To get a permit for a yard sale, you have to go to the mother ship. Park in the back. Having found a place to park, go through the double doors and turn right into the construction/code department. There you will find a counter, and at the counter will be guys wearing work boots and holding papers in their hands. Behind the counter are ladies who seem to have different tasks, but you can’t be sure whom to talk to. Ask one of them to give you an application for a Garage Sale. It doesn’t matter if you don’t have a garage. Nobody knows what to call these sales in the Grove.
The Mother Ship (Neptune Township)
The form has 3 pages, but the print is large. You must have your block and lot number, but if you don’t know it, there is a large book there where you can look it up.
So I filled it out, but no clerks were present to take it from me. Soon a woman came to the counter and she said, “Who’s next?” Since I was next, I handed her the packet. She looked at it and, without a word, laid it on the counter and moved on to a guy behind me with an electrical permit in his hand. I felt smoke coming out of my ears, but oh well, I guess I’m chopped liver. Soon another woman appeared who took care of me. I gave her $10.00 and got the permit.
You have to sign twice to prove that you were informed of the law. The pertinent ordinances are printed on the form. I assume that if you break the law, it wouldn’t matter whether you signed or not. Oh well…Anyhow, here’s a run-down on the rules:
If you put a sign or flyer on a telephone pole, the fine is “up to $1,000.00.” We don’t know what “up to” means, so you had better keep the big number in mind. The next section makes it clear that you cannot post notices of any type on “any structure, fence, rock etc.” The “etc. is mine; you need to go down there to read the entire ordinance if you want to know all the details.
Then you are advised that “a license shall be valid for a single premises (sic) only. Participants in a block sale, multiple yard sale
or group sale must each obtain a license.” You can figure this one out as it pertains to “premises and participants.”
Also: You may only obtain two garage sale licenses within 12 months, and the sale has to be between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.
Additionally, no signs may be placed in the ground. It sounds like you may have to use your imagination to promote your sale. I wonder if the realtors posting open houses know these rules. We suggest hanging your virtual sign for free on Blogfinger. Or you can pay for an ad in the APP or hang a banner from an airplane. You can consult your lawyer to find out if you can post flyers on your own house. Or, as our neighbor did, stand a sign on an upside down garbage can. Send us your ideas for posting signs without risking a fine.
And finally, join the 13 premises/participants who have signed up so far for our town-wide yard sale on May 12. Contact Eileen (Blogfinger@verizon.net) so we can include you in our fliers with addresses that we plan to hand to shoppers at all locations. (We hope that is not illegal.)
—Paul Goldfinger, licensed official seller of garages.