Moraga Municipal Code Ch. 10.20 Impoundment of Vehicles

An officer of the police department may have removed:

A. A vehicle parked or left standing upon a street for seventy-two (72) or more consecutive hours;

B. A vehicle parked or left standing upon a street between seven a.m. and seven p.m. when such parking or standing is prohibited by ordinance or resolution, and signs are posted giving notice of removal;

C. A vehicle parked or left standing upon a street where the use of the street is necessary for the cleaning, repair or instruction of the street or for the installation of underground utilities or where the use of the street is authorized for a purpose other than the normal flow of traffic or where the use of the street is necessary for the movement of equipment, articles, or structures of unusual size, and parking would prohibit or interfere with such use or movement. However, signs giving notice that a vehicle may be removed must be placed at least twenty-four (24) hours before the removal.

(Prior code § 13-216)

A. Findings and Purpose. The accumulation and storage of abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative vehicles, or parts thereof, on private property or public, not including highways, is found to create a condition tending to reduce the value of private property, to promote blight and deterioration, to invite plundering, to create fire hazards, to constitute an attractive nuisance creating a hazard to the health and safety of minors, to create a harborage for rodents and insects, and to be injurious to the health, safety, and general welfare. Therefore, the presence of abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative vehicle, or parts thereof, on private or public property, not including highways, except as expressly hereinafter permitted, is declared to constitute a public nuisance which may be abated as such in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.

B. Definitions. As used in this section:

1. The term "vehicle" means a device by which any person or property may be propelled, moved or drawn upon a highway, except a device moved by human power, or used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks.

2. The term "highway" means a way or place of whatever nature, publicly maintained and open to the use of the public for purposes of vehicular travel. Highway includes street.

3. The term "owner of the land" means the owner of the land on which the vehicle or parts thereof is located, as shown on the last equalized assessment roll.

4. The term "owner of the vehicle" means the last registered owner of record as indicated by the California Department of Motor Vehicles.

Note: The term "public property" does not include "highway".

C. Unlawful to Abandon or Keep Vehicles of Type Regulated by this Chapter. It is unlawful for any person to abandon, park, store or leave, or permit the abandonment, parking, storing or leaving of any licensed or unlicensed vehicle, or part thereof, which is in an abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative condition, upon any private property or public property, not including highways, within the town, for a period in excess of seventy-two (72) hours, unless such vehicle, or parts thereof, is completely enclosed within a building in a lawful manner where it is not plainly visible from the street or other public or private property, or unless such vehicle is stored or parked in a lawful manner on private property in connection with the business of a lawfully conducted business.

D. Exceptions. This section shall not apply to:

1. A vehicle, or parts thereof, which is completely enclosed within a building in a lawful manner where it is not visible from the street or other public or private property;

2. A vehicle, or parts thereof, which is stored or parked in a lawful manner on private property in connection with a lawfully conducted business or commercial enterprise when such storage or parking is necessary to the operation of said lawfully operated business;

3. A vehicle, or parts thereof, which is located behind a solid fence six feet in height, or which is not plainly visible from a highway, as long as the premises surrounding the abandoned vehicle are kept free and clear of debris or other fire hazards; further, this exception will not apply when the number of vehicles exceeds three;

4. Nothing in this subsection shall authorize the maintenance of a public or private nuisance as defined under provisions of state or local law.

E. Supplemental Legislation. This section is not the exclusive regulation of abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative vehicles within the town. It shall supplement, and be in addition to, other regulatory codes, statutes, and ordinances heretofore or hereafter enacted by the town, the state, or other legal entity or agency having jurisdiction.

F. Administration. Except as otherwise provided in this section, the provisions of this section shall be administered and enforced by the chief of police. In the enforcement of this section, such officer and his deputies may enter upon private or public property to examine a vehicle, or parts thereof, or to obtain information as to the identity of a vehicle, and to remove, or cause the removal of, a vehicle, or parts thereof, declared to be a nuisance pursuant to this chapter.

G. Fees. The town council shall, from time to time, determine and fix an amount to be assessed as administrative costs, excluding the actual cost of removal of any vehicle, or parts thereof, under this chapter.

H. Authorization to Cause Abatement and Removal. Upon discovering the existence of an abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative vehicle, or parts thereof, on private property or public property within the town, the chief of police shall have the authority to cause the abatement and removal thereof in accordance with the procedure prescribed in this section.

I. Notice of Intention to Abate and Remove. A fourteen (14) day notice of intention to abate and remove the vehicle, or parts thereof, as a public nuisance, shall be mailed by certified mail to the owner of the land, and to the owner of the vehicle, unless the vehicle is in such condition that identification numbers are not available to determine ownership.

J. Public Hearing.

1. If, within fourteen (14) days of the mailing of the notices of intent to abate or remove, the chief of police receives a request for a hearing by the owner of the vehicle, or the owner of the property, a public hearing shall be held by the chief of police or his or her duly authorized representative (hereinafter referred to as "hearing officer"), on the question of abatement and removal of the vehicle, or parts thereof, as an abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative vehicle, and the assessment of the administrative costs and cost of removal of the vehicle, or parts thereof, against the property on which it is located. Notice of the hearing shall be mailed by certified mail, at least ten (10) days before the hearing, to the owner of the land and to the owner of the vehicle, unless the vehicle is in such condition that identification numbers are not available to determine ownership. If such a request for a hearing is not received within the fourteen (14) days after mailing of the notice of intention to abate or remove, the town shall have the authority to abate and remove the vehicle, or parts thereof, as a public nuisance, without holding a public hearing.

2. If the owner of the land submits a sworn statement denying responsibility for the presence of the vehicle on his or her land within such fourteen (14) day period, the statement shall be construed as a request for a hearing which does not require his or her presence.

K. Conduct of Hearing. All hearings under this section shall be held before the hearing officer who shall hear all facts and testimony he or she deems pertinent. The facts and testimony may include testimony on the condition of the vehicle, or parts thereof, and the circumstances concerning its location on the private property or public property. The hearing officer shall not be limited by the technical rules of evidence. The owner of the land may appear in person at the hearing, or present a sworn statement in time for consideration at the hearing, and deny responsibility for the presence of the vehicle on the land, with his or her reasons for such denial.

The hearing officer may impose such conditions and take such other action has he or she deems appropriate under the circumstances to carry out the purpose of this section. He or she may delay the time for removal of the vehicle or parts thereof, if in his or her opinion, the circumstances justify it. At the conclusion of the public hearing, the hearing officer may find that a vehicle, or parts thereof, has been abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative on private or public property, and order the same removed from the property as a public nuisance, and disposed of as hereinafter provided, and determine the administrative costs, and the cost of removal, to be charged against the owner of the land. The order requiring removal shall include a description of the vehicle, or parts thereof, and the correct identification number and license number of the vehicle, if available at the site.

If it is determined at the hearing that the vehicle was placed on the land without the consent of the owner of the land, and that he or she has not subsequently acquiesced to its presence, the hearing officer shall not assess the costs of administration or removal of the vehicle against the property upon which the vehicle is located, or otherwise attempt to collect such costs from such owner of the land. If the owner of the land submits a sworn written statement denying responsibility for the presence of the vehicle on this land, but does not appear, or if an interested party makes a written presentation to the hearing officer but does not appear, he shall be notified in writing of the hearing officer's decision.

L. Appeal to the Town Manager. Any interested party may appeal the decision of the hearing officer by filing a written notice of appeal with the hearing officer within five days after his or her decision. Such appeal shall be heard by the town manager which may affirm, amend, or reverse the order, or take other action deemed appropriate. The town clerk shall give written notice of the time and place of the hearing to the appellant, and those persons specified in subsection H of this section.

In conducting the hearing, the town manager shall not be limited by the technical rules of evidence.

M. Authorization to Enter Private or Public Property. When the town council has contracted with, or granted a franchise to, any person or persons to carry out the provisions of this chapter, such person or persons shall be authorized to enter upon private property or public property to remove or cause the removal of a vehicle, or parts thereof, declared to be a nuisance pursuant to this chapter.

N. Time Limit for Removal. Five days after the adoption of the order declaring the vehicle, or parts thereof, to be a public nuisance, five days from the date of mailing of the notice of the decision, if such notice is required by subsection J of this section, or fifteen (15) days after such action of the town manager authorizing removal following appeal, the vehicle, or parts thereof, may be disposed of by removal to a scrap yard or automobile dismantler's yard. After a vehicle has been removed, it shall not be thereafter reconstructed or made operable, pursuant to California Vehicle Code Section 22661(f).

O. Notice to Department of Motor Vehicles. Within five days after the date of removal of the vehicle, or parts thereof, notice shall be given to the Department of Motor Vehicles identifying the vehicle, or parts thereof, removed. At the same time, there shall be transmitted to the Department of Motor Vehicles any evidence of registration available, including registration certificates, certificates of title, and license plates.

P. Charges Included in Tax Bill. If the administrative costs and the cost of removal, which are charged against the owner of a parcel of land pursuant to subsection J of this section, are not paid within thirty (30) days of the date of the order, or final disposition of an appeal therefrom, such costs shall be assessed against the parcel of land, pursuant to Section 38773.5 of the California Government Code, and shall be transmitted to the tax collector for collection. Such assessments shall have the same priority as other town taxes.

Q. Unlawful to Fail to Remove Vehicles After Order to do so. It is unlawful for any person to fail or refuse to remove an abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative vehicle, or part thereof, or refuse to abate such nuisance when ordered to do so, in accordance with the abatement provisions of this section, or state law, where such state law is applicable.

(Prior code § 13-217)