In this article:
(1) ANTIQUE VEHICLE means any passenger car or truck that:
(A) was manufactured in 1925 or before; or
(B) is at least 35 years old.
(2) COLLECTOR means the owner of one or more antique or special interest vehicles who collects, purchases, acquires, trades, or disposes of special interest or antique vehicles or parts of them for personal use in order to restore, preserve, and maintain an antique or special interest vehicle for historic interest.
(3) DIRECTOR means the director of the department designated by the city manager to enforce and administer this article or the director’s authorized representative.
(4) INOPERATIVE or INOPERABLE means incapable of being propelled on its own power due to dismantling, disrepair, or some other cause.
(5) JUNKED VEHICLE means any motor vehicle, as defined in Section 5.01 of Article 4477-9a, Vernon’s Texas Civil Statutes, as amended, that:
(A) is inoperative; and
(B) does not have lawfully affixed to it either an unexpired license plate or a valid motor vehicle safety inspection certificate; is wrecked, dismantled, partially dismantled, or discarded; or remains inoperable for a continuous period of more than 45 days.
(6) SPECIAL INTEREST VEHICLE means a motor vehicle of any age that has not been altered or modified from original manufacturer’s specifications and, because of its historic interest, is being preserved by hobbyists. (Ord. Nos. 13900; 14494; 15720; 17226; 20599)
(a) The presence of any junked vehicle on any private lot, tract, or parcel of land, occupied or unoccupied, improved or unimproved, or on any public right-of-way or other public property, within the city, is a public nuisance.
(b) A person commits an offense if he causes or maintains such a public nuisance by wrecking, dismantling, partially dismantling, rendering inoperable, abandoning, or discarding a motor vehicle on a public right-of-way or other public property or on the real property of another or permits a junked vehicle to be parked, left, or maintained on personal real property.
(c) If the director reasonably believes that a vehicle is inoperable, the director may request the owner or person claiming control of the vehicle to demonstrate that it is operable. (Ord. Nos. 13900; 14494; 15720; 20599)
This article does not apply to:
(1) a vehicle or vehicle part that 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 on the premises of a business enterprise operated in a lawful manner, when necessary to the operation of the business enterprise;
(3) a vehicle or vehicle part in an appropriate storage place or depository maintained at a location officially designated and in a manner approved by the city;
(4) an unlicensed, operable, or inoperable antique or special interest vehicle stored by a collector on the collector’s property, if the vehicle and the outdoor storage area are maintained in such a manner that they do not constitute a health hazard and are screened from ordinary public view by means of a fence, rapidly growing trees, shrubbery, or other appropriate means;
(5) a motor vehicle in operable condition specifically adapted or constructed for racing or operation on privately-owned drag strips or raceways; or
(6) a motor vehicle stored as the property of a member of the armed forces of the United States who is on active duty assignment. (Ord. Nos. 13900; 14494; 15720; 20599; 22413)
(a) Whenever a public nuisance exists on public property, on occupied premises, or on the public right-of-way adjacent to occupied premises within the city in violation of Section 18-20, the director shall order the owner, if the owner is in possession of the premises, or the occupant of the premises, to abate or remove the nuisance.
(b) Whenever a public nuisance exists on unoccupied premises or on the public right-of-way adjacent to unoccupied premises within the city in violation of Section 18-20, and the owner of the premises can be found, the director shall order the owner of the premises to abate or remove the nuisance.
(c) An order issued under Subsection (a) or (b) shall be served upon the last known registered owner of the junked vehicle and any lienholder of record and to the owner or, if the premises are occupied, the occupant of the premises on which the public nuisance exists or the premises adjacent to the public right-of- way on which the public nuisance exists by sending the order by certified mail, five-day return receipt requested, to their addresses as shown on the current city tax rolls or as last recorded with the United States Post Office. If the post office address of the last known registered owner of the junked vehicle is unknown, the order to that person may be placed on the junked vehicle, or, if that person is physically located, the order may be hand delivered. The order shall:
(1) be in writing;
(2) specify the public nuisance and its location;
(3) specify the corrective measures required;
(4) provide for compliance within 10 days after service of notice; and
(5) state that a request for a hearing must be made before expiration of the 10-day period for compliance.
(d) If the last known registered owner of the junked vehicle, any lienholder of record, and the owner or, if the premises are occupied, the occupant of the premises all fail or refuse to comply with the order of the director within the 10-day period after service of notice, the director may take possession of the junked vehicle and remove it from the premises. After removing a junked vehicle, the director shall dispose of the vehicle in such manner as the city council may provide that is consistent with state law, and the vehicle shall not be reconstructed or made operable.
(e) The owner or occupant of the premises may, within the 10-day period after service of notice to abate the nuisance, request the clerk of the municipal court of the city, either in person or in writing and without the requirement of bond, to set a date and time to appear before the judge of the municipal court for a trial to determine whether the person is in violation of this article. The trial shall be set as provided in Section 18-24. If a hearing is requested within 10 days after service of notice to abate the nuisance, then the director shall not order the removal of the junked vehicle until ordered to do so by the judge of the municipal court.
(f) If the owner or, if the premises are occupied, the occupant of the premises fails to either remove and abate the nuisance or to request a hearing within 10 days after service of notice to abate the nuisance, then the director may cause both the removal of the junked vehicle and the filing in municipal court of a complaint for the violation of maintaining a public nuisance. (Ord. Nos. 13900; 14494; 15720; 16367; 20599; 21025)
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