HomeMy WebLinkAboutORD 74-01 - Abandoned Vehicles7 -
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AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE SOUTHERN STANDARD HOUSING
CODE AND PROVIDING THAT THIS ORDINANCE MAY BE CITED AS
THE JUNKED MOTOR VEHICLE ORDINANCE. ADOPTING PART OF
THE TEXAS ABANDONED MOTOR VEHICLE ACT:; DECLARING
THE PRESENCE OF ANY JUNKED MOTOR VEHICLE WITHIN THE
CITY OF GEORGETOWN TO BE A PUBLIC NUISANCE, WITH
CERTAIN EXCEPTION: PROVIDING FOR NOTIFICATION TO
OWNER OR OCCUPANT TO ABATE PUBLIC NUISANCE ON
OCCUPIED PREMISES: PROVIDING FOR PRELIMINARIESTO
HEARING IN MUNICIPAL COURT: PROVIDING FOR HEARING IN
MUNICIPAL COURT: PROVIDING FOR REMOVAL OF JUNKED
MOTOR VEHICLES: PROVIDING FOR REMOVAL FROM UNOCCUPIED
PREMISES BY ORDER OF MUNICIPAL COURT: PROVIDING
FOR AUTHORITY TO ENFORCE: PROVIDING ;FOR A PENALTY:
PROVIDING FOR NOTICE TO OWNER TO ABATE PUBLIC
NUISANCE ON UNOCCUPIED PREMISES: PROVIDING FOR A
SAVINGS CLAUSE: PROVIDING FOR EFFECT OF ACT ON OTHER
ORDINANCES AND STATUTES.
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
GEORGETOWN, TEXAS:
(a) Short Title
This ordinance may be cited as the "Junked Motor Vehicle
Ordinance and shall hereinafter read as follows:
(b) Texas Abandoned Motor Vehicle Act Adopted.
(1) All provisions of the Texas Abandoned Motor
Vehicle Act (Article 1436-3, V. P. C and any amendments
thereto) governing junked vehicles including the use of
definitions made therein, are hereby expressly incorporated
into this ordinance and adopted.
(2) All references to the "Texas Abandoned Motor
Vehicle Act" shall mean The Texas Abandoned Motor Vehicle
Act as codified in Vernon's Ann. P. C. Art. 1436.3 and any
and all amendments thereto.
(c) Junked Vehicles Declared a Public Nuisance
(1) Junked Vehicles as defined and referred to in
the Texas Abandoned Motor Vehicles Act are hereby declared
to be a Public Nuisance.
(d) Exceptions
(1) The provisions of this Ordinance shall not apply to:
(A) Any vehicle or part thereof which is completely
enclosed within a building in a lawful manner where it is not
visible from a street or other public or private property;
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(B) Any Vehicle or part thereof which is stored or
parked in a lawful manner on private property in connection
with the business of a licensed vehicle dealer or a junk yard;
(0 Unlicensed, operable or inoperable antique and
special interest vehicles stored by Collector on his property
provided that the vehicles and outdoor storeage areas are main-
tained in such a manner as 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;
(e) Notification
(1) Whenever any such public nuisance is within the City
in violation of this Ordinance, the City Manager or any duly
authorized person shall order the owner or the occupant of the
premises to abate or remove the same. Such order shall:
(A) Be in writing;
(B) Specify the nature of the public nuisance on public
property or on,a public right of way and its location;
(C) Specify that it must be removed and abated within
ten (10) days;
(0) Specify that a request for hearing must be made
before the expiration of said ten day period;
(E) Be mailed by certified or registered mail with a
five day return requested, to the owner or occupant of the public
premises or to the owner or occupant of the premises adjacent
to the public right of way whereupon such public nuisance exists;
(2) If the above notice is returned undelivered by the
- U.S, post office, official action to abate said nuisance shall be
continued to a date not less than ten (10) days from the date of
such return. After the expiration of said ten (10) days period
the Municipal Judge shall have the power to order the removal of
the vehicle.
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(f) Preliminaries to Hearing
(1) In the event that an owner of occupant of the public
or private premises or the owner or occupant of the premises
adjacent to the public right of way on which the vehicle is
located desires the hearing provided for in this Ordinance, he
shall present such request to and in writing, to the Clerk of
the Municipal Court of Georgetown and said Clerk shall set a
date and time when said owner, etc., may appear before a Judge
of the Municipal Court for a hearing in accordance with
Paragraph (g) below to determine whether or not he is in
violation of this ordinance. Said time of said hearing to
be within ten days after service of notice to abate the nuisance.
(g) Hearing
(1) Upon receiving a request for hearing the Clerk of the
Municipal Court shall set a date and time for such hearing on
the Court Docket. The Clerk of the Municipal Court shall notify
the City Attorney of the date and time of such hearing. The
City Attorney shall cause to be prepared, filed and served on
the Defendant,a written complaint. charging that the owner or
occupant of the premises, as the case may be, has violated this
Ordinance. After service, such complaint shall be on file with
the Clerk of the Municipal Court not less than five days prior
to the date of hearing.
(2) The Judge of the Municipal Court shall hear any case
brought before said Court, as set our herein, and shall determine
whether or not the Defendant is, in fact, in violation of this
Ordinance. If the addressee of the above letter does not properly
request trial in Municipal Court, then said omission shall be
deemed an admission that the automobile or part thereof, in
question, is a Public Nuisance. Upon finding that said Defendant
is in violation of this Ordinance, said Defendant shall be deemed
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guilty of a misdemeanor and subject to a •fine in accordance with
the penalty provision hereinafter set forth. The Judge of said
Court shall further order said Defendant to remove and abate
said nuisance within ten (10) days. If the Defendant shall fail
and refuse within said ten (10) days to abate or remove the
nuisance the Judge of the Municipal Court may enter an order
directing the City Manager to have the same removed, and the
City Manager or any duly authorized person shall take possession
of said Junked motor vehicle and remove it from the.premises.
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Any resolution or order requiring the removal of a vehicle or
part thereof shall include a description of the vehicle and the
correct identification number and license number, if available
at the site. The City Manager or any duly authorized person shall
thereafter dispose of said junked motor vehicle in accordance
with this Ordinance, If, after the expiration of such ten (10)
day period, the Defendant has not caused or allowed the said
vehicle to be removed from the premises, he shall be in violation
of this Ordinance and be subject to a different penalty for each
day thereafter.
(h) Removal of Junked Motor Vehicles
(1) If witH n ten (10) days of receipt of notice from the
City Manager or any duly autborized person, to abate or remove
a nuisance, the owner or occupant of the premises shall give
his written p,erimission to the City manager or any duly authorized
person for removal of the junked motor vehicle from the premises,
the giving of such permission shall be considered compliance with
the provisions of this Ordinance.
(2) In no event will a removed junked motor vehicle be
reconstructed or made operable.
(3) The City Manager of any duly authorized person shall give
notice to the Texas Highway Department within five (5) days after
the date of the removal and identify the vehicle or part thereof.
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(4) Junked vehicles or parts thereof may be disposed of
by removal to a scrap yard, demolisher, or any suitable site
operated by the City for processing as scrap or salvage, which
process shall be consistent with Section 1.0, Subdivision C
of the Texas Abandoned Motor Vehicle Act. The City may
operate such a disposable site when its City Council determines
that commercial channels of disposition are not available or
are inadequate, and it may make final disposition of such
vehicles or parts, or the City may transfer such vehicles or
parts to another, provided such disposal shall be only as scrap
or salvage, consistent with Section 10, Subdivision C of the
Texas Abandoned Motor Vehicle Act.
(i) Authority to Enforce
(1) The City Manager of the City of Georgetown
shall have full responsiblilty for administration of this
Ordinance by its regular salaried, full time employees, except
that the removal of junked motor vehicles or parts thereof
from property may be by any other duly authorized person.
(2) The City Manager of the City of Georgetown or
any of his duly authorized employees or agents are authorized
to administer the provisions of this Ordinance and they are
hereby given authority to enter upon private property for the
purposes specified in the Ordinance to examine vehicles or
parts thereof, obtain information as to the identity of vehicles
and remove or cause the removal of a motor vehicle or parts
thereof declared to be a nuisance pursuant to the procedures of
this Ordinance. The Municipal Court of the City of Georgetown
enacting such procedures of the Ordinance as provided herein,
shall have authority to issue all orders necessary to enforce
such procedures of the Ordinance.
(3) Nothing in this Ordinance shall be construed to
affect statutes that permit immediate removal of a motor vehicle
left on public property which constitutes an obstruction to
traffic.
(j) Penalty
(1) Any person violating any of the provisions of this
Ordinance shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction
shall be subject to a fine of not more than ($200.00) Dollars. S.
(A) Each transaction in violation of any of the provisions
hereof shall be deemed a separate offense.
(B) Each day a public nuisance is allowed to continue
after it has been duly determined to be such, shall constitute
a separate violation.
(k) Removal from Unoccupied Premises by Order of
Municipal Court.
('1) If there is a junked motor vehicle on premises
that are unoccupied and neither the owner of the premises nor
the owner of said vehicle can be found and notified to remove
same, then, upon a showing of such facts to the Judge of the
Municipal Court., the Court may issue an order directing the
City Manager or any duly authorized person to have the same
removed, and the City Manager or any duly authorized person
shall take possession of said junked motor vehicle and remove
it from the promises in the procedure provided for by this
Ordinance.
(1) Savings Clause.
(1) It is hereby declared to be the intention of
the City Council of the City of Georgetown that the sub -sections,
paragraphs, sentences, clauses and phrases of this Ordinance
are severable, and if any of them shall be declared unconstitutional
or invalid by the valid judgment or decree of any Court of
competent jurisdiction, such unconstitutionality or invalidity
shall not affect any of the remaining sub -sections, paragraphs,
sentences, clauses or phrases of this Ordinance since the same
would have been enacted by the City Council of the City of
Georgetown without the incorporation of this Ordinance of any
unconstitutional or invalid subsections, paragraphs, sentences,
clauses or phrases.
(m) Ordinance No. 228 adopted by the City Council of the
City of Georgetown on February 14, 1967, is expressly repealed
as are any other Ordinances or parts of Ordinances in conflict
herewith.
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READ, 'PASSED AND ADOPTED this 24 Z day of Warch-ly,
1974, on the first reading and read, passed and adopted on
this the day of�9�, 1974, on second
reading.
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ATTEST:
CITY SE TARY
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