Reedley Municipal Code Ch. 5 Shopping Carts

The City Council finds that abandoned shopping carts on public and private property create conditions that reduce property values, promote blight and neighborhood deterioration, and result in a public nuisance. This chapter is intended to ensure measures are taken by the owners of shopping carts to prevent the removal of the shopping carts from the owner's premises and to facilitate the retrieval of abandoned shopping carts in a manner consistent with California State law. (Ord. 2024-008, 12-17-2024)

The following definitions apply for the purpose of this chapter:

ABANDONED SHOPPING CART: Any shopping cart that has been removed, without the consent of the owner, from the owner's business premises or parking area of the commercial establishment, and is now located on either public or private property.

BUSINESS PREMISES: The interior of a shopping cart owner's commercial establishment, adjacent walkways, any loading area, and the parking area, as defined herein. The owner's business premises may include a multi-store shopping center with shared areas of parking and public access.

CART IDENTIFICATION: A permanent posted sign, sticker, placard, or engraved surface on a shopping cart which includes certain required information, as further described in Section 4-5-8.

CART OWNER: The owner or operator of a commercial establishment which provides shopping carts for use by its customers for the purpose of transporting goods and belongings of any kind while on the business' premises.

CODE ENFORCEMENT OFFICER: A code enforcement officer, or designee, employed by the City to enforce the rules, regulations, code, and ordinances of the City of Reedley.

ON-SITE CART CONTAINMENT PROGRAM: Any one (1) or more of the following measures:

A. Disabling devices on all shopping carts which prevent them from being removed from the business premises by locking the wheels or otherwise preventing their movement.

B. An on-site security guard or employee of a commercial establishment whose presence seeks to deter customers from attempting to remove carts from the business premises.

C. Bollards and chains installed around the business premises to prevent removal, if permitted by the applicable zoning district and zoning regulations, site plan review, and if approved by the Building Official and Fire Chief.

D. Obtaining a financial security deposit from customers prior to using the shopping cart.

E. Any other measure approved by the City Manager, or designee, as a means to contain carts on the premises.

PARKING AREA: A parking lot or other property owned, controlled, or operated by a commercial establishment for use by customers for parking automobiles or other vehicles. In a multi-store or shopping center, this definition shall include the entire parking area used or controlled by the complex or shopping center.

QUALIFIED CART RETRIEVAL SERVICE: A third-party commercial service in the business of retrieving and returning shopping carts, which meets minimum service standards established by the City Manager, or designee.

SHOPPING CART: A basket which is mounted on wheels, or a similar device, provided by the operator of a commercial establishment for the use of customers for the purpose of transporting goods and belongings of any kind. This definition shall also apply to the words "laundry cart" and "cart", which may at times be used interchangeably herein. A cart sold by a commercial establishment to a retail customer for that customer's personal and private use is not a shopping cart for the purposes of this chapter. (Ord. 2024-008, 12-17-2024)

Every cart owner shall operate and maintain an on-site cart containment program as defined in Section 4-5-2 F. of this chapter. Such system must be in operation until the business use is abandoned and/or the use of shopping carts is discontinued. (Ord. 2024-008, 12-17-2024)

An existing cart owner may be exempted from the on-site cart containment program requirement if they provide proof of active contract with a qualified cart retrieval service to the Director of the Community Development Department and the Chief of Police which demonstrates the qualified cart retrieval service will do the following:

A. Actively locate shopping carts throughout the City of Reedley; and

B. Respond to complaints from the public in a manner which results in the retrieval of shopping carts within twenty-four (24) hours after receiving complaint(s). (Ord. 2024-008, 12-17-2024)

A new cart owner shall be required to install a physical containment system when the cart owner establishes a new use. An existing cart owner shall be required to install a physical containment system when the shopping cart owner expands the existing use by more than five thousand (5,000) square feet. (Ord. 2024-008, 12-17-2024)

Every commercial establishment which provides carts at its business premises shall prominently post and maintain in the interior of the building, and at all customer entrances and exits, shopping cart removal warning notices ("warning notices"). Warning notices shall meet all of the following minimum specifications:

A. Be at least eighteen inches (18") in width and twenty-four inches (24") in height.

B. Use block lettering not less than one-half inch (0.5") in width and two inches (2") in height.

C. Contain a statement which notifies the public that the unauthorized removal of a shopping cart from the business premises, or possession of a shopping cart in a location other than on the business premises, is a violation of State law and City ordinance.

D. The statement required by subsection C of this section shall be in English and Spanish.

E. List a local or toll-free telephone number for shopping cart retrieval. (Ord. 2024-008, 12-17-2024)

No person shall be deemed to be authorized to remove a shopping cart unless they are in possession of written authorization from the shopping cart owner. Such written authorization shall be on the respective commercial establishment's letterhead. This section shall not apply to the possession of a shopping cart removed from the business premises at the direction of the cart owner for the purposes of repair or maintenance. (Ord. 2024-008, 12-17-2024)

A. Each shopping cart owned or used within the city shall have permanently affixed to it and easily visible a cart identification sign or engraved surface which includes all of the following information:

1. The name of the cart owner.

2. The telephone number of the cart owner and/or commercial establishment to which the cart belongs.

3. A valid phone number for cart retrieval.

4. The procedure, if applicable, to be followed to obtain permission to remove the cart from the business premises.

5. Notice to the public that the unauthorized removal of the cart from the business premises is a violation of State law and City ordinance.

B. It shall be the responsibility of each cart owner to comply with subsection A of this section, and to continuously maintain, or cause to be maintained, the cart identification sign so that all of the required information is accurate and clearly legible. (Ord. 2024-008, 12-17-2024)

A violation of this chapter shall be subject to the following provisions:

A. If an abandoned cart is not retrieved within thirty-six (36) hours after notice to the cart owner from the City or citizen reporter, or as otherwise described in subdivision (i) of California Business and Professions Code section 22437.7, the City may impound the shopping cart. Beginning on the fourth business day, any shopping cart not claimed by the cart owner within three (3) business days following date of actual notice of impound shall be subject to a fee equivalent to the actual costs incurred by the City in offering the respective impound service.

B. Further, a Code Enforcement Officer may issue a citation to a shopping cart owner in the amount of fifty dollars ($50.00) for each occurrence in excess of three (3) during a given six (6)-month period for failure to retrieve shopping carts in accordance with this Section 4-5-9. An occurrence includes all shopping carts impounded in accordance with this Section on a given day.

C. The City of Reedley reserves the right to immediately retrieve any shopping cart that will impede emergency services, or is located within the public right-of-way and poses a safety hazard to the general public. (Ord. 2024-008, 12-17-2024)