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HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinance 89-07 ORDINANCE NO. 89-07 . AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF OCOEE, FLORIDA, RELATING TO THE ABANDONMENT OR KEEPING OF JUNK VEHICLES ON PUBLIC PROPERTY OR ON PRIVATE PROPERTY; REPEALING CHAPTER 21 ARTICLE III OF THE CODE; ADOPTING A NEW CHAPTER 21 ARTICLE III OF THE CODE; PROVIDING FOR THE REMOVAL OF JUNK VEHICLES FROM PUBLIC PROPERTY AND PRIVATE PROPERTY; PROVIDING A TITLE; PROVIDING DEFINITIONS; PROVIDING EXCEPTIONS; GOVERNING JUNK VEHICLES ON PUBLIC PROPERTY AND PROVIDING PROCEDURES FOR PROHIBITING AND REMOVING THE SAME; GOVERNING JUNK VEHICLES ON PRIVATE PROPERTY AND PROVIDING PROCEDURES FOR PROHIBITING AND REMOVING THE SAME; PROVIDING FOR NOTICE TO OWNERS; DESIGNATING AN ENFORCEMENT OFFICER; PROVIDING PENALTIES; EMPOWERING THE CITY COMMISSION TO CONTRACT WITH PERSONS, FIRMS OR CORPORATIONS FOR THE REMOVAL AND DESTRUCTION OF JUNK VEHICLES; PROVIDING FOR CONSTRUCTION AND SEVERABILITY; AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE. BE IT ENACTED BY THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF OCOEE, FLORIDA: SECTION ONE: The present Chapter 21 Article III of the Code of the City of Ocoee is hereby repealed in its entirety. SECTION TWO: A New Chapter 21 Article III of the Code of the City fo Ocoee is hereby adopted as follows: ARTICLE III. JUNK VEHICLES Section 21-34: Title This ordinance shall be referred to as the Junk Vehicle Ordinance of the City of Ocoee. Section 21-35: Definitions In construing this ordinance: (a) "Persons" means individuals, children, associations, joint ventures, partnerships, estates, business trusts, syndicates, fiduciaries, corporations, other groups or combinations. firms, trusts, and all (b) "Vehicle" means every device in, upon, or by which any person or property is or may be transported or drawn upon a highway, roadway, street, or public right-of-way, excepting devices used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks. (c) "Junk" vehicle which is operating. when used in connection with "vehicle" means a dismantled, wrecked, junked and/or non- . (d) "Abandoned" when used in connection with "junk vehicle" means property having no monetary value other than nominal salvage value, if any, which has been left unprotected from the elements with no intention by the owner to remain in possession of the property. (e) "Keep" when used in connection with "junk vehicle" means property having no monetary value value, if any, which has been left with intention by the owner to property. other than nominal salvage unprotected from the elements remain in possession of the (f) "Public property" means roads, streets, highways, or other public easements of the City of Ocoee. alleys, (g) "Private property" means any real property other than public property in the City of Ocoee. Page 2 Ordinance No. 89-07 (h) "Enforcement Officer" means the officer designated by the City Commission to enforce the provisions of this ordinance Section 21-36: Prohibited Abandonment or Keeping of Junk Vehicle No person shall abandon or keep any junk vehicle on any public property or any private property within the corporate limits of the City of Ocoee, except on private property as provided for in Section 21-38. . Section 21-37: Presumption (a) No vehicle shall be left parked in continuously upon any public street, alley, parkways of the city for seventy-two (72) hours. the same place public park or (b) Any vehicle left parked in the same place continuously upon any public street, alley, public park or parkway of the city for a period of seventy-two (72) hours shall be considered for the purpose of this article as abandoned. (c) It shall be prima facie evidence that a motor vehicle is non-operating if one or more of the following conditions exist: (1) The absence of a currently registered license plate on a vehicle. Vehicles that do not require license plates, such as tractors and race cars, shall not fall into this subcategory. ( 2) visible signs down a roadway. A vehicle with one or more flat tires or that a vehicle is not capable of propelling other itself (3) Any vehicle left parked in the same place continuously upon any private property for a period of time such that grass is grown up around it obscuring any part of it from view, and/or such that there is dead grass under the vehicle from the vehicle having shielded the grass from the nutrients required for growth, without being moved, shall be considered, for the purposes of this article, abandoned. In general, this period of time will be interpreted to be in excess of fifteen (15) calendar days. in days (Ord. (4) Any vehicle that is placed upon blocks, and remains this inoperable condition for more than fifteen (15) calendar shall also be, for the purposes of this article, abandoned. No. 414 Sects. 1&2, 5-16-61; Ord. No. 860, Sect. 4, 12-17-85) Section 21-38: Exceptions This ordinance shall not apply to any junk vehicle kept: (a) Within an enclosed garage or attached carport; . (b) On the premises of a business enterprise when necessary to the functioning of such business operated in a lawful place and manner; or (c) In an appropriate storage area or depository maintained in a lawful place and manner. Section 21-39: Junk Vehicles on Public Property; Enforcement (a) Whenever the enforcement officer of the City of Ocoee ascertains that a junk vehicle is present on public property of the City of Ocoee, he shall cause a notice of sufficient size and weatherproofing to be placed upon the junk vehicle. In addition to said posting, he shall make a reasonable effort to ascertain the name and address of the owner, and upon such discovery shall notify the owner either in person or by certified mail on the date of Page 3 Ordinance No. 89-07 posting a copy of said notice to the owner. (b) Notice shall be substantially in the following form: "City of Ocoee Police Department 175 N. Bluford Ave., Ocoee, Florida 32761 (407) 656-1313 ***WARNING*** THIS VEHICLE MAY BE IMPOUNDED IF IT IS NOT REMOVED WITHIN 72 HOURS . DAY TIME MONTH DATE MAKE MODEL LICENSE # OFFICER BADGE # " (C) If at the end of 72 hours after posting such notice the owner of the junk vehicle described in the notice has not removed the vehicle from the public property or shown reasonable cause for failure to do so, the enforcement officer may charge the owner, if known, with a code violation and cause the junk vehicle to be removed and disposed of under Section 21-42. Notification shall be made to the owner within 24 hours of towing. Section 21-40: Junk Vehicles on Private Property (a) Whenever the enforcement officer of the city ascertains that a junk vehicle is present on private property within the corporate limits of the city, he shall make direct contact with property owner or tenant where the junk/abandoned vehicle is located, and issue said person a "Notice to Remove" the vehicle in question. The enforcement officer may also elect to make contact with the owner of the vehicle. The property owner will then have fifteen (15) calendar days to remove the vehicle or bring the vehicle into compliance with the City Code. If the property owner fails to do so, the code enforcement officer will forward the "Notice to Remove" to the administrative staff of the code enforcement board for disposition of this case. (b) The code enforcement board's administrative staff will cause the noncomplying property owner to be serviced with notice of the hearing by either hand-delivered written notice, or certified mail, return receipt, in accordance with the code enforcement board's rules of procedure. . (c) The owner of the junk vehicle shall have the right, except in cases of emergency, to appeal the decisison of the enforcement officer to the city code enforcement board at a specified time and place to show cause why he should not comply with such notice. (Ord. No. 592, Sect. 7, 8-21-73; Ord. No. 860 Sect. 7, 12-17-85) Section 21-41: Enforcement Officer (a) The enforcement officer shall have the right to enter private property for the purposes of inspecting for junk vehicles and of posting notice when same shall have been discovered in violation of this ordinance. (b) The enforcement officer shall wear appropriate and/or badge which shall visibly identify him as an agent city when he enters private property for the purposes of 21-41 (a) . clothing of the Section Page 4 Ordinance No. 89-07 Section 21-42: Junk Vehicle Removal The City Commission of the City of Ocoee is hereby authorized and empowered to contract on an exclusive or non-exclusive basis with any person, firm or corporation as the board deems advisable for the purpose of removing and destroying junk vehicles abandoned or kept on public or private property in violation of this ordinance upon direction of the enforcement officer. SECTION THREE: Severability . If any section, sentence, clause, phrase or word of this ordinance is for any reason held or declared to be unconstitutional, inoperative or void, such holding of invalidity shall not affect the remaining portions of this ordinance, and it shall be construed to have been the legislative intent to pass this ordinance without such unconstitutional, invalid or inoperative part therein, and the remainder of this ordinance, after the exclusion of such part or parts shall be deemed and held to be valid as if such part or parts had not been included herein. If this ordinance or any portion thereof shall be held inapplicable to any person, group of persons, property, kind of property, circumstances or set of circumstances, such holding shall not affect the applicability thereof to any other person, property or circumstance. SECTION FOUR: Effective Date This ordinance shall take effect immediately upon passage by the City Commission of the City of Ocoee. Passed and adopted this 2nd day of May ,1989. :::rL/f Lu Thomas R. Ison, Mayor Attest: r"'. \ '. \ Advertised April 20 ,1989 Read First Time April 18 ,1989 Read Second Time and Approved May 2 ,1989 . ----.. -....-. _. .....--..... ... ~T~ _.... UtJ..::L-.JJ:j -~~