Garage Sale Ordinance

GARAGE SALE ORDINANCE

Section 1: Definitions

A. "Garage sale" shall mean and include all casual sales of personal property open to the general public and generally denoted by the term "garage sale," "attic sale," "lawn sale," "yard sale" or similar phrase.

B. "Casual sale" for the purpose of this Ordinance shall mean sales at which more than six (6) items are displayed or available for sale at one time.

Section II: License for Sale Required

A. It shall be unlawful for a person, group, organization, firm or corporation to conduct a garage sale in the Town of Waitsfield without first obtaining a license to do so from the Town Clerk.

B. Except as hereinafter provided, only two (2) such licenses may be issued within any one calendar year for a total period of four (4) days for any particular premises. No such license shall be issued for a period of more than three (3) days, which days shall be consecutive.

Section III: Application for License

A. Application for a license shall be made to the Town Clerk at least five (5) days prior to the commencement day of the sale.

B. The application shall be made on a form provided by the Town Clerk and shall be completed with the following information:

1. Name of applicant conducting sale;
2. If the sale is for charitable purpose, name of charity organization;
3. Location of the sale;
4. Name of owner of property and written consent of such owner, if the applicant is other
than the owner of premises;
5. Date or date of sale;
6. Whether sale was previously conducted on the same premises during the same calendar year;
7. Arrangements made for off-street parking.

C. The license fee shall be $2.00 for each day of the sale.

D. In the event the sale is solely for charitable purposes, no fee shall be required, and the days of the sale need not be consecutive, but a license must be obtained for each non-consecutive sale day.

Section IV: Conduct of Sale.

A. The sale shall not commence before 8:00 a.m., nor continue past sundown.

B. No off-premise signs shall be permitted. One on-premise sign be permitted, provided the same is not more than 3 square feet in size and is non-illuminated and non-reflectorized. Such sign shall be displayed only on sales days and shall be promptly removed at the conclusion of the sale.

C. The garage sale license shall be conspicuously displayed on each day of the sale during sale hours.

Section V: Penalties.

Anyone violating this ordinance shall be prosecuted, and if found guilty, shall be fined $50.00 for the first offense, $75.00 for a second offense, and $150 for a third or subsequent offense; in lieu of prosecution, any person may voluntarily sign a waiver and pay the fine directly to the Town Clerk in Waitsfield.

This ordinance was first adopted December 27, 1976 and was subsequently amended June 4, 1979. Documentation of the adoption and amendment process for the Ordinance may be obtained from the Town Clerk's Office.