Part 10



10.000 RECREATIONAL FACILITIES*

Ord. No. 73

Adopted: July 10, 1990

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*Cross reference(s)--Liquor sale on Sundays, Pt. 14; conduct of individuals, Pt. 50; curfew for minors, Pt. 52; noise control, Pt. 72; garbage collection service for businesses, § 86.001 et seq.

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An ordinance to regulate the establishment, maintenance and conducting of dance halls, public billiard and pool rooms, game rooms, amusement parks, amusement places, and temporary carnivals within the City of Reading; to provide for the issuance of licenses of such places; to prescribe the penalty for the violations of provisions hereof; and to repeal Ordinance Numbers 3a and 21.

THE CITY OF READING ORDAINS:

10.001 Short title and citation.

Sec. 1. This Ordinance shall be known and may be cited as the City of Reading Recreational Facilities Ordinance.

10.002 Definitions.

Sec. 2. The following words and phrases used in this Ordinance shall, for the purpose of this Ordinance, have the meanings ascribed to them in this section:

a. "Recreational Facility" shall mean any public dance hall, billiard or pool room, game room, amusement park, amusement place, temporary or permanent carnival or recreational park.

b. "Premises" shall mean any building or property where a recreational facility is located and any adjacent property under the ownership or control of a recreational facility proprietor, lessee, manager or employee.

c. "Person" shall mean any individual, corporation, firm, partnership, association, organization and any other group acting as a unit.

d. "Game Room" shall mean any room in the building that contains a card table or tables for the use of patrons or a room or building that contains mechanical amusement devices.

e. "Mechanical Amusement Device" shall mean any machine which upon insertion of a coin, slug, token, plate disc, or key, may be operated by the public, generally, for use as a game, entertainment, or amusement, whether or not registering a score. It shall include such devices as marble machines, pinball machines, skill ball machine, mechanical grab machines, nickelodeons, music boxes and all games, operations or transactions similar thereto by whatever name they may be known.

10.003 Recreational facility operating license.

Sec. 3. No person shall establish, maintain or conduct a recreational facility within the City of Reading without first obtaining a license to operate such facility from the City Council of the City of Reading.

10.004 License application, contents, fee; change of management.

Sec. 4. Any person desiring to open or establish a recreational facility shall first make application therefore to the City Clerk, setting forth in such application, his age, correct name, post office address and residence, the length of time he has resided within this state, and where, and his places of residence for the past five (5) years immediately before the time of such applications; whether or not he has ever been convicted of any crime involving moral turpitude; and giving references in such applications to at least five (5) reputable citizens of such community wherein he has last resided within this state, and the written recommendations of at least two (2) such citizens of such community respecting his moral character. Every such application shall be accompanied by a fee as hereafter specified payable to the City Treasurer for use of the City upon issuing of license to the applicant; and the applicant shall specify in such application the class of business and the exact location of the place thereof for which he requests a permit. In case the applicant for such license is a corporation authorized to do business in this state, the application shall be made by the agent of such corporation who will have principal charge of the place proposed to be established, and such application shall contain all of the statements and furnish all the facts and recommendations with respect to such agent as are required in the case of a private individual herein. A permit to a corporation shall be revocable upon the occurrence of change in the agent so managing such place, and a new permit may be required by the City Council of the City of Reading before any new agent shall take charge of such place for such corporation. In case of a partnership, each active partner in such business shall join in the application for such permit, and shall furnish all of the information and recommendations required of an individual applicant. An applicant for recreational facilities license shall be provided with a copy of this Ordinance.

10.005 Inspection of premises.

Sec. 5. Before a recreational facility license shall be issued, investigation of the applicant and inspection of the premises shall be made by the City Building Department, Fire Department, Police Department and such other City departments or agencies as may be deemed necessary to determine whether the applicant and premises fully comply with all pertinent ordinances and regulations. Before the Building Department approves a license application, it shall determine that the construction of the building or other structure is in full compliance with the Building Code and other pertinent ordinances and regulations.

It shall be the responsibility of the applicant to make the premises in question available for inspection in a timely manner so as to permit full inspection during the normal working hours of the investigating City departments.

10.006 Denial of license.

Sec. 6. No license shall be issued:

(1) Where the applicant is under eighteen (18) years of age or has been convicted of a crime involving a controlled substance, alcohol, gambling, minors or a crime involving moral turpitude.

10.007 Granting of license.

Sec. 7. The City Council upon receiving such application, if presented in due form, shall pass upon the same at its next regular meeting or any adjournment thereof, and, if satisfied that such applicant possesses the qualifications herein prescribed and said premises conform to the requirements hereof, shall grant license to the applicant for the particular premises. All such licenses shall be in form as the City Council may prescribe and shall contain the name, address, place of business, and the date of expiration of said license and shall be authenticated by the signature of the City Clerk.

Section 7.1 Insurance Policy Required.

a. No license shall be issued until the applicant therefore shall obtain and file with the City a policy of liability insurance issued by a responsible insurance company authorized to do business in the State of Michigan providing insurance coverage insuring the applicant against liability for personal injury or injuries to persons while upon the premises for which a license is applied for. Such policy of insurance shall:

1. Be in the minimum amount of Three Hundred Thousand and 00/100 Dollars ($300,000.-

00) for injury to, or death of, one (1) person, and One Million and 00/100 Dollars ($1,000,000.00) for injury to, or death of, more than one (1) person resulting from a single accident.

2. Provide for continuing liability thereunder to the full amount thereof, notwithstanding any recovery thereon, and that the insolvency or bankruptcy of the insured shall not release the company.

3. Provide that it shall not be canceled, surrendered or revoked by either party except after ten (10) days written notice to the City of Reading furnished by the insurance company issuing the policy.

b. The cancellation, surrender or other termination of any insurance policy issued and filed with the City of Reading in compliance with this section shall automatically terminate the license covered by such insurance policy unless another policy complying with this section shall be in effect and deposited with the City of Reading prior to the time of such cancellation or termination.

c. No person shall operate, or cause or permit to be operated, any recreational facility in the City of Reading without having fully complied with the terms of this section.

Section 7.2 Issuance of Licenses. Licenses granted by the City Council shall be promptly issued by the City Clerk, with the exception that licenses for temporary carnivals granted by City Council contingent upon the approval of any City department shall be issued only upon receipt by the City Clerk of such approval. No license shall be issued until the City receives the liability insurance policy, as provided in Section 7.1 hereof and the approval by the City Attorney that said policy complies with the terms of this Ordinance.

Section 7.3 Expiration of License. All licenses issued hereunder shall expire on the 31st day of December at 12:00 midnight, for the year of issuance thereof, with the exception that any license for a temporary carnival shall expire at a time determined by the City Council at the time of the granting of the license. The expiration date of each license shall be indicated on the face thereof.

10.008 License fees.

Sec. 8. The fees to be paid upon application for, and renewal of, a recreational facility license are those as are set forth in this section:

License Fee

Amusement Parks or Amusements Places

Annual fee . . . . $25.00

Billiard or Pool Room

Annual fee per table . . . . $10.00

Card Room

Annual fee per table . . . . $10.00

Dance Hall

Annual fee . . . . $25.00

Game Rooms

(Vending, coin operated, mechanical amusement devices)

Annual fee per machine . . . . $ 8.00

Temporary Carnivals

Fee per carnival . . . . $15.00

10.009 License renewal; transferability.

Sec. 9. Any license issued in accordance with the Ordinance may be renewed for an additional year upon reapplication to the City Clerk. The City Clerk shall renew a license upon receipt of the approval of the Building Department, Fire Department and Police Department. Whenever the holder of such permit desires to effect a change of place of doing business he shall notify the City Council and make application for a license for such new place in the same manner as in the first instance, excepting that proof of good character may be dispensed with by such City Council. No license issued pursuant to this act shall be assignable or transferable, nor shall any person excepting the person to which it was issued be permitted to do business thereunder either directly or indirectly.

10.010 License revocation.

Sec. 10. The City Council shall have the right to revoke any license once granted or annual renewal thereof, when it appears to their satisfaction that any licensee has violated this Ordinance or any other ordinance of the City of Reading or Statute of the State of Michigan.

10.011 Conduct on premises.

Sec. 11. No licensee, by himself, directly or indirectly, or by any servant, agent or employee shall knowingly:

1. Permit any conduct as defined and prohibited by Ordinance 5 [Part 50 of the Compiled Ordinances of the City of Reading].

2. Permit the licensed premises to become a resort for disorderly persons of any type, as defined by Public Act No. 84 of the Public Acts of 1939, as amended, Section 750.167 of the Compiled Laws of 1979.

3. Permit gambling or the use, possession or presence of gambling paraphernalia on the premises.

4. Permit intoxicated persons to loiter on the premises.

5. Permit any persons under the age of twelve (12) years to be upon the premises after 10:00 p.m. (local time) or permit any persons under the age of seventeen (17) years to be upon the premises after 12:00 p.m. (local time) unless accompanied by a parent or legal guardian.

6. Permit the possession or use of any alcoholic liquor on the premises, nor shall the licensed premises be accessible in any way with any place where alcoholic liquor is kept, sold, distributed or given away. This prohibition shall not apply while a Michigan Liquor Control Commission License is in effect at the licensed premises.

7. Permit the possession or use of any controlled substances as prohibited under Article 7 of Public Act No. 368 of the Public Acts of 1978.

8. Permit noise or music to emerge from licensed premises which is disturbing to the surrounding area.

10.012 Hours.

Sec. 12. No recreational facility shall remain open between the hours of 2:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m.

10.013 Inspections.

Sec. 13. Each licensee shall at all times open each and every portion of the licensed premises for inspection by the Police Department and/or other City departments for the purpose of enforcing any ordinance relating to the health, safety and welfare of the public.

10.014 Waiver of license fee for charitable organization.

Sec. 14. The City Council may, in its discretion, waive the imposition of the license fee for any organization qualifying as a charitable organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code 26 U.S.C. 501(c)(3).

10.015 Penalty.

Sec. 15. Any person violating any of the provisions hereof shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be subject to a fine not exceeding One Hundred and 00/100 ($100.00) Dollars for each offense or to imprisonment in the County Jail for not more than ninety (90) days or to both, such fine and imprisonment in the discretion of the Court. Each day of the violation shall be considered a separate offense.

10.016 Repeal and savings clause.

Sec. 16.

Part I. Repeal. Ordinance numbers 3a and 21 are hereby repealed.

Part II. Savings clause. It is the legislative intent that all provisions and sections, clauses and sentences of this Ordinance be liberally construed, and should any provision, section, clause or sentence be held unconstitutional or invalid, such holding shall not be construed as affecting the validity of any of the remaining provisions, sections, clauses or sentences, it being the intent that this Ordinance shall stand notwithstanding the validity of any provision, section, clause or sentence.

All proceedings pending, initiated or existing under prior ordinance provisions at the time this Ordinance takes effect are saved and may be consummated according to the law in force when they were commenced. This Ordinance shall not be construed to affect any prosecution, pending or begun, at the effective date of this Ordinance.

10.017 Severability.

Sec. 17. If any phrase, clause, sentence, or section of this Ordinance is for any reason declared illegal or invalid in any final adjudication by a court of competent jurisdiction, the remaining parts of this Ordinance shall be deemed to have been adopted and shall continue in full force and effect without such illegal or invalid provision.

10.018 Section headings.

Sec. 18. The section headings used in this Ordinance are for convenience only and are not a part of this Ordinance.

10.019 Effective date.

Sec. 19. The provisions of this Ordinance shall become effective ten (10) days after its adoption and shall be published by a brief notice in a newspaper circulated in the City, stating the date of enactment and the effective date of the Ordinance, a brief statement as to the subject matter of this Ordinance and such other facts as the Clerk shall deem pertinent, and that a copy of the Ordinance is available for public use and inspection at the office of the City Clerk.