The administration of this article shall be vested in the code enforcement officer, the chief of police or their authorized representatives.
(2000 Code, sec. 16-21; Ordinance adopting Code)
This article shall not apply to the following:
(1) 
A vehicle or part thereof which is completely enclosed within a building in a lawful manner, where it is not visible from the street or other public or private property;
(2) 
A vehicle or part thereof which is stored or parked in a lawful manner on private property, in connection with the business of a licensed vehicle dealer or a junkyard; or
(3) 
Unlicensed operable or inoperable antique and special interest vehicles stored by a collector on his property, provided that the vehicles and the outdoor storage areas are maintained in such a manner that they do not constitute a health hazard, and are screened from ordinary public view by means of a fence, rapidly growing trees, shrubbery or other appropriate means.
(2000 Code, sec. 16-22)
(a) 
Definitions.
Antique auto.
Passenger cars or trucks that were manufactured in 1925 or before, or which became thirty-five (35) or more years old.
Junked vehicle.
Any motor vehicle, aircraft, or watercraft that is:
(1) 
Wrecked, dismantled or partially dismantled, or discarded; or
(2) 
Inoperable and has remained inoperable for more than:
(A) 
Seventy-two (72) consecutive hours, if the vehicle is on public property; or
(B) 
Thirty (30) consecutive days, if the vehicle is on private property; and
(3) 
A motor vehicle a motor vehicle that displays an expired license plate or does not display a license plate; or
(4) 
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
(5) 
A watercraft that:
(A) 
Does not have lawfully on board an unexpired certificate of number; and
(B) 
Is not a watercraft described by section 31.055, Parks and Wildlife Code.
Motor vehicle.
A vehicle subject to registration under chapter 501, Texas Transportation Code.
Special interest vehicle.
A motor vehicle of any age which has not been altered or modified from original manufacture’s specifications and, because of its historic interest, is being preserved by hobbyists.
(Ordinance 21-3722 adopted 10/12/21)
(a) 
A junked vehicle, including a part of a junked vehicle, that is visible at any time of the year from a public place or right-of-way:
(1) 
Is detrimental to the safety and welfare of the public;
(2) 
Tends to reduce the value of private property;
(3) 
Invites vandalism;
(4) 
Creates a fire hazard;
(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
(7) 
Is a public nuisance.
(b) 
It shall be unlawful for any person to leave or permit to remain upon any public property, public right-of-way, or upon any lot or tract of land within the city any junked vehicle as defined in section 8.03.003. The owner or occupant of any premises within the city shall not keep or permit other persons to keep any junked vehicle or parts thereof on said premises in ordinary public view.
(Ordinance 21-3722 adopted 10/12/21)
(a) 
Whenever any public nuisance, as declared in section 8.03.004 exists in the city, the code enforcement officer, chief of police, or their designee shall furnish written notice to the following: (1) the last known registered owner of the junked vehicle; (2) every lienholder of record; and (3) the owner or the occupant of the premises whereupon such nuisance exists or abuts the public property whereupon such nuisance exists, to abate or remove such public nuisance. A vehicle description, including identification number and license plate number, if available, shall be included in notice.
(b) 
The notice required to be sent shall:
(1) 
Be in writing;
(2) 
State the nature of the public nuisance and specify that the nuisance must be removed and abated within ten (10) days after receipt of notice;
(3) 
State that the recipient of the notice may request a public hearing before the judge in municipal court within ten (10) days of receipt of the notice;
(4) 
State that the failure to abate and remove the nuisance or failure to request a hearing within ten (10) days of receipt of the notice after notice constitutes a waiver by the owner and lienholders of all right, title, and interest in the vehicle, and their failure to abate the nuisance or request a hearing after notice will be deemed consent to dispose of such junked vehicle in accordance with this article.
(c) 
The notice may be served personally or by certified or registered mail with a five-day return receipt requested. If the notice is returned undelivered by the U.S. Postal Service, abatement by the city may proceed no earlier than the eleventh (11th) day after the date of the return.
(Ordinance 21-3722 adopted 10/12/21)
(a) 
Whenever a junked vehicle is found to exist within the city in violation of this article, the city may, in addition to pursuing the abatement of the nuisance, pursue the filing of a complaint against the owner of the vehicle or the person responsible for such violation.
(b) 
(1) 
Any person violating any of the provisions of this article relating to the maintaining of a public nuisance as described herein or in permitting or allowing such public nuisance to exist, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and conviction thereof shall be punishable by a fine not to exceed two hundred dollars ($200.00). Each day shall constitutes a separate and distinct violation.
(2) 
On conviction, in addition to any fine assessed, the court shall order removal and abatement of the nuisance.
(3) 
It shall be an affirmative defense to any prosecution under this provision that the notice required by section 8.03.005 of this article was not given to the defendant prior to the commencement of the criminal prosecution.
(c) 
The person in whose name a junked vehicle is last registered shall be presumed to be the owner and person in control of such vehicle for purposes of prosecution under this article. Proof of ownership may be made by production of a copy or facsimile of the registration of a vehicle with the state department of transportation or the county motor vehicle licensing department or any other licensing authority showing the name of the person to whom the license plates for the vehicle were issued. This proof shall constitute prima facie evidence of the fact that the person to whom such certificate of registration was issued was the owner and person in control of the junked motor vehicle determined to be a public nuisance. This presumption may be rebutted by competent evidence.
(Ordinance 21-3722 adopted 10/12/21)
(a) 
Any recipient of the notice required under section 8.03.005 may request a public hearing before the judge in municipal court. Such request for a hearing must be in writing and delivered to the city secretary within ten (10) days of receipt of the notice provided under section 8.03.005. Any hearing requested shall be held no earlier than the eleventh (11th) day after the date of the service of notice.
(b) 
The hearing shall be administrative in nature. If the information is available at the location of the nuisance, any order requiring removal of the nuisance must include:
(1) 
For a motor vehicle, the vehicle’s:
(A) 
Description;
(B) 
Vehicle identification number; and
(C) 
License plate number;
(2) 
For an aircraft, the aircraft’s:
(A) 
Description; and
(B) 
Federal aircraft identification number as described by Federal Aviation Administration aircraft registration regulations in 14 C.F.R. part 47; and
(3) 
For a watercraft, the watercraft’s:
(A) 
Description; and
(B) 
Identification number as set forth in the watercraft’s certificate of number.
(c) 
Upon determination by the municipal court judge that the motor vehicle, aircraft or watercraft is a junked vehicle under this article, the owner or occupant of the premises upon which the junked vehicle is located shall be ordered to remove the vehicle within ten (10) days or, if hardship is found to exist, within thirty (30) days. In the event the owner or occupant of the premises shall fail to comply with an order of the court to remove the vehicle per the court’s order, the code enforcement officer, chief of police, or their designee shall cause such junked vehicle to be removed from the premises where it is located at the time.
(d) 
If no hearing is requested within the time provided in this section the code enforcement officer, chief of police, or their designee shall abate the nuisance and cause such junked vehicle to be removed from the premises where it is located at the time and disposed of in accordance with this article.
(Ordinance 21-3722 adopted 10/12/21)
Any junked vehicle required to be removed or disposed of pursuant to this article shall be transported to a scrap yard, demolisher or other suitable site where the junked vehicle shall be disposed of as scrap or salvage. Any personal property contents shall be disposed of as abandoned property.
(Ordinance 21-3722 adopted 10/12/21)
All expenses incurred in the abatement of such public nuisance shall be charged against the owner or owners of the junked vehicle.
(2000 Code, sec. 16-30; Ordinance 23-3746 adopted 5/23/2023)
The relocation of a junked vehicle that is a public nuisance to another location within the city limits after a proceeding for an 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 adopting Code)