Whenever the following terms are used in this division, they
shall have the meanings respectively ascribed to them in this section:
Antique vehicle.
A passenger car or truck that is at least thirty-five (35)
years old.
Demolisher.
A person whose business is to convert a motor vehicle into
processed scrap or scrap metal or to otherwise wreck or dismantle
a motor vehicle.
Junked vehicle.
A vehicle that:
(2)
Is:
(A)
Wrecked, dismantled or partially dismantled, or discarded; or
(B)
Inoperable and has remained inoperable for more than:
(i)
72 consecutive hours, if the vehicle is on public property;
or
(ii)
30 consecutive days, if the vehicle is on private property.
For purposes of this division, “junked vehicle”
includes a motor vehicle, aircraft, or watercraft. This division applies
only to:
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(1)
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A motor vehicle that displays an expired license plate or does
not display a license plate;
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(2)
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An aircraft that does not have lawfully printed on the aircraft
an unexpired federal aircraft identification number registered under
Federal Aviation Administration aircraft registration regulations
in 14 C.F.R. part 47; or
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(3)
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A watercraft that:
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(A)
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Does not have lawfully on board an unexpired certificate of
number; and
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(B)
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Is not a watercraft described by section 31.055, Parks and Wildlife
Code.
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Motor vehicle collector.
A person who owns one or more antique or special interest
vehicles and acquires, collects, or disposes of an antique or special
interest vehicle or parts of them for personal use to restore and
preserve an antique or special interest vehicle for historic interest.
Special interest vehicle.
A motor vehicle of any age that has not been altered or modified
from original manufacturer’s specifications and, because of
its historic interest, is being preserved by hobbyists.
(Ordinance 7050-A, sec. 5-1, adopted 7/18/02; Ordinance adopting Code)
A junked vehicle, including a part of a junk vehicle, that is
visible from a public place or public right-of-way:
(1) Is
detrimental to the safety and welfare of the public;
(2) Tends
to reduce the value of private property;
(5) Is
an attractive nuisance creating a hazard to the health and safety
of minors;
(6) Produces
urban blight adverse to the maintenance and continuing development
of the city; and
(Ordinance 7050-A, sec. 5-2, adopted 7/18/02)
The following vehicles and vehicle parts are exempt from the
provisions of this division:
(1) A
vehicle that is completely enclosed within a building in a lawful
manner and is not visible from the street or other public or private
property; or
(2) A
vehicle that is stored or parked in a lawful manner on private property
in connection with the business of a licensed vehicle dealer or junkyard,
or that is an antique or special interest vehicle stored by a motor
vehicle collector on the collector’s property, if the vehicle
and the outdoor storage area are:
(A) Maintained in an orderly manner;
(B) Do not constitute a health hazard; and
(C) Are screened from ordinary public view by appropriate means, including
a fence, rapidly growing trees or shrubbery.
(Ordinance 7050-A, sec. 5-3, adopted 7/18/02)
(a) The
city shall abate and remove from private or public property or a public
right-of-way any junked vehicle or part of a junked vehicle which
is a public nuisance.
(b) Procedures
to abate:
(1) A public hearing as set forth in section
8.06.067 shall be required before removal of the public nuisance.
(2) A junked vehicle shall not be allowed to be reconstructed or made
operable after removal by the city.
(3) Notice shall be sent to the state department of transportation no
later than the fifth day [after the day] of removal.
(c) The
municipal court may issue necessary orders to enforce the order from
the building official to remove the public nuisance.
(d) Procedures
for abatement and removal of the public nuisance shall be administered
by the building official or his designated representative and [such
officials] may enter private property to examine a public nuisance,
to obtain information to identify the nuisance, and to remove or direct
the removal of the nuisance.
(e) Any
person authorized by the city may enter private property to remove
the nuisance.
(Ordinance 7050-A, sec. 5-4, adopted 7/18/02)
The relocation of a junked vehicle that is a public nuisance
to another location within the city limits after a proceeding for
the abatement and removal of the public nuisance has commenced has
no effect on the proceeding if the junked vehicle constitutes a public
nuisance at the new location.
(Ordinance 7050-A, sec. 5-5, adopted 7/18/02)
(a) The
procedures for the abatement and removal of a public nuisance under
this division shall provide not less than ten (10) days’ notice
of the nature of the violation and must be sent by certified mail
with a five-day return requested to:
(1) The last known registered owner of the nuisance;
(2) Each lienholder of record of the nuisance; and
(3) The owner or occupant of:
(A) The property on which the nuisance is located; or
(B) If the nuisance is located in a public right-of-way, the property
adjacent to the right-of-way.
(b) The
notice must state:
(1) The nuisance must be abated and removed not later than the tenth
(10th) day after the date on which the notice was mailed; and
(2) Any request for a hearing must be made before the ten (10) day period
expires.
(c) If
the post office address of the last known registered owner of the
nuisance is unknown, notice may be placed on the nuisance or, if the
owner is located, hand delivered.
(d) If
notice is returned undelivered, action to abate the nuisance shall
be continued to a date not earlier than the eleventh (11th) day after
the date of the return.
(Ordinance 7050-A, sec. 5-6, adopted 7/18/02)
(a) If
a person for whom notice was sent requests an administrative hearing,
or if a hearing is required by the city for abatement, such hearing
shall be held before the building official as follows:
(1) If a hearing is requested by a person for whom notice is required under section
8.06.066(a)(3) above, the hearing shall be held not earlier than the eleventh (11th) day after the date of the service of notice.
(2) If the notice is delivered but the person for whom notice is required
does not request a hearing, the city may conduct an abatement hearing
not earlier than the eleventh (11th) day after the date of the notice.
(3) If the notice is returned undelivered, then the hearing date shall
be set not earlier than the eleventh (11th) day after the date of
the return of the undelivered letter.
(b) At
the hearing, the junked motor vehicle is presumed to be inoperable,
unless demonstrated otherwise by the owner.
(c) Any
order requiring the removal of a vehicle or vehicle part must include
the vehicle’s description, identification number, and license
number of the vehicle if the information is available at the location
of the nuisance.
(Ordinance 7050-A, sec. 5-7, adopted 7/18/02)
If, within ten (10) days after receipt of notice to abate the
nuisance as provided in this division, the owner of the vehicle shall
give his written permission to the building official or his authorized
representative for the removal of the junked motor vehicle from the
premises, the giving of such permission shall be considered compliance
with the provisions of this division.
(Ordinance 7050-A, sec. 5-8, adopted 7/18/02)
(a) A
junked vehicle or vehicle part shall be disposed of by removal to
a scrap yard, motor vehicle demolisher, or any suitable site operated
by the city for processing as scrap or salvage.
(b) Any individual who fails to timely abate a nuisance may be required to pay the city restitution for the city’s cost in removing, abating, or curing such nuisance, as provided in the fee schedule in appendix
A of this code.
(c) Any
vehicle or vehicle part, after removal [as required] by this division,
shall not be reconstructed or made operable.
(Ordinance 7050-A, sec. 5-9, adopted 7/18/02; Ordinance adopting Code)
Nothing in this division shall affect a law or ordinance authorizing
the immediate removal, as an obstruction to traffic, of a vehicle
left on public property.
(Ordinance 7050-A, sec. 5-10, adopted 7/18/02)
A person who commits an offense under section
8.06.062 is, on conviction, subject to a fine as prescribed in section
6.04.076. On conviction, the court shall order removal and abatement of the nuisance.
(Ordinance 7050-A, sec. 5-11, adopted 7/18/02)