[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Lake
George 2-26-1990 by L.L. No. 1-1990. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
[Amended 1-21-1992 by L.L. No. 1-1992]
This chapter shall be known as the "Junk Vehicle Law of the Village
of Lake George."
The Board of Trustees of the Village of Lake George hereby finds that
the storage or presence of abandoned, junked or inoperative motor vehicles
on private property creates a public and private nuisance and is harmful to
the public health, safety and welfare. Such vehicles present a source of serious
injury, particularly to children, seriously harm the aesthetic qualities of
the Village and tend to depreciate the value of properties in the immediate
neighborhood and in the Village in general. The Board of Trustees finds that
these problems can be diminished by permitting the storage of such vehicles
only within a garage or other enclosed structure.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings
as indicated:
Any motor vehicle that is:
Unregistered, wrecked, stored, discarded, dismantled or partly dismantled
and which is neither intended nor in any condition for legal use upon the
public highway;
Being held or used for the purposes of resale or used parts therefrom
or for the purpose of reclaiming for use some or all of the materials therein
for the purpose of disposing of the same;
In such condition as to cost more to repair and place in operating condition
than its reasonable market value prior to such repair; or
Left unattended for more than 96 hours on the property of another if
left without permission of the property owner.
With respect to any motor vehicle not required to be licensed or not
usually used on public highways, the fact that such motor vehicle has remained
unused for more than three months and is not in condition to be removed under
its own power shall be presumptive evidence that such motor vehicle is an
"abandoned, junked or inoperative motor vehicle."
The fact that a motor vehicle does not display a current motor vehicle
registration or license plate shall be presumptive evidence that such motor
vehicle is not in any condition for legal use upon the highways.
Any officer of the Village of Lake George or any person authorized
to issue appearance tickets in the Village pursuant to the laws of the State
of New York.
Any person, firm, partnership or corporation, whether business, membership,
religious, charitable or otherwise, or any association or any other unit or
entity owning real property in the Village of Lake George.
It shall be unlawful for any person within the Village to store or deposit
or cause, suffer or permit to be stored or deposited any abandoned, junked
or inoperative motor vehicle or part or piece thereof on any private property
within the Village, except within a garage or other enclosed structure.
[Amended 1-21-1992 by L.L. No. 1-1992]
Any abandoned, junked or inoperative motor vehicle found by the enforcement official within the Village in violation of § 204-4 may be removed from the premises on which it is located in the following manner:
A.
Notice.
(1)
The enforcement official shall serve written notice by
either personal service on the property owner, tenant or agent or certified
mail, return receipt requested, to the owner of the private property on which
the vehicle is located and, in addition to either personal service or mailing,
posting a copy of such notice in a conspicuous place on the subject property.
(2)
Such notice shall:
(a)
Identify, to the extent possible, the make and model
of the subject vehicle.
(b)
Identify the name and address of the owner of the real
property, according to the assessment roll of the Village, upon which the
subject vehicle was found.
(c)
State that the subject vehicle must be removed from the
property within 10 days, unless kept within a garage or other enclosed structure.
(d)
State that if the subject vehicle has not been removed
from the property or stored within a garage or other enclosed structure within
10 days from the date notice was given to the property owner, legal title
to the vehicle shall vest in the Village and shall grant to the Village the
legal right to enter upon the premises and remove and dispose of said vehicle.
(e)
State that the expense of removal, storage and disposal
of such vehicle incurred by the Village shall be assessed as a charge against
the real property and, if unpaid, shall be added to and become a part of the
next general Village tax assessed against the property.
B.
The enforcement official may determine the ownership
and the address of the owner of any parcel of land in the Village from the
current assessment roll.
C.
Expense. The expense of such removal and disposal shall
be a lawful charge against the owner of the private property and may be collected
pursuant to Village Law § 4-414 or, if necessary, by a civil action
instituted in the name of the Village.
D.
Acquisition of title to vehicle by Village.
(1)
If a vehicle which is declared abandoned by the enforcement
official has no current registration or license plate and is of a wholesale
value, taking into consideration the condition of the vehicle, of $750 or
less, title to such vehicle shall immediately vest in the Village 10 days
subsequent to the date notice was given to the property owner. Such determination
as to wholesale value shall be made by the enforcement official.
(2)
For vehicles other than those governed by Subsection D(1) above, the Village shall notify the last owner of the vehicle and any lienholders thereon that the Village has commenced procedures to acquire title to the vehicle, and if such vehicle is not claimed and removed from the property within 10 days subsequent to the date notice was given, title to such vehicle shall immediately vest in the Village.
A.
In addition to any expenses which may be collected by the Village pursuant to the provisions of § 204-5, the owner of the real property who has not removed such abandoned vehicle within 10 days as required in the notice, shall be subject to a fine in the sum of $100. Each day such violation continues shall constitute a separate and distinct offense hereunder.
[Amended 1-21-1992 by L.L. No. 1-1992]
B.
In addition or as an alternative to the above-provided
procedures and penalties, the Board of Trustees may maintain an action or
proceeding in the name of the Village in a court of competent jurisdiction
to compel compliance with or to restrain by injunction any violation of this
chapter.
Any proceeds from the sale of an abandoned vehicle, less any expenses
incurred by the Village, shall be held by the Village, without interest, for
the benefit of the owner of such vehicle for a period of five years. If not
claimed within five years, the proceeds shall be paid into the general fund
of the Village.
