HomeMy WebLinkAboutORD 1257ORDINANCE NO. 1257
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY
OF PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA, AMENDING SECTIONS
10.24.010, 10.24.020, 10.24.050, 10.24.080, AND 10.24.160
OF THE MUNICIPAL CODE OF THE CITY OF PALM
DESERT, CALIFORNIA, REGARDING ABANDONED
VEHICLES — ENFORCEMENT AND ABATEMENT
The City Council of the City of Palm Desert, California does hereby ordain as
follows:
SECTION 1.
That Section 10.24.010 of the Code of the City of Palm Desert, California be and
the same is hereby amended to read as follows:
"10.24.010 Findings of fact.
In addition to and in accordance with the determination made and the authority
granted by the state under Section 22660 of the Vehicle Code to remove abandoned,
wrecked, dismantled or inoperative vehicles or parts thereof as public nuisances, the
city council makes the following findings and declarations:
The accumulation and storage of abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative
vehicles or parts thereof on private or public property, where the vehicle or vehicles can
be viewed from or parked on the public street or highway, 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 a 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 of the public. Therefore, the presence
of an abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or inoperative vehicle or parts thereof, on private
or public property, where the vehicle or vehicles can be viewed from or parked on any
public street or highway, except as expressly permitted in this chapter, is declared to
constitute a public nuisance which may be abated as such in accordance with the
provisions of this chapter.
SECTION 2.
That Section 10.24.020 of the Code of the City of Palm Desert, California be and
the same is hereby amended to read as follows:
"10.24.020 Definitions.
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ORDINANCE NO. 1257
A. "Abandoned Vehicle" means any vehicle that is left on any highway, public
property or private property in such inoperable or neglected condition that the owner's
intent to relinquish all further rights or interest in it may be reasonably concluded. In
reaching a reasonable conclusion one must consider the amount of time the vehicles
have not been moved, its condition, statements from the owner and witnesses.
B. "Dismantled vehicle" means any vehicle which is partially or wholly
disassembled.
C. "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."
D. "Inoperative vehicle" means any motor vehicle from which the engine,
wheels, tires or other essential parts have been damaged or removed, or which the
engine, wheels, tires, or other essential parts have been altered, damaged or allowed to
deteriorate so that the vehicle cannot and/or is incapable of being driven under its own
power or rendering the vehicle unsafe to operate on a highway. The lack of inflated
tires, lack of a working engine, transmission, differential or other essential parts, or left
unattended on jacks, blocks, or elevated in any other way which constitutes a threat to
the public health, safety or general welfare.
E. "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.
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F. "Owner of the vehicle" means the last registered owner and legal owner of
record.
G. "Public nuisance vehicle" means any vehicle that is abandoned, wrecked,
dismantled, or any inoperative parts thereof that is on public or private property,
including highways, and that creates a condition tending to reduce the value of private
property, promotes blight and deterioration, invites plundering, creates fire hazards,
constitutes an attractive nuisance endangering the health and safety of the general
public, harbors rodents, insects and other vermin, or jeopardizes, health, safety and
general welfare is a public nuisance.
H. "Public property" means any property owned by the government or one of
its agencies, divisions, or entities, to include parks, streets, sidewalks and other
property regularly used by the general public. "Public property" includes "highway."
I. "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.
J. "Wrecked vehicle" means any vehicle that is damaged to such an extent am*
that it cannot be operated upon the highway. A vehicle which has been wrecked in a
traffic accident and which has been removed from the roadway to a lawful storage
facility, but which has not been claimed by its owner, will not be considered an .�
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ORDINANCE NO. 1257
abandoned vehicle for the purposes of this chapter.
SECTION 3.
That Section 10.24.050 of the Code of the City of Palm Desert, California be and
the same is hereby amended to read as follows:
"10.24.050 Administration.
Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, the provisions of this chapter shall
be administered and enforced by the city manager or designee. In the enforcement of
this chapter, the city manager or designee 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 parts thereof declared to be a
nuisance pursuant to this chapter."
SECTION 4.
That Section 10.24.080 of the Code of the City of Palm Desert, California be and
the same is hereby amended to read as follows:
"10.24.080 Abatement Authorization
Upon discovering the existence of an abandoned, wrecked, dismantled, or
inoperative vehicle, or parts thereof, on private property or public property within the
city, the city manager or designee shall have the authority to cause the abatement and
removal thereof in accordance with the procedure prescribed in this chapter."
SECTION 5.
That Section 10.24.160 of the Code of the City of Palm Desert, California be and
the same is hereby amended to read as follows:
"10.24.160 Act of abandonment.
It is unlawful and a misdemeanor for any person to abandon, park, store or leave
or permit the abandonment, parking, storing or leaving of any licensed or unlicensed
vehicle or parts thereof which is abandoned, wrecked, dismantled or in an inoperative
condition upon any private property or public property, including highways, within the
city for a period in excess of seventy-two or more consecutive 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 licensed dismantler or licensed vehicle dealer or a junk yard.
Upon discovering the existence of an abandoned, wrecked, dismantled, or
inoperative vehicle, or parts thereof, on private property or public property, a seventy-
two hour notice of intention to abate shall be posted on the vehicle. A follow up
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ORDINANCE NO. 1257
inspection shall be conducted within seventy-two hours to verify if such vehicle has ..�
been voluntarily abated. Upon determining that such vehicle still exist and a period of
seventy-two or more consecutive hours has elapsed, a ten day notice of intention to
abate and remove such vehicle shall be mailed in accordance with section 10.24.090 of
this chapter."
SECTION 6.
The City Clerk of the City of Palm Desert, California, is hereby directed to publish
this ordinance in the Desert Sun, a newspaper of general circulation, published and
circulated in the City of Palm Desert, California, and shall be in full force and effective
thirty (30) days after its adoption.
PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED by the Palm Desert City Council this 12th day
of September , 2013, by the following vote, to wit:
AYES: BENSON, SPIEGEL, TANNER, WEBER, and HARNIK
NOES: NONE
ABSENT: NONE
..r
ABSTAIN: NONE G,
J C. HARN , Mayor
ATTEST:
.I■-
.., .ELIE D. KLASSEW,
City of Palm Desert,
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