[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:
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 parked without the current year's registration,
plates or identification markers as required by law.
Has been continuously parked in any public street
or on any public land for a period of 10 days.
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.
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.
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.
