The governing body shall select and establish places for the storage of impounded vehicles. As used in this article, “vehicle storage facility” means a garage, parking lot, or any type of facility owned by a person other than the city for storing or parking ten (10) or more vehicles a year.
(1996 Code, sec. 10.2301)
(a) 
The chief of police or his designee is hereby authorized to remove a vehicle from a street or highway to a vehicle storage facility, or other place of safety, designated or maintained by the city, when the vehicle:
(1) 
Is unattended and obstructing traffic;
(2) 
Is unlawfully parked and blocking the entrance to a public or private driveway;
(3) 
Has been reported or identified as having been stolen;
(4) 
Is unattended and the officer has reasonable grounds to believe the vehicle has been abandoned for longer than forty-eight (48) hours;
(5) 
Is disabled so that normal operation is impossible or impractical and the owner or person in charge of the vehicle is incapacitated and unable to provide for the vehicle’s removal or custody or is not in the immediate vicinity of the vehicle;
(6) 
Is disabled so that normal operation is impossible or impractical and the owner or person in charge of the vehicle does not designate a particular towing or storage company;
(7) 
Is operated by a person an officer arrests for an alleged offense and the officer is required by law to take the person into custody;
(8) 
Is, in the opinion of the officer, a hazard, interferes with a normal function of a governmental agency, or because of a catastrophe, emergency, or unusual circumstances is imperiled; or
(9) 
Is illegally parked and left unattended, and on three or more prior occasions municipal court citations have been attached to such vehicle for alleged parking violations, and the owner of such vehicle or his agent has failed or refused to appear in the municipal court of the city and answer such prior citations.
(b) 
Whenever the chief of police or his designee removes a vehicle from a street to a vehicle storage facility as authorized in this article, and the name and address of the owner is ascertainable from registration records, and the owner has not removed the vehicle within twenty-four (24) hours from the time the operator receives the vehicle, notification shall be given by the vehicle storage facility to the vehicle’s last registered owner and all recorded lienholders by certified or registered mail in the manner required by the current rules and regulations of the state department of transportation.
(c) 
The operator of the vehicle storage facility may dispose of a vehicle for which notice was given as required by this article if before the thirtieth day after the date the notice was mailed the vehicle has not been claimed by a person entitled to claim the vehicle or taken into custody by a law enforcement agency.
(1996 Code, sec. 10.2302)
The chief of police or his designee shall keep a record of impounded vehicles, including the date of impoundment, date of release, name and address of the person to whom the vehicle was released, and any other information deemed relevant by the chief of police or his designee.
(1996 Code, sec. 10.2303)
(a) 
The vehicle storage facility operator may charge an owner for the notification required by the current rules and regulations of the state department of transportation as referenced in this article.
(b) 
If a vehicle is removed by the owner within twenty-four (24) hours after the date the operator receives the vehicle, notification is not required, and a notification fee may not be charged to the owner by the vehicle storage facility operator.
(c) 
The vehicle storage facility operator may charge for storage of a vehicle impounded under the authority of this article. A daily storage fee may be charged for a day regardless of whether the vehicle is stored for twenty-four (24) hours of the day, except that the daily storage fee may not be charged for more than one (1) day if the vehicle remains at the vehicle storage facility less than twelve (12) hours. A day is considered to begin and end at midnight.
(d) 
The vehicle storage facility operator shall not charge for more than five (5) days of storage fees until a notice required by this article is mailed or published.
(e) 
The vehicle storage facility operator shall charge a daily fee after notice for each day or portion of a day the vehicle is in storage until the vehicle is removed and all accrued charges are paid.
(f) 
The vehicle storage facility operator may not charge any additional fees that are similar to notification or impoundment fees, nor may the operator charge an administrative fee.
(g) 
The fees authorized by this section shall be set by the city council in the master fee resolution.
(1996 Code, sec. 10.2304; Ordinance adopting Code)