[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Committee of the Township of Oldmans 1-4-1978 by Ord. No. 78-1 as Ch. 2 of the 1978 Code. Amendments noted where applicable.]
For the purpose of this chapter, the terms used herein are defined as follows:
ABANDONED MOTOR VEHICLE
Any vehicle propelled otherwise than by muscular power, excepting such vehicles as run only upon rails or tracks, found in any public street, highway or lands and not bearing current registration plates or, if bearing current registration plates, remaining stationary and unused for more than 14 days consecutively on public streets, highways or lands and 30 days upon any private lands or premises.
JUNK AUTOMOBILE or JUNK AUTOMOBILE BODY
Any automobile which is no longer in actual use as a motor vehicle or which is wholly unfit without rebuilding or reconditioning for use for highway transportation or which has been discarded for use as a motor vehicle.
No person shall place, abandon or leave, keep or store or suffer or permit the placing, abandoning, leaving, keeping or storage of any abandoned vehicle out of doors upon any public or private land in the Township of Oldmans or upon any street or highway within the Township. Nothing herein contained shall be deemed to prohibit the placing, keeping or storage of any such vehicle in an enclosed garage, barn or other building, nor shall this chapter apply to lawfully licensed junkyards.
No person shall place, keep, store or maintain a junk automobile or automobile body or, separately, the parts of an automobile which are exposed outside of an enclosed building on any tract of land within the Township of Oldmans unless said person is the holder of a junkyard license or unless such junk automobile bodies and parts are kept temporarily in the operation of a full-time business primarily conducted for the sale or repair, or either, of automobiles.
No owner or occupier of any private lands or premises shall permit or suffer any inoperable or abandoned motor vehicles or junk automobiles to be parked, left, stored or maintained on his or her lands for more than 30 days. It shall be presumed after 30 days that the owner or tenant in possession of said land left, placed, kept or stored said vehicle there or permitted or suffered it to be left, placed, kept or stored there.
Whenever it shall appear to any peace officer of the Township that this chapter is being violated and that the land on which the violation exists is privately owned, he shall, in writing, notify the owner or tenant in possession of the land on which the violation exists to abate the violation by removing the article or articles constituting the violation from the Township or into an enclosed garage, barn or other building within 10 days of the service of the notice, which notice shall be served upon such owner or tenant, if he resides in the Township, personally or by leaving it at his usual place of abode with some member of his household over the age of 14 years, but if any such owner or tenant shall reside outside the Township, the notice shall be served upon him by registered or certified mail addressed to him at his usual residence, if ascertainable, or otherwise by notice published in the local newspaper, and said owner or tenant shall so abate the violation within the time fixed by the notice.
In the event that the owner, possessor or occupant of said lands shall refuse or neglect to abate or remedy the condition complained of and which constitutes a violation of this chapter, after expiration of the time set forth in the notice, the peace officer shall cause the condition complained of to be abated and remedied.
A. 
Upon the removal of any of the items prohibited to be stored or placed on the lands by this chapter and where the owner, after the time set forth in the notice aforesaid, shall have refused or neglected to remove the same, said peace officer shall certify the cost thereof to the Township Committee, which shall examine the certificate and, if found correct, shall cause the cost as shown thereon to be charged against said lands. The amount so charged shall forthwith become a lien upon such lands and shall be added to and become and form a part of the taxes next to be assessed and levied upon said lands, the same to bear interest at the same rate as taxes, and shall be collected and enforced by the same officers and in the same manner as taxes.
B. 
Where removal is made of items in accordance with § 157-6 and Subsection A hereof belonging to a possessor or tenant of the lands other than the title holder of said lands and premises, said possessor or tenant shall be subject to a fine as hereinafter set forth, and the costs of removal shall be included as court costs.
Whenever it shall appear that this chapter is being violated and that the violation exists upon public lands, streets or highways, said vehicle shall be taken in possession by the peace officer, who shall direct its removal to a storage place.
Upon the taking into possession of an abandoned, inoperable or junk motor vehicle, the peace officer shall follow the procedures established by Title 39, Chapter 10A of the Revised Statutes of New Jersey to sell such vehicle at public auction.
[Amended 5-2-1984 by Ord. No. 84-6; 9-3-1997 by Ord. No. 97-5]
A violation of this chapter shall be punishable as provided in Chapter 1, General Provisions, Article II, General Penalty.
Each day that any person shall continue to keep, maintain or store any junk automobiles or junk automobile bodies or junk automobile parts in violation of this chapter shall be deemed to be a separate offense.