(a) In the interpretation and enforcement of this Section 521.11, the following definitions shall apply:
(1) "Abandoned motor vehicle" means any motor vehicle which is left on private property for more than forty-eight (48) hours without the permission of the person having the right to the possession of the motor vehicle or any motor vehicle which is left on public property for forty-eight (48) hours or longer without the permission of the Village Council or Mayor.
(2) "Licensed" means having a valid/current license plate (and sticker) appropriately attached or affixed to the motor vehicle.
(3) "Junked motor vehicle" or "junk motor vehicle" means any vehicle of any age that is damaged or defective including, but not limited to, any one or combination of any of the following conditions that either makes the vehicle immediately inoperable or would prohibit the vehicle from being operated in a reasonably safe manner upon the public streets and highways under its own power if self-propelled, or while being towed or pushed, if not self-propelled:
A. Flat tires, missing tires, missing wheels, or missing or partially or totally disassembled tires and wheels;
B. Missing or partially or totally disassembled essential part or parts of the vehicle's drive train, including, but not limited to, engine, transmission, transaxle, drive shaft, differential, or axle;
C. Extensive exterior body damage or missing or partially or totally disassembled essential body parts, including, but not limited to fenders, doors, engine hood, bumper or bumpers, windshield, or windows;
D. Missing or partially or totally disassembled essential interior parts, including, but not limited to, driver's seat, steering wheel, instrument panel, clutch, brake, or gear shift lever;
E. Missing or partially or totally disassembled parts essential to the starting or running of the vehicle under its own power, including, but not limited to, starter, generator or alternator, battery, distributor, gas tank, carburetor or fuel injection system, spark plugs, or radiator;
F. Interior is a container for metal, glass, paper, rags or other cloth, wood, auto parts, machinery, waste, or discarded materials in such quantity, quality and arrangement that a driver cannot be properly seated in the vehicle or properly or safely operate the vehicle;
G. Condition of lying on the ground (upside down, on its side, or at other non-operational angle), sitting on blocks or suspended in the air by any other method;
H. General environment in which the vehicle sits, including, but not limited to, vegetation that has grown up around, in, or through the vehicle, the collection of pools of water in the vehicle, and the accumulation of other garbage or debris around the vehicle.
(4) "Inoperative motor vehicle" means any motor vehicle not moved for thirty (30) consecutive days, which lack of movement shall cause the unmoved motor vehicle to be legally presumed to be inoperative.
(5) "Motor vehicle" means any devise, including major part thereof in, or by which any person or property is or may be transported, including devises used exclusively on stationary rails or tracks, and including devices to be pulled, drawn, or towed by a motor vehicle, but not including devices moved by human or animal power.
(6) "Public Property" means any public street, highway, alley, sidewalk boulevard, bikeway, or property open to the public for vehicular travel or parking, and any other property owned or operated by the Village, and any right-of-way thereof.
(7) "Person" means any individual, firm, partnership, company, unincorporated association, or corporation.
(b) It shall be unlawful to store, park, or leave junked or abandoned vehicles.
(1) No person shall store, park, or have any motor vehicle which is in a junked, abandoned, inoperative, dismantled or partially dismantled condition, whether attended or not, within the Village, upon any public or private property, for a period of time of forty-eight (48) hours or longer.
(2) The presence of a junked, abandoned, inoperative, dismantled or partially dismantled motor vehicle, on private or public property is a public nuisance which may be abated in accordance with the provisions of this section.
(3) This section shall not apply to any motor vehicle on private property which is stored in conformity with state laws, or if the motor vehicle is a collector's vehicle, as defined in Ohio Revised Code Section 4101.01(F).
(4) No person shall be prevented from storing or keeping or restricted in the method of storing or keeping any collector's vehicle on private property with the permission of the persons having the right to the possession of the property, except that a person having such permission may be required to conceal, by means of buildings, fences, vegetation, terrain, or other suitable obstruction, any unlicensed collector's vehicle stored in the open.
(c) Junked vehicles shall be disposed of.
(1) No person in charge or control of any private property within the Village, whether as owner, tenant, occupant, lessee or otherwise, shall allow any junked, inoperative dismantled or partially dismantled motor vehicle to remain on such property longer than seven (7) days after notice is served, in any manner provided by the Ohio Rules of Civil Procedure for service of summons in civil actions, to remove the motor vehicle from such property. A copy of said notice shall also be conspicuously affixed to the motor vehicle if the surrounding facts and circumstances make it practicable to do so. The fact that such premises are rented or leased by the owner to another party shall not relieve such owner from the responsibility herein, which shall be joint and several between among any owners, occupants, and/or tenants.
(2) If no person in charge or control of any such property can be found, notice to such persons may be published once in a public place in the Village. Such motor vehicle shall be removed from the premises by such person within seven (7) days after publication.
(3) This section shall not apply with regard to any motor vehicle described insubsection (b)(3) of this section.
(d) If the property owner, tenant or occupant, within seven (7) days after notice is served, as provided for herein, contends the vehicle is not a violation of this ordinance and desires a hearing, the owner, tenant, and/or occupant shall set forth in writing their grounds for contesting the charge and request a hearing. The Written grounds and request for a hearing shall be personally served upon, the Mayor, Chief of Police, Village Administrator, Fiscal Officer, Village Solicitor, and/or deposited in the utility payment drop box prior to expiration of the seven-day (7-day) window for compliance set forth in the notice. The owner, tenant, and/or occupants of the premises shall then be entitled to a hearing before the Village Council under subsection (e) hereof, which shall decide whether a violation exists.
(e) A hearing requested pursuant to subsection (d) hereof shall be held as soon as practicable after the filing of the request. Persons requesting a hearing shall be advised of the time and place of said hearing. The scope of said hearing shall be limited to the following issues.
(1) Whether the person requesting the hearing is in charge or control of the private property as charged and
(2) Whether the motor vehicle is junked or inoperative as charged.
At any such hearing, the Village and the persons to whom notices have been directed may introduce such witnesses and evidence as each party deems necessary. The Village Council shall then affirm, reverse, or modify the determination set forth in the initial notice that was provided.
(f) Vehicles that violate this section may be impounded.
(1) If a violation of subsection (c) hereof has not been remedied with the seven (7) day period of compliance, or, in the event that a request for a hearing is filed as prescribed in subsection (d) hereof, a hearing is held and the existence of the violation is affirmed, the vehicle may be impounded.
(2) The impoundment of a vehicle may be effectuated by contacting any commercial towing and storage facility in the Village of Columbus Grove, Putnam County, or any county adjacent to Putnam County.
(3) The movement of a vehicle from private property to any public right-of-way, or to another location under similar circumstances constituting a violation of subsection (b) hereof, shall not remedy a violation of subsection (b) hereof, and a vehicle so moved remains subject to impoundment.
(g) The Village has rights to enter property and conduct inspections.
(1) The Village shall have the right to enter and inspect at any reasonable hour any premises on which vehicles are openly stored and to inspect such vehicles. If within the time provided for such removal following service of a determination that a vehicle is a junk vehicle (including any extension of time resulting from any appeal or stay of execution) and the open storage of the junk vehicle within the Village is not terminated, the junk vehicle shall be automatically deemed a public nuisance, and the Village, a commercial towing and storage company, or any other representative of the Village shall have the right to enter and remove such vehicle from any premises where the vehicle may be found and to dispose of the vehicle. Neither the Village nor any person acting on behalf of the Village shall be liable to any person for the disposal or destruction of junk vehicles. The right of entry shall not be limited in any way by the existence or lack of existence of a request, authorization, license, or other consent or approval of entry, inspection, or removal.
(2) The owner, occupant, or tenant of the premises upon which the aforementioned junk vehicle is located shall be charged the actual cost of labor, equipment, and disposal of the junk vehicle or vehicles with a minimum charge of one (1) hour of labor for the combined average wage of two (2) employees of the Village and one (1) hour of the hourly wage of one (1) law enforcement officer, on behalf of the Village. Such charges are due and are payable joint and severally by the owner, occupant, or tenant of the premises upon which the junk vehicle was located within thirty (30) days of receipt of the invoice or after the hearing before the Village Council if a hearing is requested prior to the date upon which the minimum charges are otherwise required to be paid.
(Ord. 2022-01. Passed 2-14-22.)