Santa Maria Municipal Code Ch. 5-1 Abandoned, Wrecked, Dismantled or Inoperative Vehicles

This ordinance is enacted under authority of Vehicle Code section 22660 and following, and any successor authority to those sections.

As used in this chapter:

"Abandoned"

means a vehicle or vehicle part that is wrecked, dismantled, or inoperative and is parked, stored or left on public or private property, except as provided in "Exceptions" provisions in this Chapter. "Abandoned" also means a vehicle that is not inoperative and is parked, stored or left on public or private property without the written consent of the property owner.

"Dismantled"

means a vehicle that is in violation of California Vehicle Code section 24002.

"Highway"

means a way or place of whatever nature, publicly maintained and open to the use of the public for purposes of vehicular travel.

"Inoperative"

means a vehicle that is:

(1)

Mechanically incapable of being driven safely on a public street or highway; or

(2)

Prohibited from being operated on a public street or highway under the California Vehicle Code, including but not limited to sections 4000, 5202, 24002, 40001, or their successor sections, concerning license plates, registration, equipment, safety and related matters; or

(3)

Placed on jacks, ramps, blocks or similar equipment.

"Private property"

includes all real estate in which the City does not have an ownership interest.

"Public property"

includes all real estate in which the City has an ownership interest.

"Street"

means a way or place of whatever nature, publicly maintained and open to the use of the public for purposes of vehicular travel.

"Vehicle"

means a device by which any person or property may be propelled, moved or drawn upon a street, except a device moved by human power or used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks.

"Wrecked"

means destroyed or partially destroyed whether by collision or other means.

(Prior Code § 16A-1; Ord. 2003-19, eff. 11/7/03; Ord. 2005-01, eff. 3/3/05)

The City Council finds that the accumulation and storage of abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative vehicles or parts thereof on public or private property in public view, 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 an abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative vehicle or parts thereof, on private or public property in public view, except as expressly permitted in this chapter, constitutes a public nuisance which may be abated as such in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.

(Prior Code § 16A-1; Ord. 90-1 § 1, eff. 3/8/90; Ord. 2003-19, eff. 11/7/03)

(a) This chapter shall not apply to:

(1) A vehicle or part thereof which is completely enclosed within a building or behind a solid fence not less than six feet high in a lawful manner where it is not visible from the street or other public or private property;

(2) A vehicle or part thereof which is stored or parked in a lawful manner on private property in connection with the business of a licensed dismantler, licensed vehicle dealer, a junk dealer, or when such storage or parking is necessary to the operation of a lawfully conducted business or commercial enterprise.

(b) Nothing in this section shall authorize the maintenance of a public or private nuisance as defined under provisions of law other than this chapter.

(Prior Code § 16A-2; Ord. 2003-19, eff. 11/7/03)

This chapter is not the exclusive regulation of abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative vehicles within the City. It shall supplement and be in addition to the other regulatory codes, statutes and ordinances enacted before or after the ordinance from which this chapter derives by the City, the State or any other legal entity or agency having jurisdiction.

(Prior Code § 16A-3)

This chapter shall be administered and enforced by regularly salaried, full-time employees of the police department and code compliance division. In the enforcement of this chapter, City employees may enter upon private or public property to examine a vehicle or parts thereof, or obtain information as to the identity of a vehicle and to remove or cause the removal of a vehicle or part thereof declared to be a nuisance pursuant to this chapter.

(Prior Code § 16A-4; Ord. 2003-19, eff. 11/7/03)

The City or its designated officials may enter into a contract or grant a franchise for the removal and hauling of abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative vehicles. The contractor or franchisee shall be authorized to enter upon private property or public property to remove or cause the removal of a vehicle or vehicle parts declared to be a nuisance under this chapter.

(Prior Code § 16A-5; Ord. 2003-19, eff. 11/7/03)

When a person authorized to enforce this chapter determines that a vehicle or part thereof is a public nuisance, a 10 day notice of intention to abate and remove shall be issued as follows:

(a) The notice shall be mailed by registered or certified mail;

(b) The notice shall be mailed to the owner of the land as shown on the last equalized assessment roll and to the vehicle's last registered and legal owners of record, unless the vehicle is in such condition that identification numbers are not available to determine ownership;

(c) The notice shall identify the vehicle or part determined to be a nuisance and explain that the City or its representatives will enter the land during normal business hours, remove, store and dispose of the item at the addressee's expense unless a timely request for hearing is received;

(d) The notice shall state that the addressee may, in writing and within 10 days after mailing of the notice, request a hearing before a City official designed by the City Council. The notice shall contain the name and address of the person to whom a hearing request must be made. The notice shall inform the landowner that s/he may appear at the hearing or may submit a sworn, written statement denying responsibility for the presence of the vehicle on the land, with his or her reasons for such denial, in lieu of appearing.

(Prior Code § 16A-7; Ord. 2003-19, eff. 11/7/03)

(a) Section 5-1.08 does not apply when an inoperable vehicle or part is located on a parcel zoned for agricultural use or not improved with a residential structure containing one or more dwelling units, and

(1) The vehicle or part is inoperative due to absence of a motor, transmission, or wheels and incapable of being towed; and

(2) The vehicle or part is valued at less than $200 by a person specified in Vehicle Code section 22855; and

(3) A person authorized to enforce this chapter determines that the vehicle or part is a public nuisance and an immediate threat to public health or safety; and

(4) The landowner has signed a release authorizing removal and waiving further interest in the vehicle or part.

(b) The City may dispose of an inoperative vehicle or part under this section by removing it to a scrapyard, automobile dismantler's yard, or any suitable site operated by a local authority for processing as scrap, or other final disposition consistent with the Vehicle Code. If the City found evidence of ownership as described in Section 5-1.11, it shall provide notice to registered and legal owners of intent to dispose of the vehicle or part; and if the vehicle or part is not claimed and removed from a site specified in this subsection within 12 days after the notice is mailed, the City may proceed with final disposition.

(Ord. 2003-19, eff. 11/7/03)

(a) Upon timely and proper request by the landowner or vehicle owner, a public hearing shall be held on the question of abatement and removal of the vehicle or part as abandoned, dismantled, inoperative, or wrecked, and on the assessment of administrative costs for abatement, removal, storage and disposition.

(b) If the City does not receive a timely request for public hearing from the landowner or the vehicle owner, the persons specified in Sections 5-1.06 and 5-1.07 shall have authority to remove and dispose pursuant to Vehicle Code section 22662, of the vehicle or part.

(c) At a public hearing under this section, the landowner may appear in person or may present a sworn, written statement denying responsibility for the presence of the vehicle on the land, with his or her reasons for the denial. When timely presented, such a statement shall also serve as a request for public hearing.

(d) Hearings under this chapter shall be held before a hearing officer designated by the Police Chief or such other person as the City Council may designate by resolution. All facts, information and testimony deemed pertinent to the question in subsection (a) shall be considered, and the hearing officer shall not be bound by technical rules of evidence.

(e) The hearing officer may impose such conditions and take such other action as deemed appropriate under the circumstances to carry out the purpose of this chapter. The officer may delay time for removal of the vehicle or part thereof if, in the officer's opinion, the circumstances justify it. At the conclusion of the public hearing the officer may find that a vehicle or part thereof has been abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or is inoperative on private or public property and order the same removed from the property as a public nuisance and disposed of as provided by Vehicle Code section 22662 and determine the administrative costs and the cost of removal to be charged against the vehicle owner and/or owner of the parcel of land on which the vehicle or part thereof is located. The order requiring removal shall include a description of the vehicle or part thereof and the correct identification number and license number of the vehicle, if available at the site.

(f) If it is determined at the hearing that the vehicle was placed on the land without the consent of the landowner and that landowner has not subsequently acquiesced in its presence, the hearing officer shall not assess 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 landowner.

(g) If an interested party makes a written presentation to the hearing officer but does not appear, that person shall be notified in writing of the decision.

(Ord. 2003-19, eff. 11/7/03)

Within five days after the date of removal of the vehicle or part thereof, notice shall be given to the State Department of Motor Vehicles identifying the vehicle or part 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.

(Prior Code § 16A-11; Ord. 2003-19, eff. 11/7/03)

After a vehicle has been removed, it shall not be reconstructed or made operable, unless it is a vehicle that qualifies either for horseless carriage or historical vehicle license plates, pursuant to Vehicle Code section 5004, in which case the vehicle may be reconstructed or made operable.

(Ord. 2003-19, eff. 11/7/03)

If the administrative costs and the cost of removal which are charged against the owner of a parcel of land pursuant to Section 5-1.10 are not paid within 30 days of the date of the order, such costs may be assessed against the parcel of land pursuant to Section 38773.5 of the Government Code and shall be transmitted to the tax collector for collection. The assessment shall have the same priority as other City taxes.

(Prior Code § 16A-12; Ord. 2003-19, eff. 11/7/03)

Unless an exception applies, it is unlawful for any person to park or leave, or permit the parking or leaving of any vehicle which is in an abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative condition, in public view upon any private property or public property within the City. Violation of this section shall be an infraction punishable as provided in Vehicle Code section 22523(c), or any successor section, and a public nuisance which the City Attorney may seek to enjoin.

(Ord. 90-1 § 1, eff. 3/8/90; Ord. 2003-19, eff. 11/7/03)