) days after the passing of this Ordinance and shall note on this Ordinance -6- ~ -- ~ ,,,,--'. e --=. ----.,. - It , . - . and the records thereof, the fact that same has been published as required by said Charter, together with the date of such publication thereof. PASSED this the 19th October day of , A. D., 1950. APPROVED by the p.ra.yor and attested by the City Clerk on said date. ATTEST: I , I \ -~....:.