A motor vehicle is abandoned if the motor vehicle:
Is inoperable, or has been left unattended on public property for more than 48 hours;
Has remained illegally on public property for more than 48 hours;
Has remained on private property without the consent of the owner or person in charge of the property for more than 48 hours;
Has been left unattended on the right-of-way of a designated county, state, or federal highway for more than 48 hours.
Any self-propelled motor vehicle which is inoperative, or does not have lawfully attached to it an unexpired license plate or a valid motor vehicle safety inspection certificate, or that is wrecked, dismantled, partially dismantled, or discarded, or that remains inoperable for 48 consecutive hours if the vehicle is on public property; or for 48 hours if the vehicle is on private property. An abandoned motor vehicle is a motor vehicle that is inoperable and is left unattended on public property for more than 48 hours or a motor vehicle that has remained on private property without the consent of the owner or person in control of the property for more that 48 hours, or a motor vehicle left unattended on any right-of-way of the city for more than 48 hours.
(Ordinance 2006-12, sec. 1, adopted 4/11/06; Ordinance 2006-12, sec. 2, adopted 4/11/06)
In accordance with V.T.C.A. Transportation Code, junked, inoperable, abandoned vehicles which are located in any place where they are visible from a public place or public right-of-way, are detrimental to the safety and welfare of the general public, tending to reduce the value of private property, to invite vandalism, to create fire hazards, to constitute an unattractive nuisance creating a hazard to the health and safety of minors, and are detrimental to the economic welfare of the state and the city, and such vehicles are therefore declared to be a public nuisance.
(Ordinance 2006-12, sec. 3, adopted 4/11/06)
It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, corporation, partnership, association of persons, owner, agent, occupant, or anyone having supervision or control, of any lot, tract or parcel of land, or portion thereof, occupied or unoccupied, improved or unimproved, within the corporate limits of the city, to suffer or permit any junked, inoperative or abandoned vehicle to remain upon said property.
(Ordinance 2006-12, sec. 4, adopted 4/11/06)
It shall be the duty of any person, firm, corporation, partnership, association of persons, owner, agent, occupant, or anyone having supervision or control, of any lot, tract or parcel of land, or portion thereof, occupied or unoccupied, improved or unimproved, within the corporate limits of the city to remove or cause to be removed from said property any and all such junked, inoperative, abandoned vehicles so as to comply with the provisions of this division.
(Ordinance 2006-12, sec. 5, adopted 4/11/06)
In the event that the last registered owner of any lot, tract, or parcel of land, or portion thereof, situated within the corporate limits of the city shall fail to comply with section 8.02.033 hereof, the city may notify such owner by giving not less that ten (10) days notice, stating the nature of the public nuisance and that it be removed, and advising that a request for hearing must be made prior to the expiration of said ten (10) day period; such notice must be personally delivered or sent by certified mail with a five (5) day return requested by the city to the last known owner of said vehicle and to all lien holders of record, and to the owner or occupant of the premises whereupon said public nuisance exists. If the notice is returned undelivered by the U.S. Post Office, official action to abate said nuisance shall be continued to a date not less than eleven (11) days from the date of such return.
(Ordinance 2006-12, sec. 6, adopted 4/11/06)
A public hearing shall be afforded prior to the removal of the vehicle or part thereof deemed a public nuisance, to be held before the corporation court of the city, when a hearing is requested by the owner or occupant of the premises on which said vehicle is located, within ten (10) days after service of notice to abate said nuisance. Any order requiring the removal of a vehicle or part thereof shall include a description of the vehicle and the correct identification number and license number of the vehicle if available at the site. After a vehicle has been removed from its location, the state department of highways and public transportation shall be notified not later than five days after said removal. The department of highways and public transportation shall immediately cancel the certificate of title to said vehicle pursuant to the V.T.C.A., Transportation Code. Any vehicle removed from its location shall not be reconstructed or made operable. A junked vehicle or vehicle part shall be disposed of by removal to a scrap yard, demolisher, or any suitable site operated by the city for processing as scrap or salvage.
(Ordinance 2006-12, sec. 7, adopted 4/11/06)
This division shall not apply to:
(1)
A vehicle or part thereof which is completely enclosed within a building in a lawful manner and where same 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)
A bona fide racing vehicle or antique automobile which is stored on a duly licensed trailer or otherwise kept in such manner as not to allow undergrowth of weeds and brush, infestation by animals, or to create an attractive nuisance to infants or minors.
(Ordinance 2006-12, sec. 8, adopted 4/11/06)
Proceeds from the sale of the junked, inoperative, abandoned vehicle, or a part thereof, shall be used to pay the costs of removal of said junked, inoperative, abandoned vehicle or part thereof, with the surplus funds, if any, to be deposited into the city general fund.
(Ordinance 2006-12, sec. 9, adopted 4/11/06)
Any regularly salaried, full-time employee authorized by the city to administer the provisions of this division may enter upon private property for the purposes specified in this division, to examine vehicles or parts thereof, to obtain information as to the identity of vehicles and the owners thereof, and to remove, or cause the removal of a vehicle or part thereof declared to be a nuisance pursuant to this division. Removal of a vehicle or vehicle part may be by any person duly authorized by the city. The corporation court of the city shall have the authority to issue all orders necessary to enforce this division.
(Ordinance 2006-12, sec. 10, adopted 4/11/06)
Whenever a junked vehicle is found to exist within the city in violation of chapter 683, subchapter E of the Texas Transportation Code, the city may, without notice, pursue the filing of an immediate complaint against the owner of the vehicle or the person responsible for such violation.
(Ordinance 2006-12, sec. 10A, adopted 4/11/06)
Nothing in this division shall affect statutes of the state or ordinances of the city that permit immediate and summary removal of a vehicle left on public property and which constitutes an obstruction to traffic.
(Ordinance 2006-12, sec. 11, adopted 4/11/06)