ARTICLE XXVII. TOWING CARRIERS

Sec. 7-514. Definitions.

   Sec. 7-514(a). Business hours are 8:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. on Saturday.

   Sec. 7-514(b). Parking area means one or more spaces not affiliated with a single-family residence, intended for temporary public motor vehicle parking.

   Sec. 7-514(c). Property owner means a person who owns private property, including the authorized representative of the property owner.

   Sec. 7-514(d). Tow includes transport by any means.

   Sec. 7-514(e). Towing carrier means any person who tows, or attempts to tow, motor vehicles from private property in the city, for compensation of any kind.

   Sec. 7-514(f). Vehicle owner means the person who owns a motor vehicle, including the vehicle operator and authorized agent of the vehicle owner.

(Ord. No. 12055, § 1, 11-14-23; Ord. No. 12099, § 1, 6-4-24)

Sec. 7-515. Applicability.

Sections 7-514 through 7-528 apply to a towing carrier operating in the city, and all transactions related to a tow that originates in the city, regardless of the impound lot location. Police- and fire-directed tows, as well as city-directed tows from city property, shall be exempt from this article.

(Ord. No. 12055, § 1, 11-14-23)

Sec. 7-516. Private parking areas-generally.

No person shall park a vehicle on any private property without the express or implied consent of the property owner. The property owner of any private parking area is deemed to have given consent to unrestricted parking by the general public in such parking area unless parking restrictions are otherwise posted in accordance with Section 7-517.

(Ord. No. 12055, § 1, 11-14-23)

Sec. 7-517. Required signs.

   (a)   To tow a motor vehicle from a private parking area, the following signs are required.

   (b)   The signs shall contain the following information:

   (1)   Warning-Private Property;

   (2)   Parking violators towed at owner's expense;

   (3)   Maximum cost to the violator, including storage fees and any other charges that could result from the disposition of a vehicle parked in violation of parking restrictions;

   (4)   Towing carrier phone number and address where vehicle can be located; and

   (5)   A reference to Tucson Code, Sections 7-514 through 7-528.

   (c)   The signs shall be located to put drivers on notice that the area restricts public parking:

   (1)   At each entrance to the private parking area, including each entrance to a multi-level parking garage and each entrance to a multi-family residential development where parking is not contiguous; and

   (2)   In surface private parking areas to be clearly visible and readable from any point in the private parking area.

   (d)   The size and height of signs shall be:

   (1)   At each entrance to a private parking area:

   (A)   Minimum size: twelve (12) inches by eighteen (18) inches.

   (B)   Height range above the ground: minimum height of three (3) feet and maximum height of six (6) feet.

   (2)   Within surface private parking areas:

   (A)   Minimum size: nine (9) inches by twelve (12) inches.

   (B)   Height range above the ground: minimum height of three (3) feet and maximum height of ten (10) feet.

   (e)   The minimum height range above the ground is measured from the bottom of the sign. The maximum height range above the ground is measured from the top of the sign.

   (f)   All signs shall:

   (1)   Be red and white or blue and white, except as provided below for property owners' associations;

   (2)   Be rigid and inflexible, and include those made of metal, sturdy plastic, or other material that resists bending;

   (3)   Be flat; and

   (4)   Be fade resistant and weather resistant.

   (g)   Signs located on private parking areas owned by a property owners' association in an area containing private streets shall conform to the requirements of subsection (f) above, except that the signs may have contrasting colors other than red and white or blue and white.

   (h)   Signs at each entrance to a private parking area shall be reflective.

   (i)   Signs shall be updated within 90 days of any changes in circumstances or the law.

   (j)   Signs are required to conform to this section six months after the effective date of the ordinance from which this article is derived.

   (k)   Additional signs regarding towing from private parking areas are permitted in conformance with the Tucson Code, including no parking signs, if the information on the signs does not conflict with the information required by subsection (b) above.

(Ord. No. 12055, § 1, 11-14-23)