L.L. 2003/064

Enactment date: 10/29/2003

Int. No. 569-A

By Council Members Katz, Avella, Comrie, Weprin and Yassky (by request of the Mayor)

A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York in relation to the installation and maintenance of newsstands pursuant to a franchise and the placement of advertising on newsstands and to repeal subdivision d, and to repeal and reenact subdivision h, of section 20-231 of such code.

Be it enacted by the Council as follows:

Section 1. Declaration of intent. In the interests of better serving the public, improving the appearance of street furniture, including newsstands, located on the sidewalks throughout the City, and to enhance the revenues available to the City, the Council adopted Resolution No. 1004 authorizing the Department of Transportation to grant nonexclusive franchises for the installation, operation, and maintenance of coordinated franchise structures. It is anticipated that compliance with legally applicable requirements for the reconstruction of newsstands pursuant to such a franchise or franchises may result in the enlargement of the footprints of the existing stands as well as other changes in their design. As a result of these changes, the existing locations of licensed newsstands may intrude into buffer zones defined under existing rules of the Department of Consumer Affairs and cease to be eligible for the placement by a franchisee of a larger or redesigned newsstand.

The presence of newsstands on the streets of the City is an important amenity that provides pedestrians with convenient access to a variety of items, particularly newspapers and magazines. The Council recognizes that the placement of newsstands must be regulated so that the public is protected from unsafe conditions, including pedestrian traffic congestion, obstructions of important sight lines by which drivers see pedestrians and pedestrians are aware of vehicles, and obstacles at entrances to buildings or in bus stops and pedestrian crosswalks. The Council also recognizes that it is essential to ensure that the newsstand structures do not interfere with the provision of essential City services, such as the City's fire-fighting services, that depend, for example, on unobstructed access to fire hydrants. Accordingly, the Council seeks to minimize the disruption of the licensees of newsstands and the convenience of pedestrians who purchase items from newsstands by reducing the siting criteria that would be applicable to newsstands installed by a franchisee to those that are essential to the protection of the health, safety and welfare of the public.

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[Consolidated provisions are not included in this Appendix A]

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§ 11. This local law shall take effect on the later of the date on which it is enacted into law or the date upon which a resolution authorizing the department of transportation to grant nonexclusive franchises for the installation, operation and maintenance of coordinated franchise structures is passed by the city council, provided that the department of consumer affairs and the department of transportation may take any actions necessary to effectuate the provisions of this local law prior to its effective date, including the promulgation of new rules and the modification of existing rules prior to such date.