CROSS REFERENCES
Littering enforcement by Traffic Engineering and Parking Division employees, CO 403.08
Vehicle loads dropping or leaking, CO 439.11
Drifting debris prohibited on City waters, CO 483.03
Depositing garbage on public or private property, CO 551.26
Obstructions and trash in parks, CO 559.29
Littering at airports, CO 571.16
As used in this chapter, the following terms, phrases, words and their derivations shall have the following meanings. When not inconsistent with the context, words used in the present tense include the future, words used in the plural number include the singular number and words used in the singular number include the plural number. The word "shall" is always mandatory and not merely directory.
(a) "Commercial handbill" means any printed or written matter, any sample or devise, dodger, circular, leaflet, pamphlet, paper, booklet or any other printed or otherwise reproduced original or copies of any matter of literature:
(1) Which advertises for sale any merchandise, product, commodity or thing;
(2) Which directs attention to any business or mercantile or commercial establishment, or other activity, for the purpose of either directly or indirectly promoting the interest thereof by sales; or
(3) Which directs attention to or advertises any meeting, theatrical performance, exhibition or event of any kind, for which an admission fee is charged for the purpose of private gain or profit.
(b) "Garbage" means putrescible animal and vegetable wastes resulting from the handling, preparation, cooking and consumption of food.
(c) "Litter" means "garbage", "refuse" and "rubbish" as defined herein and all other waste material which, if thrown or deposited as herein prohibited, tends to create a danger to public health, safety and welfare.
(d) "Noncommercial handbill" means printed or written matter, any sample or device, dodger, circular, leaflet, pamphlet, newspaper, magazine, paper, booklet or any other printed or otherwise reproduced original or copies of any matter of literature not included in the aforementioned definitions of a commercial handbill.
(e) "Park" means a park, reservation, playground, beach, recreation center or any other public area in the City, owned or used by the City and devoted to active or passive recreation.
(f) "Public property" or "public place" means all property owned, operated or controlled by any governmental agency, including but not limited to streets, sidewalks, tree lawns, parks, playgrounds, parking lots, schools, libraries, post offices, municipal transit facilities and other public lands and buildings.
(g) "Private property" or "private places" means all property not included in the definition of "public property" including, but not limited to, vacant land or to any land, building or other structure designed or used for residential, commercial, business, industrial, institutional or religious purposes, together with any yard, grounds, walk, driveway, fence, porch, steps, vestibule, mailbox and other structure appurtenant thereto.
(h) "Refuse" means all putrescible and nonputrescible solid wastes, including garbage, rubbish, ashes, street cleanings, dead animals, abandoned automobiles and solid market and industrial wastes.
(i) "Rubbish" means nonputrescible solid wastes consisting of both combustible and noncombustible wastes, such as paper, wrappings, dirt, cigarettes, cardboard, tin cans, yard clippings, leaves, wood, glass, bedding, crockery and similar materials.
(j) "Vehicle" means every device in, upon or by which any person or property is or may be transported or drawn upon a highway.
(Ord. No. 1695-65. Passed 10-18-65, eff. 10-20-65)
(a) No person shall throw or deposit litter in or upon any street, sidewalk or other public place within the City except in public receptacles or in authorized receptacles for collection.
(b) No person shall litter public property by the feeding of pigeons, starlings, sparrows or other birds, nor shall any person place food for the feeding of such birds on any public property so as to increase the hazard of rodent infestation.
(Ord. No. 767-49. Passed 6-27-49)
Persons placing litter in public receptacles or in private receptacles shall do so in such a manner as to prevent it from being carried or deposited by the elements upon any street, sidewalk or other public place or upon private property.
(Ord. No. 1695-65. Passed 10-18-65, eff. 10-20-65)
No person shall upset a public or private receptacle designed or used for the deposit of litter or cause or permit its contents to be deposited or strewn in or upon public or private property.
(Ord. No. 1695-65. Passed 10-18-65, eff. 10-20-65)
(a) No person shall throw, deposit or sweep into any gutter, sidewalk, street or other public place within the City the accumulation of litter from any building or lot or from any public or private sidewalk or driveway. Persons owning or in control of or occupying property shall keep the sidewalk in front of their premises free of litter.
(b) No person shall blow, dump or deposit leaves, grass clippings, or other lawn debris onto any public street or alley, provided that nothing in this division (b) shall prohibit depositing leaves onto a public street or alley as part of a City-sponsored leaf pick-up program.
(Ord. No. 791-06. Passed 7-12-06, eff. 7-14-06)
(a) No operator or occupant of a motor vehicle shall, regardless of intent, throw, drop, discard or deposit litter from any motor vehicle in operation upon any street, road or highway, except into a litter receptacle in a manner that prevents its being carried away or deposited by the elements.
(b) No operator of a motor vehicle in operation upon any street, road or highway shall allow litter to be thrown, dropped, discarded or deposited from the motor vehicle, except into a litter receptacle in a manner that prevents its being carried away or deposited by the elements.
(c) As used in this section, "litter" means garbage, trash, waste, rubbish, ashes, cans, bottles, wire, paper, cartons, boxes, automobile parts, furniture, glass or anything else of an unsightly or unsanitary nature.
(RC 4511.82; Ord. No. 2823-89. Passed 3-19-90, eff. 3-22-90)
No person shall drive or move any truck or other vehicle within the City unless such vehicle is so loaded as to prevent any load, contents or litter from being blown or deposited upon any street, alley or other public place.
(Ord. No. 1695-65. Passed 10-18-65, eff. 10-20-65)
No person shall throw or deposit litter in any park within the City except in public receptacles and in such a manner that the litter will be prevented from being carried or deposited by the elements upon any part of that park or upon any street or other public or private property. Where public receptacles are not provided, all such litter shall be carried away from the park by the person responsible for its presence and properly disposed of elsewhere.
(Ord. No. 1695-65. Passed 10-18-65, eff. 10-20-65)
(a) No person shall throw or deposit litter in any fountain, pond or any other body of water or natural watercourse in a park or elsewhere within the City.
(b) No person shall deposit, throw or dump any septic tank effluent, refuse, rubbish, wood, stone, earth or other waste into Lake Erie, the Cuyahoga River or any other body of water or watercourse, except when done under the supervision and control of the City or the United States Government.
(Ord. No. 1695-65. Passed 10-18-65, eff. 10-20-65)
(a) No distiller, refiner or person dealing in or handling petroleum, having his refinery, yard, building or dock situated within the limits of the City, or within the watercourse jurisdiction of the City, shall cause or permit to be discharged into the Cuyahoga River, or into any stream running into the same, any petroleum, tar, residuum, gasoline or other refuse matter, not including spent acid or alkali, when the same has been entirely freed from tar, residuum or oily matter.
(b) The absence of proper apparatus for taking care of and preventing the flowing of these substances into the River, shall be deemed sufficient evidence of violation. Any works, refineries, docks or yards, so found without such apparatus, shall be suspended from operating until such time as they are provided with the necessary apparatus for preventing such nuisance.
(c) All refineries, docks, yards or works where oils or tar are refined, treated or handled, shall be thoroughly cleaned of all waste, oils, tar, residuum or other waste matter, and kept free from the same. However, such waste or refuse matter may be stored in tanks or barrels.
(Ord. No. 63410-A. Passed 9-22-24)
No person shall throw or deposit any commercial or noncommercial handbill in or upon any sidewalk, street or other public place within the City. Nor shall any person hand out or distribute or sell any commercial handbill in any public place. However, it shall not be unlawful on any sidewalk, street or other public place unless specifically prohibited by the controlling governmental agency, for any person to hand out or distribute, without charge to the receiver thereof, any noncommercial handbill to any person willing to accept it, and provided further that the person making the distribution shall not hamper or interfere with pedestrian or vehicular traffic.
(Ord. No. 1695-65. Passed 10-18-65, eff. 10-20-65)
No person shall throw or deposit any commercial or noncommercial handbill in or upon any vehicle. However, it shall not be unlawful in any public place unless specifically prohibited by the controlling governmental agency for a person to hand out or distribute without charge to the receiver thereof, a noncommercial handbill to any occupant of a vehicle who is willing to accept it.
(Ord. No. 1695-65. Passed 10-18-65, eff. 10-20-65)
No person shall throw or deposit any litter on any occupied private property except in properly maintained receptacles. The owner or person in control of private property must provide sufficient private receptacles for collection of litter. No person shall deposit litter in receptacles in such a manner that it will be carried or deposited by the elements upon private property or any sidewalk, street or other public place.
(Ord. No. 1695-65. Passed 10-18-65, eff. 10-20-65)
The owner, occupant or person in control of any private property shall at all times maintain the premises free of litter except that which is contained in receptacles for collection.
(Ord. No. 1695-65. Passed 10-18-65, eff. 10-20-65)
(a) No person shall throw or deposit litter on any open or vacant private property within the City whether owned by such person or not.
(b) No person shall throw or deposit food, including any food intended for animals, on any open or vacant private property within the City whether owned by such person or not.
(Ord. No. 633-04. Passed 6-7-04, eff. 6-11-04)
Whoever violates any provision of this chapter is guilty of littering, a minor misdemeanor. In addition to any other method of enforcement provided in this Chapter, this Chapter may be enforced by the issuance of a citation in compliance with Rule 4.1 of the Ohio Rules of Criminal Procedures.
(Ord. No. 1308-05. Passed 12-5-05, eff. 12-12-05)