New Regs For Donation Bins In The Works

The Township Committee is moving toward regulating the clothing donation bins that have sprouted up in shopping center parking lots scattered throughout town.

At its Nov. 22 meeting, is expected to take a final vote on an ordinance that would require anyone who places a clothing bin in a parking lot to also register the company with town hall first.

The measure was introduced at the Oct. 12 meeting by a unanimous vote of the committee.

Currently, the clothing donation bins that have become nearly ubiquitous in the parking lots of shopping centers everywhere, have been unregulated. But not all are welcome additions.

Bins sometimes have shown up without the property owner’s permission, occasionally take up parking spaces and sometimes are simply abandoned, Committeeman Clinton Hoffman said.

“When they’ve been abandoned or placed improperly, we’ve really had no method to correct that,’’ Hoffman said. “This would just give us a little control over where they are and who puts them there.’’

According to the ordinance, any company or organization that wants to place a clothing donation bin would first have to apply for a 1-year permit from town hall and pay a $25 fee for each bin. The permit may be renewed each year.

The application, according to the ordinance, includes:

• The location of the bin
• The manner in which the clothing or other donations would be used, sold or disbursed and where the money earned from the donations would be spent
• The name, telephone number and address of the person, organization or company placing the bin
• Written consent from the owner where the bin will be located
• A background check of the applicant

All donation bins will be required to display the permit on the bin, the ordinance says.

The Code Enforcement Officer will be charged with investigating complaints about clothing bins. If a violation of the ordinance is found, the owner of the bin will have 45 days to correct the situation. If not, the town may seize the bin and sell the donations at public auction or otherwise dispose of them, according to the ordinance.

The owner of a donation bin in violation of the ordinance also could be liable for a penalty of up to $20,000 for each violation and be disqualified from placing any bins in the future, the ordinance says.

Hoffman said it was his belief that a state mandate requiring municipalities to regulate donation bins was forthcoming, and this puts Wall ahead of the curve.

“That’s one of the reasons for this,’’ Hoffman said. “But we probably would have gotten there anyway.”