CHAPTER 7.34: SHOPPING CART CONTAINMENT
Section 7.34.020: Cart containment system—Required; exception.
a) Every cart owner shall operate and maintain an on-site cart containment program. A cart owner may be exempted from this requirement if he or she provides proof of contracting with a qualified cart retrieval service, and submits an operations plan which demonstrates to the satisfaction of the director of development services that the qualified cart retrieval service will both actively locate shopping carts within a one-mile radius of the cart owner’s business premises and respond to complaints from the public in a manner which results in the retrieval of shopping carts within twenty-four hours after receiving notice.
b) Each cart owner must contain all shopping carts on the business premises at all times.
c) Any instance in which a shopping cart owned or provided by a cart owner is found off of the business premises shall be considered a violation by the cart owner of Subsection (B) of this section. A cart owner who, after receiving notice of the violation, fails to cure such violation within twenty-four hours is subject to an administrative citation. Each twenty-four-hour period thereafter that the cart remains off premises shall be considered a separate violation. Following the issuance of more than ten administrative citations to the same cart owner within a thirty-day period, subsequent violations by that cart owner may be prosecuted by the city attorney’s office pursuant to Section 1.36.150 of the National City Municipal Code.
(Ord. No. 2010-2342, § 1, 6-22-2010)
Section 7.34.030: Cart removal warnings.
a) Every cart owner shall post and maintain cart removal warnings which meet all of the following minimum specifications:
1) Meet or exceed eighteen inches in width and twenty-four inches in height.
2) Using block lettering not less than one-half inch in width and two inches in height, contain a statement in two or more languages to the effect that unauthorized removal of a shopping cart from the business premises or possession of a shopping cart in a location other than on the business premises, is a violation of state law and the National City Municipal Code.
3) List a local or toll-free telephone number for cart retrieval.
4) Be affixed to an interior wall of the building or otherwise permanently and prominently displayed within two feet of all customer entrances and exits.
b) Cart removal warnings on the exterior of the building are not considered “signs” for the purpose of calculating maximum allowable signage under Title 18 of the National City Municipal Code.
(Ord. No. 2010-2342, § 1, 6-22-2010)
Section 7.34.040: Employee training—Cart removal prevention.
a) Each cart owner shall conduct ongoing employee training to educate new and existing employees about procedures to prevent cart removal, including the operation of the cart containment system.
(Ord. No. 2010-2342, § 1, 6-22-2010)
Section 7.34.050: Cart identification signs for shopping carts.
a) Each shopping cart owned or used within the city shall have, permanently affixed and easily visible, a cart identification sign or engraved surface which includes all of the following information: the name, the site-specific street address, and telephone number of the cart owner or commercial establishment to which the cart belongs or both; the individual cart identification number; a valid toll-free phone number for cart retrieval; the procedure (if any) to be followed to obtain permission to remove the cart from the business premises; and a notice to the public that unauthorized removal of the cart from the business premises is a violation of state law and the National City Municipal Code.
b) It shall be the responsibility of each cart owner to comply with subsection (A) of this section, and to continuously maintain, or cause to be maintained, the cart identification sign so that all of the required information is accurate and clearly legible.
(Ord. No. 2010-2342, § 1, 6-22-2010)
Section 7.34.060: Cart removal from business premises—Written permission required.
a) No person shall be deemed to be authorized to remove a cart from a business premises unless he or she possesses written authorization from the cart owner. This section shall not apply to the possession of a shopping cart removed from the business premises at the direction of the cart owner for the purposes of repair or maintenance.
(Ord. No. 2010-2342, § 1, 6-22-2010)
Section 7.34.070: Physical containment system.
A. A cart owner shall be required to install a physical containment system to the satisfaction of the director of development services when the cart owner establishes a facility consisting of more than five thousand square feet of new construction.
B. A cart owner may be required to install a physical containment system to the satisfaction of the director of development services and the city attorney following the issuance of more than ten administrative citations in a thirty-day period.
(Ord. No. 2010-2342, § 1, 6-22-2010)
Section 7.34.080: Regulatory fee authorized.
a) A regulatory fee shall be established to enforce this regulation and to fairly apportion the cost of mitigating the negative effects of off-site shopping carts. A business that installs a physical containment system to the satisfaction of the director of development services, or which does not provide any shopping carts to its customers, shall be exempted from this fee.
(Ord. No. 2010-2342, § 1, 6-22-2010)
Section 7.34.090: City powers not limited by this chapter.
a) Nothing in this chapter is intended to limit the ability of the city to remove or dispose of any cart to which a cart identification sign is not attached, or to remove or dispose of any cart which impedes the provision of emergency services, or which is an immediate threat to public health and safety, to the full extent permitted by state law.
(Ord. No. 2010-2342, § 1, 6-22-2010)
Section 7.34.100: Violations.
a) A violation of any provision of this chapter or a failure to comply with any mandatory requirements of this chapter is subject to prosecution in accordance with Title 1 of the National City Municipal Code and may be enforced through injunctive relief or other relief available by law. Penalties for violations of the provisions of this chapter may result in a misdemeanor citation for each day in violation, punishable by a maximum of six months in jail and a one thousand dollar fine, or both such fine and imprisonment.
b) Administering departments will be authorized to charge cost recovery fees for services provided under this chapter. Cost recovery may also be recovered for equipment and personnel expenses incurred, including for shopping cart return.
(Ord. No. 2010-2342, § 1, 6-22-2010)
