[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough of Spring Lake by Ord. No. 11-2002 (§§  3-15 and 10-6 of the Revised General Ordinances). Amendments noted where applicable.]
It is hereby determined and declared that the abandonment or outside storage of any motor vehicles not currently in use for transportation, and not currently licensed or registered, on any public or private property within the Borough, is not merely unsightly but is contrary and harmful to the public welfare in that such articles so abandoned or stored attract or may attract persons of such tender years who being so attracted may play in and about them and be injured; and that such vehicles so abandoned or stored outside deteriorate and as such are detrimental to and depreciate the value of property in the neighborhood and affect the entire Borough and, further, that abandoned vehicles constitute a danger to the public health and safety.
For the purpose of this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
ABANDONED VEHICLE
Any motor vehicle, road tractor, truck, truck-trailer or other vehicle contained and defined in N.J.S.A. 39:1-1 et seq. which:
A. 
Is parked without the current year's registration, plates or identification markers as required by law.
B. 
Has been continuously parked in any public street or on any public land for a period of 10 days.
C. 
Is so disabled as to constitute an obstruction of traffic and the driver or person owning or in charge thereof neglects or refuses to move same to a place where it shall not obstruct traffic.
D. 
Is found to be mechanically inoperative on a public street or public property and is allowed to remain inoperative for a period of two days. The Police Department shall have the authority to extend this period for good cause shown.
JUNK AUTOMOBILE
Any motor vehicle, road tractor, truck, truck-trailer or other vehicle contained and defined in N.J.S.A. 39:1-1 et seq. which is no longer in actual use as a motor vehicle or which is wholly unfit, without rebuilding or reconditioning, for use in highway transportation or which has been discarded for use as a motor vehicle or otherwise abandoned.
It shall be unlawful for any person to abandon or suffer to permit the abandoning of any motor vehicle, junk automobile or junk automobile body out of doors upon any public or private property within the Borough of Spring Lake or on any public street or between the right-of-way lines of any public right-of-way therein. This provision shall not apply to any vehicle in an enclosed building, garage, barn or shed.
A. 
Vehicles on public property. Any member of the Borough Police Department is hereby authorized to remove, or cause to be removed, any vehicle left at any place, other than private property, within the Borough, which has been left in violation of this chapter or state statute, or which appears to have been lost, stolen, unclaimed or abandoned.
B. 
Vehicles on private property. With respect to vehicles on private property, if the junked automobile or junked automobile body has remained on the property in violation of this chapter for seven days, the Borough Police Department shall serve, or cause to be served, a notice, in writing, either personally or by registered or certified mail, upon the owner, tenant, lessee or occupant of such property, as the case may be, to remove such vehicle therefrom within a certain period of time, not less than five days after the date of service of such notice, to be specified therein. In the event that such vehicle is not removed within the time specified, any member of the Borough Police Department is authorized to immediately remove, secure the removal of and/or impound the motor vehicle or junk automobile without the necessity of notice prior to said impoundment. For such purposes he or his duly authorized agent may enter upon private property upon which such vehicle may be located.
C. 
Any vehicle impounded pursuant to any of the provisions of this chapter shall be held until lawfully claimed or disposed of in accordance with the provisions of N.J.S.A. 39:10A-1 et seq. and N.J.S.A. 40A:14-157, whichever is applicable.
A. 
The owner of any private property from which a vehicle is removed and impounded pursuant to this chapter, and the tenant, lessee or occupant of the premises, if any, shall be jointly and severally liable for the cost and expenses, including reasonable overhead charges, paid or incurred by the Borough in effecting such removal and impounding, and shall be paid by the person liable therefor upon demand. In the event that such payment is not made, the amount due shall become a lien upon the lot or tract of real estate from which the vehicle was removed and shall be added to and form a part of the taxes next to be assessed and levied upon such property, to be collected and enforced in the same manner as taxes upon real estate.
B. 
Whenever the vehicle is removed, the Borough shall be permitted to charge reasonable storage fees.
C. 
In addition to any other remedy provided in this article, any such junked, dismantled or partially dismantled vehicle on private or public property, which is also unregistered or nonoperating, is hereby declared to be a public nuisance and may be remedied as such in accordance with law.
No person in charge or control of any property within the Borough, whether as owner, tenant, lessee, occupant or otherwise, shall place, deposit, store, leave, or keep any discarded, wrecked, junked, dismantled or partially dismantled, or unregistered vehicle on such property or suffer, permit or allow any such vehicle to be placed, deposited, stored, left or kept on such property, except that the provisions hereof shall not apply with regard to such a vehicle if:
A. 
The vehicle is enclosed in a building, garage, barn or shed.
B. 
The vehicle is in an appropriate storage place or depository maintained in a lawful place and manner in the Borough.
C. 
The vehicle is on the premises of a business enterprise operated in a lawful place and manner, when necessary to the operation of the business.
Any person who violates any provisions of this chapter shall, upon conviction thereof, be subject to the provisions of Chapter 1, Article II, General Penalty.