[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of Orange Township 7-6-1999. Amendments noted where applicable.]
Any motor vehicle whose owner has terminated the use and
care of such motor vehicle and has left the same on open lands and
has either:
Indicated by his words or actions an intent to leave the same
and no longer claims ownership thereof, or
Left the same without making arrangements for the storage with the owner or occupant of the premises on which it is located, for a period of at least thirty (30) days, subject to Section 198-4, below.
Any vehicle designed to be propelled other than by muscular
power, excepting such vehicles as run only upon rails or tracks, and
as used in this chapter, such term shall also include any parts of
a motor vehicle and any such vehicle whether or not the same, by reason
of its present condition, is still capable of self-propulsion.
No person shall abandon or permit the abandonment on public
or private property, within the city, of any motor vehicle owned by
him or under his control or in his possession at the time of abandonment,
or, except as provided in this chapter, cause any abandoned vehicle
or motor vehicle in a state of substantial disrepair to be stored
in the open.
No person shall permit any abandoned vehicle to remain on any
property owned by him or in his possession or under his control, or
except as provided in this chapter, store or permit the storage of
any abandoned vehicle or motor vehicle in a state of substantial disrepair
in the open.
Any person who owns or has control of any premises and finds
a motor vehicle left on his property without his knowledge, acquiescence
or consent, where the owner of such vehicle has failed or refused
to remove the same or the owner is unknown, shall promptly notify
the Police Director of the year, model and make of such vehicle, and
if known or ascertainable, the registration, license, serial number
and ownership thereof, with such further and additional information
as the Police Director may request to ascertain whether or not the
same has been abandoned. The Police Director shall take such further
and additional steps as may be necessary to determine whether same
is an abandoned vehicle within the meaning of N.J.S.A. 39:4-56.5,
and if the same is, shall proceed to take possession thereof and thereafter
dispose of the same pursuant to N.J.S.A. 39:10A-1, the regulations
of the Division of Motor Vehicles and any other provisions of law
pertinent thereto.
Upon written notice of a violation of this chapter by either
the Director of Property Maintenance or the Police Director, or their
designees, the owner of the property or the person having possession
and control thereof shall:
A.Â
If he is the owner of such motor vehicle or has possession and control
of same, promptly abate the subject violation; or
B.Â
Promptly request by way of United States certified mail, return receipt requested, that the owner of such motor vehicle remove it within fifteen (15) days of the receipt of such request. If, however, the owner of such motor vehicle has received the written request but fails to respond or cannot be located, then the owner of the property or the person having possession and control thereof shall proceed in accordance with Section 198-4, above.
Any person owning or having possession or control of premises
on which an abandoned vehicle shall be situate and who fails to remove
such vehicle in accordance with the re-quest made by the Police Director
or Director of Property Maintenance, or their designees, pursuant
to this chapter or other city ordinances shall:
Where the existence of a motor vehicle, on public or private
property, shall be an immediate hazard requiring prompt abatement
to protect the public safety and shall thereby constitute a nuisance,
the Police Director may, on short notice or without notice, if notice
is not feasible, cause the same to be removed and held for a period
of at least fifteen (15) days. The Police Director shall thereupon
notify the owner of such vehicle, if known, by registered mail, of
the location thereof and of the right of the owner to secure return
of possession of such motor vehicle upon payment of the cost of removal
and storage. If, however, the owner of such motor vehicle fails to
respond to the aforementioned notice, then such vehicle can be disposed
of in accordance with N.J.S.A. 39:10A-1. Nothing herein shall be construed
to provide the owner with a defense against any violation of this
chapter.
No motor vehicle in such a state of disrepair that it is unsightly and incapable of locomotion under its own power shall be stored or kept in the open and exposed to public view from the streets or adjoining property. However, motor vehicles in a temporary state of disrepair shall be permitted to remain for a period not exceeding ten (10) days, provided the same are not abandoned vehicles, as defined in this chapter. Nothing in this chapter shall prohibit the storage of abandoned vehicles or motor vehicles in disrepair in junkyards, permitted under Chapter 116, Junk and Junkyards, of the Orange Township City Code.
Violators of any of the provisions of this chapter shall, upon
conviction thereof, be punishable by a fine of not more than five
hundred dollars ($500.) and the reimbursement of the costs of removal
and storage of the abandoned vehicle or imprisonment for not more
than ninety (90) days, or both.
