[HISTORY: Adopted by the Common Council of the City of Manawa 10-18-1993
as Title 10, Ch. 4 of the 1989 Code of Ordinances. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
No person shall leave unattended any motor vehicle, trailer, semitrailer
or mobile home on any public street or highway or private or public property
in the City of Manawa for such time and under such circumstances as to cause
the vehicle to reasonably appear to have been abandoned. Whenever any such
vehicle has been left unattended on any street or highway in the City of Manawa
or upon private or public property without the permission of the property
owner or other person charged with the lawful jurisdiction thereof for more
than 48 hours, the vehicle shall be deemed abandoned and constitutes a public
nuisance.
For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions shall be applicable:
Any public highway or alley, and shall mean the entire width between
the boundary lines of any public way where any part thereof is open to the
public for purposes of vehicular traffic.
Unmoved from its location with no obvious sign of continuous human
use.
A motor vehicle, trailer, semitrailer or mobile home, whether or
not such vehicle is registered under Wisconsin law.
For purposes of this chapter, the following irrebuttable presumptions
shall apply:
A.
A vehicle shall be presumed unattended if it is found
in the same position 48 hours after issuance of a traffic ticket or citation
and if such traffic ticket or citation remains placed upon the windshield
during said 48 hours.
B.
Any vehicle left unattended for more than 48 hours on
any public street or public ground or left unattended for more than 48 hours
on private property without the consent of the property owner is deemed abandoned
and constitutes a nuisance, provided that the vehicle shall not be deemed
abandoned under this subsection if left unattended on private property outside
of public view and enclosed within a building or if designated as not abandoned
by the Chief of Police.
This chapter shall not apply to a vehicle in an enclosed building or a vehicle stored on a premises licensed for storage of junk or junked vehicles and fully in compliance with Chapter 303, Zoning, or to a vehicle parked in a paid parking lot or space where the required fee has been paid.
Any vehicle in violation of this chapter shall be removed and impounded
until lawfully claimed or disposed of under the provisions of this section.
A.
Applicability. The provisions of this section shall apply to the removal, storage, notice, reclamation or disposal of abandoned vehicles as defined in § 286-2.
B.
Removal.
(1)
Any police officer who discovers any motor vehicle, trailer,
semitrailer or mobile home on any public street or highway or private or public
property in the City of Manawa which has been abandoned shall cause the vehicle
to be removed to a suitable place of impoundment.
(2)
Upon removal of the vehicle, the police officer shall
notify the Chief of Police or his or her designee of the abandonment and of
the location of the impounded vehicle.
C.
Storage and reclamation.
(1)
Any abandoned vehicle which is determined by the Chief
of Police or his or her designee to be abandoned shall be retained in storage
for a period of 14 days after certified mail notice, as hereinafter provided,
has been sent to the Wisconsin titled owner and/or secured party of record
with the Wisconsin Motor Vehicle Division, except that if the Chief of Police
or his or her designee determines an abandoned vehicle to have a value of
less than $100 or that the cost of towing and storage charges for impoundment
will exceed the value of the vehicle, it may be junked or sold by direct sale
to a licensed salvage dealer after having been retained in storage for a period
of seven days and after certified mail notice, as hereinafter provided, has
been sent to the Wisconsin titled owner or secured party of record with the
Wisconsin Motor Vehicle Division, provided that it is first determined that
the vehicle is not reported stolen or wanted for evidence or other reason.
All substantially complete vehicles in excess of 19 model years of age shall
be deemed as having a value in excess of $100.
(2)
Any such vehicle which may be lawfully reclaimed may
be released upon the payment of all accrued charges, including towing, storage
and notice charges, and upon presentation of the vehicle title or other satisfactory
evidence to the Chief of Police or his or her designee to prove an ownership
or secured party interest in said vehicle.
D.
Notice to owner or secured party. The certified mail
notice, as referred to herein, shall notify the Wisconsin titled owner of
the abandoned vehicle, if any, and/or the secured party of record with the
Wisconsin Motor Vehicle Division, if any, of the following:
(1)
That the vehicle has been deemed abandoned and impounded
by the City of Manawa.
(2)
The determined value of the abandoned vehicle.
(3)
If the cost of towing and storage will exceed the determined
value of the vehicle.
(4)
That if the vehicle is not wanted for evidence or other
reason, the vehicle may be reclaimed upon the payment of all accrued charges,
including towing, storage and notice charges, within 14 days of the date of
notice, unless it has been determined that the vehicle has a value less than
$100 or that the cost of towing and storage charges for impoundment will exceed
the value of the vehicle, in which case the vehicle may be reclaimed within
seven days upon the payment of the aforesaid charges.
(5)
That the owner or aforesaid secured party may, upon request,
be granted a hearing relating to the determinations made with respect to said
vehicle within the period that such vehicles may be reclaimed.
A.
Any abandoned vehicle impounded by the city which has
not been reclaimed or junked or sold by direct sale to a licensed salvage
dealer pursuant to the provisions of this chapter may be sold by public auction
sale or public sale calling for the receipt of sealed bids. A Class 1 notice,
including the description of the vehicles, the name(s) and address(es) of
the Wisconsin titled owner and secured party of record, if known, and the
time of sale shall be published before the sale.
B.
Within five days after the direct sale or disposal of
a vehicle as provided for herein, the Chief of Police or his or her designee
shall advise the State of Wisconsin Department of Transportation, Division
of Motor Vehicles, of such sale or disposal on a form supplied by said Division.
A copy of the form shall be given to the purchaser of the vehicle enabling
the purchaser to obtain a regular certificate of title for the vehicle.
C.
The purchaser shall have 10 days to remove the vehicle
from the storage area but shall pay a reasonable storage fee established by
the city for each day the vehicle remains in storage after the second business
day subsequent to the sale date. Ten days after the sale, the purchaser shall
forfeit all interest in the vehicle and the vehicle shall be deemed to be
abandoned and may be sold again.
D.
Any listing of vehicles to be sold by the city shall
be made available to any interested person or organization which makes a written
request for such list to the Police Department. The Police Department may
charge a reasonable fee for the list.
A.
The owner of any abandoned vehicle, except a stolen vehicle,
is responsible for the abandonment and all costs of impounding and disposing
of the vehicle. Costs not covered from the sale of the vehicle may be recovered
in a civil action by the city against the owner.
B.
Payment of removal and impoundment costs is not required
when the vehicle has been impounded for purposes of law enforcement investigation.
In the event of any conflict between this chapter and any other provisions
of this Municipal Code, this chapter shall control.
A.
Storage of automobiles restricted. No disassembled, inoperable,
unlicensed, junked or wrecked motor vehicles, truck bodies, tractors, trailers,
farm machinery or appliance shall be stored unenclosed outside a building
upon private property within the city for a period exceeding 10 days unless
it is in connection with an authorized business enterprise located in an area
maintained in such a manner as not to constitute a public nuisance following
issuance of a permit from the Common Council.
B.
DISASSEMBLED, INOPERABLE, JUNKED OR WRECKED MOTOR VEHICLES, TRUCK BODIES,
TRACTORS OR TRAILERS
INOPERABLE APPLIANCE
MOTOR VEHICLE
UNLICENSED MOTOR VEHICLES, TRUCK BODIES, TRACTORS OR TRAILERS
Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
Motor vehicles, recreational vehicles, truck bodies, tractors, farm
machinery or trailers in such state of physical or mechanical ruin as to be
incapable of propulsion or being operated upon the public streets or highways
or which are otherwise not in safe or legal condition for operation on public
streets or highways due to missing or inoperative parts, flat or removed tires,
expired or missing license plates or other defects.
Any stove, washer, refrigerator or other appliance which is no longer
operable in the sense for which it was manufactured.
As defined in W.S.A. s. 340.01(35).
Motor vehicles, truck bodies, tractors, recreational vehicles or
trailers which do not bear lawful current license plates.
C.
Exceptions. This section shall not apply to any motor
vehicle or motor vehicle accessories stored within an enclosed building or
on the premises of a business enterprise operated in a lawful place and manner
in a properly zoned area when necessary to the operation of such business
enterprise, in a storage place or depository maintained in a lawful place
and manner, or seasonal use vehicles such as snowmobiles, motorcycles, motor
scooters and nonmotorized campers, provided that such vehicles are stored
in compliance with the ordinances of the city. Also excepted are motor vehicles
registered pursuant to W.S.A. ss. 341.265 and 341.266. In other situations
the Common Council may issue temporary permits permitting an extension of
not to exceed an additional 30 days' time to comply with this section
where exceptional facts and circumstances warrant such extension.
D.
Enforcement.
(1)
Whenever the Police Department shall find any vehicles
or appliances, as described herein, placed or stored in the open upon private
property within the city, it shall notify the owner of said property on which
said vehicle or appliance is stored of the violation of this section. If said
vehicle or appliance is not removed within 10 days, the Police Department
shall cause to be issued a citation to the property owner or tenant of the
property upon which said vehicle or appliance is stored.[1]
(2)
If such vehicle or appliance is not removed within 20 days after issuance of a citation, the Chief of Police shall cause the vehicle or appliance to be removed and impounded, and it shall thereafter be disposed of as prescribed in §§ 286-5 through 286-7 by the Chief of Police or his or her duly authorized representative. Any cost incurred in the removal and sale of said vehicle or appliance shall be recovered from the owner. However, if the owner of the vehicle or appliance cannot readily be found, the cost of such removal shall be charged to the property from which it is removed, which charge shall be entered as a special charge on the tax roll.
E.
Penalty. Any person who shall interfere with the enforcement of any of the provisions of this section and shall be found guilty thereof shall be subject to a penalty as provided in Chapter 1, § 1-21, General penalty, of this Code. Each motor vehicle or appliance involved shall constitute a separate offense.
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(State law reference: W.S.A. s. 342.40)
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