(A) No person in charge or having control of any private property or premises within the corporate limits of the city, whether as owner, operator, agent, tenant, lease holder, firm, corporation or entity capable of holding title of real property shall park or store any vehicle or equipment which is:
(1) In front of one or two-family dwellings or legal, non-conforming uses located in R-1 or R-2 zones, except in front of an attached or detached building, garage, carport or open parking area not in front of the principal structure. On corner lots or lots having more than one property line abutting a public street, these restrictions shall extent to those areas of the structure as if it fronted on only a single street. Vehicle or equipment parking shall not be permitted on a permanent basis on areas not paved or graveled except as otherwise provided in this section or on a temporary basis if approved by the Zoning Officer; and
(2) Abandoned, junk, abandoned junk, unlicensed, unused, wrecked, dismantled, partly dismantled or inoperable, including licensed or unlicensed inoperable collector’s vehicles and licensed or unlicensed inoperable historical vehicles, whether owned by him or her or another person on any street or highway or public or private property or premises for a period not to exceed 30 days, except in a duly licensed junkyard, automobile salvage yard, motor vehicle salvage dealer’s yard or towing service yard. The absence of current license plates from any such motor vehicle shall be prima facie evidence that the same is unlicensed and not in operating condition.
(3) Vehicles subject to division (A)(2) above which are not stored in an exempted facility shall be stored out of view inside a completely enclosed building or garage or under a covered carport but not including a vehicle only covered by a vehicle cover, tarp or cloth.
(B) No person in charge or having control of any private property or premises within a residential zone or property used for residential purposes within the corporate limits of the city, whether as owner, operator, agent, tenant, lease holder, firm, corporation or entity capable of holding title of real property shall park or store on any street or highway or public or private property or premises any:
(1) Commercial vehicle, semi-trailer, truck tractor, tractor trailer, heavy truck, moving van, delivery truck, step-up van, box truck, dump truck, tow truck, wrecker, bus, school bus, crane, dragline, earthmover, bulldozer, backhoe, trencher or vehicle transporting hazardous or flammable materials except one commercial vehicle not exceeding a gross weight of 8,500 pounds or an overall height of 82 inches. An exempt vehicle must be parked in a completely enclosed building or garage or on an approved hard-surfaced or gravel driveway; or
(2) Recreational vehicle or equipment except one recreational vehicle or piece of equipment not in excess of 24 feet in overall length and in accordance with the following conditions.
(a) Recreational vehicles or equipment parked or stored shall not have fixed connections to electricity, water, gas or sanitary sewer facilities, and, at no time, shall this equipment be used for separate living or housekeeping purposes.
(b) Recreational vehicles or equipment may be parked or stored anywhere on the premises upon an approved hard-surface driveway or parking area or out of view inside a completely enclosed building or garage or under a covered carport. The vehicle or equipment shall be setback a minimum of five feet from an adjacent property line.
(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of division (B)(2)(a) above, recreational vehicles and equipment, not in excess of 24 feet in overall length, may be parked anywhere on the premises for loading or unloading purposes for a period of not more than 24 hours.
(d) Recreational vehicles and equipment must be kept in good repair and carry a valid registration and current license.
(C) Upon notice of a violation of this section, the Zoning Officer may, by certified mail with return receipt requested, send notice to the person having the right to the possession of the property on which is left a vehicle or equipment subject to divisions (A)(2) or (B) above, send notice stating that the vehicle or equipment is a public nuisance and within ten days of receipt of the notice, such vehicle or equipment shall be stored in a completely enclosed building or garage or under a covered carport, or shall be removed from the property. Vehicles or equipment in violation of division (A)(1) above may also store a licensed and operable vehicle or equipment on an approved hard-surfaced or gravel driveway.
(D) Any person in violation of this section shall be deemed guilty of a minor misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than permitted by law for each day during which illegal location continues may be deemed a separate offense.
(E) Upon conviction, the Zoning Officer, through the City Attorney, or any adjacent or neighboring property owner who would be specially damaged by such violation, in addition to other remedies provided by law, may institute injunction, mandamus, abatement or any other appropriate action, actions, proceeding or proceedings to prevent, enjoin, abate or remove such unlawful location.
(F) The Zoning Officer, after ten days’ notice to any person subject to this division (F) and upon notification to the Chief of Police, may order removal and storage of any vehicle or equipment that has been left on any street or highway or public or private property or premises within the corporate limits of the city subject to the following procedures.
(1) The Chief of Police shall designate the place of storage of any vehicle or equipment so ordered removed. The Chief of Police immediately shall cause a search to be made of the records of the Bureau of Motor Vehicles to ascertain the owner and any lienholder of a vehicle or equipment ordered into storage by the Zoning Officer, and, if known, shall send or cause to be sent notice to the owner or lienholder at the owner’s or lienholder’s last known address by certified mail with return receipt requested, stating that the vehicle is a public nuisance and shall be disposed of if not claimed within ten days of the date of mailing of the notice. The owner or lienholder of the vehicle or equipment may reclaim it upon payment of any expenses or charges incurred in its removal and storage, and presentation of proof of ownership, which may be evidenced by a certificate of title or memorandum certificate of title to the vehicle or equipment. If the owner or lienholder of the vehicle or equipment reclaims it after a search of the records of the bureau has been conducted and after notice has been sent to the owner or lienholder as described in this section, and the search was conducted by the owner of the place of storage or the owner’s employee, and the notice was sent to the vehicle or equipment owner by the owner of the place of storage or the owner’s employee, the owner or lienholder shall pay to the place of storage a processing fee of $25, in addition to any expenses or charges incurred in the removal and storage of the vehicle.
(2) The owner of a vehicle or equipment that is ordered into storage pursuant to this section may reclaim it upon payment of any expenses or charges incurred in its removal, in an amount not to exceed $90, and storage, in an amount not to exceed $12 per 24-hour period; except that the charge for towing shall not exceed $150, and the storage charge shall not exceed $20 per 24-hour period, if the vehicle or equipment has a manufacturer’s gross vehicle weight rating in excess of 10,000 pounds and is a truck, bus or a combination of a commercial tractor and trailer or semi-trailer. Presentation of proof of ownership, which may be evidenced by a certificate of title to the vehicle or equipment, shall also be required for reclamation of the vehicle or equipment. If a vehicle or equipment that is ordered into storage remains unclaimed by the owner for 30 days, the procedures established in this section shall apply.
(3) (a) If the owner or lienholder makes no claim to the vehicle or equipment within ten days of the date of mailing of the notice, and if the vehicle is to be disposed of at public auction, as provided in R.C. § 4513.62, the Chief of Police, without charge to any party, shall file with the County Clerk of Courts an affidavit showing compliance with the requirements of this section. Upon presentation of the affidavit, the Clerk, without charge, shall issue a salvage certificate of title, free and clear of all liens end encumbrances, to the Chief of Police.
(b) If the vehicle or equipment is to be disposed of to an automobile salvage yard, junkyard, motor vehicle salvage dealer, scrap metal processing facility, towing service yard or other facility designated by the Chief of Police, the Chief shall execute in triplicate an affidavit, as prescribed by the registrar of motor vehicles, describing the vehicle or equipment and the manner in which it was disposed of, and that all requirements of this section have been complied with. The Chief of Police shall retain the original of the affidavit for the Chief’s records, and shall furnish two copies to the automobile salvage yard, junkyard, motor vehicle salvage dealer, scrap metal processing facility, towing service yard or other facility where the vehicle or equipment has been ordered into storage by the Chief of Police. Upon presentation of a copy of the affidavit by the automobile salvage yard, junkyard, motor vehicle salvage dealer, scrap metal processing facility, towing service yard or other facility, the Clerk of Courts, within 30 days of the presentation, shall issue to such owner a salvage certificate of title, free and clear of all liens and encumbrances.
(4) Whenever an automobile salvage yard, junkyard, motor vehicle salvage dealer, scrap metal processing facility, towing service yard or other facility where the vehicle or equipment has been ordered into storage by the Chief of Police receives an affidavit for the disposal of a vehicle or equipment as provided in this section, the dealer or facility shall not be required to obtain a state certificate of title to the motor vehicle in the dealer’s or facility’s own name if the vehicle is dismantled or destroyed and both copies of the affidavit are delivered to the Clerk of Courts.
(Prior Code, § 27.05.17.14)