The following definitions shall apply in the interpretation
and enforcement of this article:
Abandoned motor vehicle.
A motor vehicle that is inoperable and more than eight (8)
years old and left unattended on public property for more than forty-eight
(48) hours, or a motor vehicle that has remained illegally on public
property for a period of more than forty-eight (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 than forty-eight
(48) hours, or a motor vehicle left unattended on the right-of-way
of a designated county, state, or federal highway within this state
for more than forty-eight (48) hours.
Antique auto.
Any passenger cars or trucks that were manufactured in 1925
or before, or which are thirty-five (35) or more years old.
Collector.
The owner of one or more antique or special interest vehicles
who collects, purchases, acquires, trades or disposes of special interest
or antique vehicles or parts of them for his own use in order to restore,
preserve and maintain an antique or special interest vehicle for historic
interest.
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 article, “junked vehicle” includes
a motor vehicle, aircraft, or watercraft. This article 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.
Any motor vehicle subject to registration pursuant to the
Texas Certificate of Title Act.
Person.
Any person, firm, partnership, association, corporation,
company, or organization of any kind.
Property.
Any real property within the city which is not a street or
highway.
Special interest vehicle.
A motor vehicle of any age which has not been altered or
modified from original manufacturer’s specifications and, because
of historic interest, is being preserved by hobbyists.
Street or highway.
The entire width between the boundary lines of every way
publicly maintained when any part thereof is open to the use of the
public for purposes of vehicular travel.
(1986 Code, ch. 7, sec. 1(A); 1993
Code, sec. 7.101; Ordinance adopting 2017 Code)
(a) Declaration of nuisance.
Junked 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, and to constitute an attractive
nuisance creating a hazard to the health and safety of minors, and
are detrimental to the economic welfare of the state, by producing
urban blight which is adverse to the maintenance and continuing development
of the municipalities in the state, and such vehicles are therefore
declared to be a public nuisance.
(b) Junked vehicles prohibited.
No person in charge or control
of any property within the city, whether as owner, tenant, occupant,
lessee, or otherwise, shall allow any junked vehicles to remain on
his or her property unless such vehicle shall be completely enclosed
within a building in a lawful manner so that it is not visible from
the street or any other public or private property.
(1986 Code, ch. 7, sec. 1(B); 1993
Code, sec. 7.102)
No person shall abandon any vehicle within the city and no person
shall leave any vehicle at any place within the city for such time
and under such circumstances as to cause such vehicle reasonably to
appear to have been abandoned. The provisions of this section do not
apply to vehicles which have been abandoned so as to create a traffic
hazard or that are abandoned in officially designated “No Parking”
zones.
(1986 Code, ch. 7, sec. 1(C); 1993
Code, sec. 7.103)
No person shall leave any partially dismantled, non-operating,
wrecked or junked vehicle on any street or highway within the city.
(1986 Code, ch. 7, sec. 1(D); 1993
Code, sec. 7.104)
This article may not apply to a vehicle or vehicle part that
is completely enclosed within a building in a lawful manner where
it is not visible from the street or other public or private property,
a vehicle or vehicle part 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 an unlicensed operable or inoperable
antique or special interest vehicle stored by a collector on the collector’s
property, if the vehicle and the outdoor storage area are maintained
in a manner so 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.
(1986 Code, ch. 7, sec. 1(E); 1993
Code, sec. 7.105)
(a) Junked vehicles on private property.
The city shall
give notice to any offender of this article when such junked vehicle
found on private property is deemed to constitute a public nuisance
under the terms of this article and the Texas Litter Abatement Act,
V.T.C.A., Health and Safety Code, chapter 365, as amended. Such notice
shall give said offender not less than ten (10) days’ notice
stating the nature of the public nuisance on private property, that
it must be removed and abated within ten (10) days, and that a request
for a hearing must be made before expiration of the ten (10) day period.
The notice must be mailed by certified mail, with a five (5) day return
requested, to the last known registered owner of the junked motor
vehicle, any lienholder of record, and the owner or occupant of the
private premises on which the public nuisance exists. If any notice
is returned undelivered by the U.S. Postal Service, official action
to abate the nuisance shall be continued to a date not less than ten
(10) days after the date of the return.
(b) Junked vehicles on public property.
The city shall give
notice to any offender of this article when such junked vehicle found
on public property or a public right-of-way is deemed to constitute
a public nuisance under the terms of this article and the Texas Litter
Abatement Act, V.T.C.A., Health and Safety Code, chapter 365, as amended.
Such notice shall give said offender not less than ten (10) days’
notice, stating the nature of the public nuisance on public property
or on a public right-of-way, that the nuisance must be removed and
abated within ten (10) days, and that a request for a hearing must
be made before expiration of the ten (10) day period. The notice must
be mailed by certified mail, with a five (5) day return requested,
to the last known registered owner of the junked motor vehicle, any
lienholder of record, and the owner or occupant of the public premises,
or to the owner or occupant of the premises adjacent to the public
right-of-way on which the public nuisance exists. If the notice is
returned undelivered by the U.S. Postal Service, official action to
abate the nuisance shall be continued to a date not less than ten
(10) days after the date of the return.
(c) Junked vehicles not to be made operable.
The procedures
must prohibit a vehicle from being reconstructed or made operable
after it has been removed.
(d) Public hearing required.
The procedures must require
a public hearing before the removal of the vehicle or vehicle part
as a public nuisance. The hearing shall be held before the city council
or any board, commission or official of the city as designated by
the city council, if a hearing is requested by the owner or occupant
of the public or private premises or by the owner or occupant of the
premises adjacent to the public right-of-way on which the vehicle
is located, within ten (10) days after service of notice to abate
the nuisance. A resolution or order requiring the removal of a vehicle
or vehicle part must include a description of the vehicle and the
correct identification number and license number of the vehicle if
the information is available at the site.
(e) Notice to state.
The procedures must require notice
to be given to the state department of transportation not later than
the fifth (5th) day after the date of removal. The notice must identify
the vehicle or vehicle part so that the department may cancel the
certificate of title pursuant to the Certificate of Title Act.
(f) Administration.
The procedures must be administered
by regularly salaried, full-time employees of the city, except that
the removal of a vehicle or vehicle part from property may be by any
duly authorized person.
(g) Disposal of junked vehicle.
A junked vehicle or vehicle
part may be disposed of by removal to a scrap yard, a demolisher or
any suitable site.
(h) Authority to enforce.
Any person authorized by the city
to administer the procedures authorized by this article may enter
private property for the purposes specified to examine a vehicle or
vehicle part, obtain information as to the identity of the vehicle,
and remove or cause the removal of a vehicle or vehicle part that
constitutes a nuisance. The municipal court may issue orders necessary
to enforce these procedures.
(1986 Code, ch. 7, sec. 1(F); 1993
Code, sec. 7.106)