[Ord. 423, 9/9/1987, § 10-301; as amended by Ord.
489, 8/15/2002, Part 1]
As used in this Part, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated, unless a different meaning clearly appears from the context:
Any motor vehicle which is found unattended without the current
year's registration or identification markers, as required by
law, has been continuously parked in any public street, public land
or private property for a period of 10 days, is so disabled as to
be incapable of being operated under its own power or is without one
or more tires.
Any motor vehicle which is no longer in actual use as a motor
vehicle or which is wholly unfit to be operated or has been discarded
for use or otherwise abandoned.
Owner for the purpose of this Part when the lessor holds
the lessee responsible for maintenance and repairs.
Any motor vehicle which is self-propelled as defined by the
Vehicle Code of Pennsylvania, 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 101 et seq.
Any condition, structure, or improvement which shall constitute
a threat or potential threat to the health, safety, or welfare of
the citizens of the Borough of Liberty.
The actual owner, agent or custodian of the property on which
motor vehicles are stored, whether individual or partnership, association,
or corporation.
A natural person, firm, partnership, association, corporation,
or other legal entity.
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In this Part, the singular shall include the plural; the plural
shall include the singular; and the masculine shall include the feminine
and the neuter.
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[Ord. 423, 9/9/1987, § 10-302]
1.
It shall be unlawful for any person, owner or lessee to maintain
a motor vehicle nuisance upon the open private grounds of such person,
owner or lessee within the Borough. A motor vehicle nuisance shall
include any motor vehicle which is unable to move under its own power
and has any of the following physical defects:
A.
Broken windshields, mirrors or other glass, with sharp edges.
B.
One or more flat or open tires or tubes which could permit vermin
harborage.
C.
Missing doors, windows, hood, trunk or other body parts which could
permit animal harborage.
D.
Any body parts with sharp edges including holes resulting from rust.
E.
Missing tires resulting in unsafe suspension of the motor vehicle.
F.
Upholstery which is torn or open which could permit animal and/or
vermin harborage.
G.
Broken headlamps or taillamps with sharp edges.
H.
Disassembled chassis parts apart from the motor vehicle stored in
a disorderly fashion or loose in or on the vehicle.
I.
Protruding sharp objects from the chassis.
J.
Broken vehicle frame suspended from the ground in an unstable manner.
K.
Leaking or damaged oil pan or gas tank which could cause fire or
explosion.
L.
Exposed battery containing acid.
M.
Inoperable locking mechanism for doors or trunk.
N.
Open or damaged floor boards including trunk and firewall.
O.
Damaged bumpers pulled away from the perimeter of vehicle.
P.
Broken grill with protruding edges.
Q.
Loose or damaged metal trim and clips.
R.
Broken communication equipment antennae.
S.
Suspended on unstable supports.
T.
Such other defects which could threaten the health, safety and welfare
of the citizens of the Borough of Liberty.
[Ord. 423, 9/9/1987; as added by Ord. 489, 8/15/2002, Part
2; and amended by A.O.]
1.
Motor Vehicle Abandonment Prohibited; Exceptions. It shall be unlawful
for any person to cause a motor vehicle to be abandoned upon any public
or private lands in the Borough of Liberty or upon any public street,
except that nothing herein contained shall be deemed to prohibit any
person from parking, storing or repairing a motor vehicle upon private
or public property where authorized under the laws of the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania or the laws of the Borough of Liberty, and nothing
shall be deemed to prohibit the placing, keeping or storing of any
motor vehicle in an enclosed garage or other building.
2.
Junked Automobiles Prohibited. No person shall place, keep or store
any junked automobile on any public or private within the Borough
of Liberty or upon the public highways in the Borough of Liberty.
3.
Removal Required; Notices; Failure to Comply. All abandoned motor
vehicles shall be removed by the owner or operator thereof or by the
owner or occupant of the private property on which the said motor
vehicle is abandoned. Upon the failure of the owner or operator of
any abandoned or junked motor vehicle to remove the same within 24
hours after receiving notice from the Liberty Borough Police Department
to move the same, such notice being given either by personal service
or by certified mail to the owner or operator of such abandoned motor
vehicle or to the owner or occupant of the private property on which
the said abandoned or junk motor vehicle is found, the Liberty Borough
Police Department may remove the same or cause the same to be removed.
4.
Removal by Borough. In removing any such abandoned motor vehicles,
the Liberty Borough Police Department shall cause the same to be towed
and stored by such garages or towing services as are designated by
the Chief of Police of the Borough of Liberty to be approved storage
garages or pounds for the storage of such vehicles.
5.
Storage Garages. Any designated storage garage, prior to engaging
in any towing away and/or storing of any vehicle hereunder, shall
file a surety bond with the Borough, said bond to indemnify the Borough
and the owner of any impounded vehicle against loss thereof or injury
or damage thereto while any vehicle is in custody of such garage.
6.
Towing and Storage Charges. Specific towing and storage charges to
be made under this Part shall be fixed, from time to time, by the
Borough Council in accordance with the prevailing rates in the Borough,
and such charges shall be posted in the Borough Building.
7.
Notice of Impoundment. The Chief of Police or someone at his direction,
within 12 hours after any vehicle has been removed and impounded,
shall notify the owner of record or the operator of any such vehicle,
either by personal service or by certified mail, or the owner or occupant
of the property from which any vehicle has been removed, in like manner,
of the fact that such vehicle has been impounded, the place from which
it was removed, the reason for its removal and impounding and the
place where the vehicle has been impounded.
8.
Recovery of Impounded Vehicle. The owner or operator of any impounded
vehicle shall be entitled to recover possession of such vehicle upon
payment to the Borough of the towing and storage charges as above
set forth.
9.
Payment of Charges; Protest and Hearing. The payment of such towing
and storage charges, unless made under protest, shall be final and
conclusive, and shall constitute a waiver of any right to recover
the money so paid. In the event that the towing and impounding charges
are paid under protest, the offender shall be entitled to a hearing
before a magisterial district judge or a court of record having jurisdiction,
as in the case of a prosecution as in other cases of summary offenses
under the Vehicle Code of Pennsylvania, 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 101
et seq., and the said magisterial district judge or court of record
shall proceed in accordance with § 1103.1 of the Vehicle
Code, 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 1103.1.
10.
Notice to Property Owner When Ownership of Vehicle Cannot Be Ascertained.
In the event that the Police Department shall be unable to ascertain
the ownership of an abandoned motor vehicle found upon private property,
the Chief of Police or someone at his discretion, within 12 hours
after the vehicle has been found by the police, may notify the owner
or occupant of the private property, by certified mail, that such
vehicle exists, and thereafter the said owner or occupant of the private
property shall cause the abandoned motor vehicle to be removed to
an authorized junk or scrap yard within 48 hours.
11.
Failure of Property Owner to Remove Vehicle. If the owner or occupant
of such private property shall fail to remove the abandoned motor
vehicle, as set forth in the preceding subsection hereof, the said
owner or occupant shall be subject to the penalties provided in this
Part.
12.
Unclaimed Vehicles. Where an abandoned motor vehicle is removed under
the provisions of this Part and it remains unclaimed for a period
of 15 consecutive days without being removed by its owner or any other
person duly authorized to remove same, the Chief of Police shall be
authorized to report or cause to be reported such abandonment to the
Department of Revenue of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, as provided
in the Vehicle Code, 75 Pa.C.S.A. § 101 et seq.
[Ord. 423, 9/9/1987, § 10-303]
1.
Any person, owner or lessee who has one or more motor vehicle nuisances as defined in § 10-302 above may store such vehicle(s) in the Borough only in strict compliance with the regulations provided herein. Such person, owner or lessee must, first, apply for a permit for either temporary or permanent storage and pay a fee to the Borough such as may be provided from time to time by resolution of the Borough Council. The motor vehicle nuisance(s) must be stored within a garage or other enclosed building or, outside within an opaqued fence at least six feet high which is locked at all times when unattended. With the special approval of the Borough Council motor vehicle nuisances may also be stored outside in an area enclosed by a chain link fence, at least six feet high, screened by shrubbery around the perimeter to the height of the fence, with an unobstructed gate capable of admitting fire or emergency equipment. Such gate shall remain locked at all times when unattended. In addition all gas and oil or other flammable liquid shall be removed from the motor vehicle and it shall be kept free of vermin infestation while being stored. The total area of storage of motor vehicle nuisances may not exceed 200 square feet.
[Ord. 423, 9/9/1987, § 10-304]
1.
The Zoning Officer is hereby empowered to inspect grounds on which
motor vehicles are stored to determine if there is compliance with
the provisions of this Part. If noncompliance with the provisions
of this Part constitutes a nuisance, or if any condition, structure,
or improvement poses a threat to the health, safety, or welfare of
the public, he shall issue a written notice to be served by registered
or certified mail upon the owner of said premises, or, if the owner's
whereabouts or identity be unknown, by posting the notice conspicuously
upon the offending premises.
2.
Said notice shall specify the condition or structure or improvement
complained of, and shall require the owner to commence to remove or
otherwise rectify the condition or structure or improvement as set
forth therein within 10 days of mailing or posting of said notice,
and thereafter, to fully comply with the requirements of the notice
within a reasonable time.
[Ord. 423, 9/9/1987, § 10-305]
If the owner of grounds on which motor vehicles are stored does
not comply with the notice to abate the conditions, within the time
limit prescribed, the Borough shall have the authority to take measures
to correct the conditions and collect the cost of such corrections
plus 10% of all costs. The Borough, in such event and pursuant to
its statutory or otherwise authorized police powers, shall have the
right and power to enter upon the offending premises to accomplish
the foregoing.
[Ord. 423, 9/9/1987, § 10-306]
1.
Any person aggrieved by the decision of the Zoning Officer may request
and shall then be granted a hearing before the Borough Council; provided,
he files with the Borough Council within 10 days after notice of the
Zoning Officer's decision, a written petition requesting such
hearing and setting forth a brief statement of the grounds therefor.
The hearing shall commence not later than 30 days after the date on
which the petition was filed unless postponed for sufficient cause.
2.
After such hearing, the Borough Council shall sustain, modify or
overrule the action of the Zoning Officer.
[Ord. 423, 9/9/1987, § 10-307; as amended by A.O.]
Any person, firm or corporation who shall violate any provision
of this Part, upon conviction thereof in an action brought before
a magisterial district judge in the manner provided for the enforcement
of summary offenses under the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure,
shall be sentenced to pay a fine of not more than $1,000 plus costs
and, in default of payment of said fine and costs, to a term of imprisonment
not to exceed 90 days. Each day that a violation of this Part continues
or each section of this Part which shall be found to have been violated
shall constitute a separate offense.
[Ord. 423, 9/9/1987, § 10-308]
The remedies provided herein for the enforcement of this Part,
or any remedy provided by law, shall not be deemed mutually exclusive;
rather they may be employed simultaneously or consecutively, at the
option of the Borough Council.
