New Rules Reach Committee
Alderwoman Lyda Krewson's bill to impose new restrictions on the sale of scrap metal in the city hit the floor and will now be evaluated by the public safety committee.
The details were still considered preliminary when the ACC wrote about the proposed legislation earlier this month (09-12-06 - Vol. 4, No. 21).
The new bill will tighten up scrap sales by requiring:
• All sellers must be photographed and provide a thumbprint.
• All scrap must be paid for with a check and a copy retained with the photograph and sales record.
• Every transaction in violation of the ordinance will be counted separately and result in a fine of no more than $500.
The board hopes the legislation will help crack down on rash of destructive thefts that have plagued the city. The new restrictions bring scrap yards in-line with the rules governing pawnshops and antique stores. The new rules will hopefully deter thieves from approaching the yards.
Krewson, Ward 28, is the primary sponsor, but a number of aldermen were in involved in discussions about drafting the bill.
I witnessed an unusual event on Friday while driving down MLK. Individuals without any known affiliation were removing bricks from the second floor of a storefront and putting them on pallets. There was no indication of with whom they worked for so I believe this could be theft. In any event it is my belief that this legislation should apply to bricks as well.
Posted by Douglas Duckworth on Mon., Sep 25, 2006 at 3:25 PMDoug:
I hope you called the police about this suspicious behavior.
Posted by travis reems on Mon., Sep 25, 2006 at 11:35 PMTaking it down one brick at a time, huh?
It was probably "Strick and Legit" Demolition Company. They have been demolishing the Church in Clifton for almost a year now. Their motto should be "why do three men need three crowbars?"
This bill, while well meaning, is not going to work. The, not so legit, scrappers are in the outlaying areas, ie. Jefferson County. If you keep your ears open on a still night, you can hear them exploding from storing reactive metals on top of one another.
Posted by TRouble on Tue., Sep 26, 2006 at 8:33 PMAnd of course no one wants to address the other architectural theft problem: removal of decorative objects and sale to antiques dealers who ship hot items out-of-town for sale. Those stained glass windows, cornice elements and doorknobs don't go to Cash's, after all. They go to people who are treated with more respect than they deserve, and whose exploits are sickening.
Posted by Michael Allen on Wed., Sep 27, 2006 at 9:35 AMIt isn't spelled out exactly, but the language defining a second hand dealer, "Any person doing business in the City, who purchases and sells goods of any kind or description, having once been used or transferred from the manufacturer to the dealer and then received into the possession of third parties...shall be a secondhand dealer," might cover materials such as architectural details, cornices, etc. Certainly door knobs and windows would be covered.
The "secondhand dealer" definition covers bothe pawn shops and the antique shops. Technically, existing law should already apply. The new bill only brings up the standards for the "junk dealer", those who dealt primarily in metals and related material.
It may be a matter of enforcement, it is likely covered by the statutes.
The public safety doesn't have any meetings listed on the Board website, but this will come up for a hearing, perhaps a clarification could be requested.
Posted by Matthew Murphy on Wed., Sep 27, 2006 at 5:59 PM
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