(a) Except as otherwise set forth in Section 9.79.080 (Special Newsrack Areas), no newsrack shall be placed, installed or maintained on any public property when such installation, use or maintenance endangers the safety of persons or property. No newsrack shall be placed, installed or maintained on any public property except in compliance with the following standards:
(1) Newsracks shall be placed only on a sidewalk, in one of the following locations:
(i) Near a curb, in which case, the back of the newsrack shall be placed no less than eighteen inches (twelve inches along El Camino Real) nor more than twenty-four inches from the face of the curb; or
(ii) Adjacent to the wall of a building, in which case, the back of the newsrack shall be placed parallel to such wall and not more than six inches from the wall.
(2) Every newsrack shall be placed so as to open toward the sidewalk.
(3) Every newsrack shall be affixed to the sidewalk or to another newsrack, in a manner approved by the permit therefor; provided, no newsrack shall be chained to another newsrack. Newsracks shall not be chained or otherwise attached to any bus shelter, bench, street light, utility pole or device or sign pole, or to any tree, shrub or other plant, nor situated upon any landscaped area.
(4) No newsrack shall be placed, installed or maintained:
(i) Within ten feet of any marked or unmarked crosswalk as measured from the curb return;
(ii) Within five feet of any fire hydrant, call box, or other emergency facility; bus bench; or utility pole or box;
(iii) At any location where the clear space for the passage of pedestrians is reduced to less than six feet (five feet along El Camino Real);
(iv) Within five feet of any driveway;
(v) Within five feet of any red curb of a bus stop zone;
(vi) Within five feet of the curb return of any wheelchair curb ramp not in a marked crosswalk;
(vii) In such a manner as to impede or interfere with the reasonable use of any commercial window display or access to or from any building;
(viii) In such a manner as to impede or interfere with the reasonable use of any bicycle rack;
(ix) In such a manner as to block or cover any portion of an underground utility vault, manhole, or other sidewalk underground access location.
(b) Newsracks may be placed or joined together; however, no group of newsracks placed along a curb shall extend for a distance of more than ten feet (i.e., the combined width of five newsracks); and no group of newsracks shall be closer than four feet to another group of newsracks along a curb.
(c) The city engineer may allow a permittee to place a newsrack in a location in variance of the standards otherwise required by this section if the city engineer finds that such variance will not be detrimental to the public safety and that, due to the existing physical constraints at that location, imposition of the standards would make placement impossible and would cause a hardship to the permittee and its patrons. The written findings and the variance shall be made part of the permit. Prior to considering whether or not to grant a variance, the city engineer shall provide written notice of the requested variance to the owner(s) of the real property adjacent to or abutting the proposed newsrack location.
(d) If sufficient space does not exist to accommodate all newsracks sought to be placed at one location without violating the standards set forth in this chapter, the city engineer shall give priority as to that location to publications on a historical "first come first served" basis to permit applicants as follows:
(1) First priority shall be publications that are published two or more times a week;
(2) Second priority shall be given to publications that are published once per week;
(3) Third priority shall be given to publications that are published less than once per week but more than once per month;
(4) Fourth priority shall be given to publications that are published monthly or less frequently than monthly.
In the event the city engineer is required to utilize the priority system described in subparagraphs (1) through (4), above, he or she shall permit only one rack per publication in a single location, provided that the Sunday edition of a daily publication shall be considered as a separate publication and shall be in the second category.
(Ord. 4531 § 2 (part), 1998)