§ 7-5. Permits required for temporary storage containers.

(a)

Definitions: For the purposes of this section only, the following terms are defined as follows:

Applicant is defined as the owner of the property, a lessee of the property by written lease or agreement, or any subsequent owner or lessee of the property.

Non-temporary storage container is defined as including, but not limited to the following "storage shed, roll-off container, dumpster, cargo/shipping container, trailer portion of tractor-trailer used for the temporary storage of personal property, and those (PODS) not rented from a company licensed to do business in State of Louisiana and whose primary business is the leasing and/or renting of temporary storage containers.

Permit is defined as a temporary storage container permit received from the Plaquemines Parish Permit Department, after application has been made and approved consistent with this section for the placement of a temporary storage container on private property.

Property is defined as the location where the temporary storage container is placed or will be placed.

Temporary storage container is defined as any portable container, receptacle or device of a type commonly used for the temporary storage of personal property, and specifically including those storage facilities generally referred to as a portable on demand storage unit (PODS).

(b)

Permit: There is hereby created a temporary storage container permit. A permit and renewal permit application fee shall be twenty dollars ($20.00).

(c)

Purpose: It shall be unlawful for any person or entity to place or permit the placement of a temporary storage container on property in the Parish of Plaquemines or Districts 2, 3, and 4 without first obtaining a written temporary portable storage container permit. No permit shall issue for the placement of a non-temporary storage container.

(d)

Permit duration: An applicant may receive a ninety-day permit, which may be renewed only two (2) additional times in a three-year period. In any event, no permit may issue to an Applicant for more than two hundred and seventy (270) days in a three-year period. Any person or entity who places a temporary storage container on property without first obtaining a permit shall automatically be charged with a ninety-day permit and said duration of automatic permit shall begin on the date the temporary storage container was first observed on property by any parish official. Any temporary storage container that is not removed after the permit's duration has expired for which permission has been granted shall be deemed to be an illegal structure and may be removed by the parish immediately, without notice, and the costs and expenses thereof shall be certified to the parish, which shall assess such costs and expenses against the property on which the temporary storage container was located, to be collected and enforced in the same manner as real property taxes.

(e)

Number, size, and location: Only one (1) temporary storage container shall be located on any one property at any given time. A temporary storage container shall be limited to a maximum size of nine (9) feet in height, ten (10) feet in width and twenty (20) feet in length. A temporary storage container shall not be located in any portion of the front yard, other than on a driveway or other paved surface. When placed on a driveway, a temporary storage container must be placed at the farthest practicably accessible point from the street. A temporary storage container shall not be placed less than five (5) feet from any property line. Temporary storage containers are prohibited from being placed in or on public or private roadways or rights-of-ways. Temporary storage containers shall not be located in a manner that blocks the flows or obstructs the vision or sight of vehicles and pedestrians traveling on public or private roadways, sidewalks or parking lots.

(f)

Condition: The applicant, as well as the supplier, shall be responsible for ensuring that the temporary storage container is installed and maintained in a good and safe condition, free from evidence of deterioration, weathering, discoloration, graffiti, rust, ripping, tearing or other holes or breaks, or in any way which might create a hazard to the general public or any unsightly condition on the property. Temporary storage container shall be conspicuously marked with the name and address of the supplier and have affixed thereon a copy of the written permit authorizing the placement of the temporary storage unit on the property.

(g)

Prohibited purposes: No temporary storage container shall be used for habitable purposes or to store solid waste, construction debris, demolition debris, recyclable materials, business inventory, commercial goods, goods for use other than at the property where the temporary storage container is located (i.e. used for retail sales) or any other illegal or hazardous material. Upon reasonable notice to the applicant, the Parish may inspect the contents of any temporary storage container at any reasonable time to ensure that is not being used for any prohibited purpose.

(h)

Penalty: It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to place, put, position or situate a temporary storage container in violation of any provision of this section or to fail in any manner to comply with a notice, directive or order of the permit department, or to use any temporary storage container in a manner not permitted by a valid permit. Upon violation of any of the provisions of this section, the permit may be revoked and the storage container removed. Any non-temporary storage container placed on property in Plaquemines Parish shall be deemed to be an illegal structure and may be removed by the parish immediately, without notice, and the costs and expenses thereof shall be certified to the parish, which shall assess such costs and expenses against the property on which the temporary storage container was located, to be collected and enforced in the same manner as real property taxes.

A person who violates any of the applicable provisions of this section or any lawful order, notice, directive, permit or certificate of the permit department made thereunder shall be in violation of this section and shall be punished by a fine of fifty-dollars ($50.00) per day. The parish shall have a cause of action for injunctive relief and recovery of the fines imposed hereby against any person or entity in violation of this section and such action shall be brought in the 25th Judicial District Court.

(Ord. No. 08-62, §§ 1, 2, 3-27-08; Ord. No. 13-170, §§ 1—8, 8-8-13)