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[HISTORY: Adopted by the Village Board of the Village of Port Chester 6-9-2003 by L.L. No. 3-2003. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Streets and sidewalks — See Ch. 283.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
DISTRIBUTOR
Any person responsible for placing and maintaining a pay telephone in a public right-of-way.
PAY TELEPHONE
Any self-service currency- or credit-operated telephone in the public right-of-way, including a customer-owned or customer-leased telephone and including any telephone owned by the local exchange company or by any other person which is held out for use by the general public upon payment of a fee or charge by currency or credit.
PERSON
Any individual, business, firm, corporation, association, partnership or other organization or group of persons.
PUBLIC RIGHT-OF-WAY
Any area dedicated to public use for the purpose of travel or passage and including streets, sidewalks, curbs, gutters, planting strips, alleys and roadways.
No person shall place or maintain any pay telephone on or above any public right-of-way or in any place requiring the user to stand in or otherwise occupy any public right-of-way in the Village of Port Chester without first having obtained a permit as provided in this chapter.
A. 
Application for a permit shall be made in writing to the office of the Village Clerk/Treasurer on such form as may be established for such purpose. The application shall contain the name and address of the applicant and the specific location of the proposed telephone or telephones, and shall be signed by the applicant, together with any other information deemed necessary by the Village Clerk/Treasurer consistent with this chapter.
[Amended 12-20-2004 by L.L. No. 15-2004]
B. 
Before installation, a plan of the pay telephone shall be submitted, in sufficient detail describing the size, location, equipment, means of installation and cabling.
C. 
Each application shall be accompanied by a permit fee of as set forth in Ch. 175, Fees, per proposed pay telephone.
D. 
The term of a permit shall be one year from the date of issuance.
E. 
A renewal application shall be filed no later than 60 days prior to the expiration date and must be accompanied by a fee as set forth in Ch. 175, Fees, for each pay telephone covered thereby if no change is to be made in the location of said pay telephone or a fee per pay telephone for which a change of location is requested.
F. 
Each applicant shall file with the application for a permit or for the renewal thereof a certificate of public liability insurance written on an occurrence basis indicating the Village of Port Chester as a named insured with limits of not less than $1,000,000 per accident and $2,000,000 aggregate and property damage insurance with limits of not less than $100,000 per accident and $300,000 aggregate. Said certificates of insurance must be written by an insurer licensed to do business in the State of New York and rated Best A or higher.
G. 
The Village Clerk/Treasurer shall be informed of any plan to remove or relocate a pay telephone that is permitted.
[Amended 12-20-2004 by L.L. No. 15-2004]
H. 
Before receiving a permit, an applicant shall execute an indemnification agreement satisfactory in form to the Village Attorney.
A. 
Pay telephones shall permit the following calls to be placed without charge:
(1) 
Calls to the 911 emergency number.
(2) 
Emergency calls placed through operator assistance to the Police and Fire Departments.
(3) 
Calls placed through operator assistance to the Police and Fire Departments by anyone identified as a member of either Department.
B. 
Current telephone rates shall be posted on the pay telephone.
C. 
The identity of the interexchange company carrying calls from the pay telephone and instructions for obtaining access to other interexchange companies shall be posted on the pay telephone or booth.
D. 
The permit number shall be clearly posted on the pay telephone.
A. 
No booth surrounding a pay telephone shall exceed eight feet in height, four feet in width or four feet in depth.
B. 
Each pay telephone shall be equipped with a coin-return mechanism to permit a person using the telephone to secure an immediate refund if a call cannot be placed. The coin-return mechanism shall be maintained in good working order.
C. 
Each pay telephone shall have affixed to it, in a place visible to everyone using the telephone, a telephone number of the distributor and the telephone number of a working telephone service to report a malfunction, to secure a refund or to give the notices provided for in this chapter.
D. 
Pay telephones shall be maintained in a neat and clean condition and in good repair at all times. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, a telephone shall be served and maintained so that:
(1) 
It is reasonably free of chipped, faded, peeling and cracked paint.
(2) 
It is reasonably free of rust and corrosion.
(3) 
Any clear plastic or glass parts are unbroken and reasonably free of tears, peeling or fading.
(4) 
Any paper or cardboard parts or inserts are reasonably free of tears, peeling or fading.
(5) 
The structural parts thereof are not broken or unduly misshapen.
(6) 
The telephone receiver is attached to the pay telephone.
E. 
Any owner or permittee who fails to maintain its pay telephone in working condition may be given a ten-day notice to repair the telephone by the Village Clerk/Treasurer. If the telephone is not in working condition at the end of the ten-day period, the Village Manager or his designee may revoke the permit.
[Amended 12-20-2004 by L.L. No. 15-2004]
F. 
Each pay telephone shall provide local directory or information assistance without charge, provided that the distributor is not charged for such call by the local telephone company.
G. 
Each pay telephone shall be restricted to outgoing calls only.
[Amended 5-20-2020 by L.L. No. 5-2020]
A. 
No pay telephone shall be permitted to rest upon, in or over any public street or sidewalk when such installation, use or maintenance:
(1) 
Endangers the safety of persons or property;
(2) 
Unreasonably interferes with or impedes the flow of pedestrians or vehicular traffic, including any legally parked or stopped vehicles;
(3) 
Unreasonably interferes with the ingress or egress from any residence or place of business; or
(4) 
Interferes with the use of traffic signs or signals, hydrants or mailboxes permitted at or near said location.
B. 
Pay telephones shall be placed or otherwise secured so as to prevent their being blown down or around the public street or sidewalk, but shall not be chained or otherwise secured to any traffic or street signs, utility poles, signals, hydrants or mailboxes.
C. 
No pay telephones shall be placed, installed, used or maintained:
(1) 
Within five feet of any marked crosswalk.
(2) 
Within 10 feet of a street corner without a marked crosswalk.
(3) 
Within 15 feet of any fire hydrant.
(4) 
Within five feet of any driveway.
(5) 
Within three feet of any public area improved with a lawn, flowers, shrubs, trees or other landscaping.
(6) 
At any location where the clear space for the passageway of pedestrians is reduced to less than four feet.
(7) 
On any access ramp for disabled persons.
(8) 
Adjacent to any portion of a roadway designated as a fire lane.
(9) 
Within three feet of a water or gas valve, manhole, or other appurtenance.
(10) 
When such pay telephone would unreasonably interfere with or impede the flow of pedestrian and vehicular traffic, including parked or stopped vehicles, and the necessary ingress and egress from any residence or place of business.
(11) 
When such installation, use or maintenance may endanger the safety of persons or property.
(12) 
Within three feet of any building unless written permission is secured from the property owner and filed with the application.
(13) 
Within 10 feet of any entrance to a residence, store or public building.
(14) 
Within the CD-3, CD-3.R20, CD-3.R7, and CD-3.R5 Districts.
(15) 
Within the CD-4 District, except on lots facing Willett Avenue, South Regent Street, William Street (between Washington Street and Pearl Street), Westchester Avenue, Midland Avenue, Boston Post Road, North Main Street, Bowman Avenue, and Putnam Avenue (between North Main Street and Willett Avenue).
[Amended 12-20-2004 by L.L. No. 15-2004]
A licensee granted a permit to install or operate a pay telephone shall pay to the village, for the continued privilege and use of the public right-of-way and for supervision thereof by the village during the term of the permit, the requisite fee as set forth in Chapter 175 of the Code. Said fee shall be in addition to and exclusive of any and all authorized taxes, business licensee fees, other fees, levies or assessments presently in effect or subsequently adopted.
[Amended 12-20-2004 by L.L. No. 15-2004]
Upon evidence of a complaint that the provisions of this chapter are not being complied with or that the location and use of a pay telephone interferes with the health and welfare of the public, the Village Manager or his/her designee shall conduct a hearing, after providing notices of the same to all affected parties. If he/she finds by a preponderance of the evidence presented that the use of the telephone constitutes a violation of the standards and conditions of this chapter or constitutes a threat to the health and welfare of the public, he/she shall revoke any permit issued for the placement of such pay telephone or may also order such other relief as deemed appropriate, which may include the removal of said telephone.
[Amended 12-20-2004 by L.L. No. 15-2004]
The distributor of all existing pay telephones, except those who operate under a franchise granted by the Village and subject to special franchise assessment for such pay telephone equipment, shall make application for a permit under the provisions of this chapter within 30 days after the effective date of this chapter. Failure to comply with this section shall subject such telephones to removal after notice and opportunity to be heard before the Village Manager.
Any violation of this chapter shall subject the violator to a penalty or fine not exceeding $250 for each offense. Each day on which such violation shall continue shall constitute a separate offense. These penalties shall be in addition to any administrative sanctions in § 247-8.
If any clause, sentence, paragraph, word, section or part of this chapter shall be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to be unconstitutional, illegal or invalid, such judgment shall not affect, impugn or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall be confined in operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph, word, section or part thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment shall have been rendered.