Norris: No door-to-door peddling without an invite
Anyone who’s considering selling products or services door to door in Norris will need to rethink their strategy, as the City Council on Monday night made it illegal to do so without first being invited onto the property.
“Protection of people in their homes is what we’re trying to address,” Mayor Chris Mitchell said during discussion of the new ordinance, which the council passed unanimously on second and final reading.
“This is an extremely aggressive ordinance,” the mayor said.
Even if a salesperson obtains the resident’s permission to approach the home, the person still must get a solicitor’s permit from City Hall before doing so, according to the ordinance, which takes effect in 10 days.
Exceptions are made for nonprofit organizations, including religious activities, and political campaigns. A last-minute change to the proposed ordinance made it clear that vendors such as Girl Scouts selling cookies would not be subject to the restrictions.
The ordinance, as passed by the council on first reading, says:
“(Section 9-105) The practice of going in and upon private residences in the City of Norris by solicitors, peddlers, hawkers, itinerant merchants or transient vendors of merchandise not having been requested or invited so to do by the owner or owners, occupant or occupants of said private residences for the purpose of soliciting orders for the sale of goods, wares and merchandise and/or disposing of and/or peddling or hawking the same is declared to be a nuisance and punishable as such nuisance as a misdemeanor.”
The proposal was first brought up at the council’s November meeting, but was tabled until the December council meeting. Originally, it was proposed that door-to-door sales would be allowed by permit only.
But some residents attending the Nov. 13 council meeting suggested that rather than giving solicitors permits to sell door-to-door, such sales should be prohibited outright in the city, with a few exceptions.
The ordinance the council approved on first reading Dec. 11 reflected that suggestion, adding:
“(Section) 9-106. Restrictions on peddlers and solicitors. No peddler, solicitor, solicitor for charitable purposes, or solicitor for subscriptions shall:
“(1) Be permitted to set up and operate a booth or stand on any street or sidewalk, or in any other public area within the city.
“(2) Stand or sit in or near the entrance to any dwelling or place of business, or in any other place which may disrupt or impede pedestrian or vehicular traffic.
“(3) Offer to sell goods or services or solicit in vehicular traffic lanes, or operate a ‘roadblock’ of any kind.
“(4) Call attention to his business or merchandise or to his solicitation efforts by crying out, by blowing a horn, by ringing a bell, or creating other noise.
“(5) Enter in or upon any premises or attempt to enter in or upon any premises wherein a sign or placard bearing the notice ‘Peddlers or Solicitors Prohibited,’ or similar language carrying the same meaning, is located.
“(Section) 9-107. Restrictions on transient vendors. (1) A transient vendor shall not advertise, represent, or hold forth a sale of goods, wares or merchandise as an insurance, bankrupt, insolvent, assignee, trustee, estate, executor, administrator, receiver’s manufacturer’s wholesale, cancelled order, or misfit sale, or closing-out sale, or a sale of any goods damaged by smoke, fire, water or otherwise, unless such advertisement, representation or holding forth is actually of the character it is advertised, represented or held forth.
“(2) Transient vendors shall not be permitted to set up and operate a booth or stand on any street or sidewalk, or in any other public area within the city without written permission from the City Manager.”
Mayor Chris Mitchell noted that the restrictions would not affect the solicitation activities outside the Norris post office that are commonly held by local civic groups.
Also, nonprofit or religious organizations or political campaigns will not have to apply for permits to solicit within the city.
The new ordinance was patterned after similar measures already in effect in Gatlinburg and Alcoa, city officials said.