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O87-02ORDINANCE NO. 87-~.--- AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA, REPEALING ARTICLE III, CHAPTER 10, "ABANDONED, WRECKED OR JUNKED VEHICLES", OF THE CODE OF ORDINANCES OF THE CITY OF BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA; BY ENACTING A NEW ARTICLE III, "ABANDONED PROPERTY", TO PROVIDE FOR THE DISPOSITION OF WRECKED AND ABANDONED PROPERTY WITHIN THE CONFINES OF BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA; BY ENACTING A NEW SECTION 10-50, "DEFINITIONS"; BY ENACTING A NEW SECTION 10-51, "ABANDONMENT OF PROPERTY OR WRECKED OR INOPERABLE MOTOR VEHICLES ON PUBLIC PROPERTY PROHIBITED AND DECLARED A NUISANCE", PROVIDING FOR A PROHIBITION AGAINST THE STORAGE OB ABANDONED, WRECKED OR INOPERABLE MOTOR VEHICLES ON PUBLIC PROPERTY AND PROVIDING A NOTICE PROVISION PROVID- ING FOR REMOVAL OF SAID PROPERTY; BY ENACTING A NEW SECTION 10-52 "STORING, PARKING, OR LEAVING WRECKED OR INOPERABLE MOTOR VEHICLES ON PRIVATE PROPERTY, PROHIBITED AND DECLARED A NUISANCE; EXCEPTIONS", PROVIDING A PROHIBITION AGAINST THE STORAGE OF PERSONAL PROPERTY ON PRIVATE REAL PROPERTY, PROVIDING FOR EXCEPTIONS, PROVIDING A NOTICE CLAUSE, PROVIDING A HEARING, AND PROVIDING FOR R~OVAL OF THE PROPERTY; BY ENACTING A NEW SECTION 10-53 "NUISANCE ABATEMENT BID PROCEDURE"; BY ENACTING A NEW SECTION 10-54 "ASSESSMENT OF COSTS, INTEREST AND ATTORNEY FEES; LIEN", PROVID- ING FOR THE ASSESSMENT OF COSTS AND ENFORCEMENT OF SUCH COSTS; PROVIDING A GENERAL REPEALER CLAUSE; PROVIDING A SAVINGS CLAUSE AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE. BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA, AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. That Chapter 10, Article III, "Abandoned, Wrecked or Junked Vehicles", of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Boynton Beach, Florida is hereby repealed in its entirety. SECTION 2. That Chapter 10, "Garbage, Trash and Offensive Conditions", of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Boynton Beach, Florida, is hereby amended by enacting a new Article III, "Abandoned Property", to read as follows: 10-50 Definitions. For the purposes of this article, the following words and phrases shall have the meaning set forth herein. According to context, words used in the present tense include the future, singular words include the plural, plural words include the singular, and masculine words shall include the feminine gender. (1) "Antique Motor Vehicle" is any motor vehicle of thirty-five (35) years or more which is registered with the State of Florida pursuant to Florida Statutes Section 320.086. 2) "City" is the City of Boynton Beach, Florida. 3) "Enforcement Officer" means those employees or other agents of the City designated by ordinance, or duly authorized and appointed by the City Manager, whose duty it is to enforce City Codes. This definition shall include law enforcement officers. (4) Inoperable Motor Vehicle" a Motor Vehicle shall be deemed inoperative and/or abandoned if a valid and current motor vehicle license is not affixed thereto in ~excess of thirty (30) calendar days; provided however, that this shall not apply to motor vehicles located on private property owned or leased by automobile dealers, new or used, possessing a current, valid, occupation license; nor shall this definition apply to any antique or collector vehicle which is registered with the State of Florida, pursuant to Fla. St. Sec. 320.086. (5) "Motor Vehicle" is a vehicle or conveyance which is self propelled and designed to travel along the ground, and includes, but is not limited to, automobiles, buses, mopeds, motorcycles, trucks, tractors, go-carts, golf carts, campers, motorhomes and trailers. (i6) "Private Property" is any real property within the City which is privately owned and which is not defined as public property herein. (7) "Public Property" means lands and improvements owned by the Federal government, the State of Florida, a County or a municipality and includes sovereignty submerged lands located adjacent to the County or municipality, buildings, grounds, parks, playgrounds, streets, sidewalks, parkways, rights-of-way, and other similar property. (8) "Wrecked Motor Vehicle" is any motor vehicle the condition of which is wrecked, dismantled, partially dismantled, incapable of operation by its own power on a public street, or from which the wheels, engine, transmission or any substantial part thereof have been removed. 10-51. Abandonment of Property or Wrecked or Inoperable Motor Vehicles on Public Property Prohibited and Declared a Nuisance. (a) Prohibited. No person shall abandon or leave any property or any motor vehicle, including a wrecked or inoperable motor vehicle, whether attended~or' not, upon any public property within the City for a period of time in excess of seventy-two (72) hours. The presence of such vehicles, or parts thereof, on public property is hereby declared to be a public nuisance which may be abated in accordance with the provisions of this Article. This section does not apply to motor vehicles parked or stored on public property by the City or any of its departments. (b) Nuisance Declared--Public Property. Whenever the City Manager or his or her designate of the City shall ascertain that an article of abandoned property is present on public property within the~limits of the City of Boynton Beach he or she shall cause a notice to be placed upon such article in substantially the following form: NOTICE TO THE OWNER AND ALL PERSONS INTERESTED IN THE ATTACHED PROPERTY. THIS PROPERTY, TO WIT: (Setting forth brief description) is unlawfully upon public property known as (setting forth brief description of location) and must be removed within ten (10) days from date of this notice; 2 otherwise it shall be presumed to be abandoned property and will be removed and destroyed by Order of the City of Boynton Beach. If the property is a motor vehicle, the owner will be liable for the costs of removal and destruction. Dated this: (setting forth the date of posting notice.) Signed: (setting forth name, title, address and telephone number of enforcement officer). (1) Such notice shall be not less than eight (8) inches by ten (10) inches and shall be sufficiently weatherproof to withstand normal exposure to the elements. In addition to posting, the enforcement officer shall make a reasonable effort to ascertain the name and address of the owner; and, if such is reasonably available to the enforcement officer, he shall mail a copy of such notice to the owner on or before the date of posting. 2 If, at the end of ten (10) days after posting such notice, the owner or any person interested in the abandoned vehicle or article described in such notice has not removed the article or articles from public property or demanded a hearing in compliance with the provisions of this article or shown reasonable cause for failure so to do, the enforcement officer may cause the article or the articles of abandoned property to be removed and destroyed. The salvage value, if any, of such article or articles shall be retained by the local government to be applied against the cost of removal and destruction thereof, as the cost of removal and destruction are paid by the owner as provided in subsection (10-53), in which case the salvage value may be deposited in the City of Boynton Beach general fund. 10-52. Storing, Parking, or Leaving Wrecked or Inoperable Motor Vehicles on Private Property Prohibited and Declared a Nuisance~ exceptions. (a) No person shall park, store, leave or permit the parking, storing or leaving of any abandoned property or wrecked or inoperable motor vehicle of any kind, whether attended or not, upon any private property within the City, except that, with respect to an inoperable motor vehicle, such vehicle may be parked, stored, or left on said property for a period of time not to exceed seventy-two (72) hours. The presence of such vehicles, or parts thereof, on private property is hereby declared a public nuisance which may be abated in accordance with provisions of this ordinance. (b) This section shall not apply to: (1) Any motor vehicle which is completely enclosed within a building, or unless it is held in connection with a business enterprise lawfully licensed by the City for the servicing and repair of such vehicle and properly operated in an appropriate business zone pursuant to the zoning Ordinances of the City; (2) Nor shall this section apply to any antique or collector vehicle which is registered with the State of Florida, pursuant to Fla. St. Sec.. 320.068. However, no more than two (2) antique motor vehicles may be retained by the same owner for collection purposes unless they are appropriately stored. 3 (c) Whenever the enforcement officer of the City shall ascertain'that an article or articles of abandoned property are p~esent on private property within the limits of the City of Boynton Beach in violation of the provisions of this article, the enforcement officer shall cause a notice to be placed upon such article in substantially the following form: NOTICE TO THE OWNER AND ALL PERSONS INTERESTED IN THE ATTACHED PROPERTY. This property, to wit: (setting forth brief description) located at (setting forth brief description of location) is improperly stored and is in violation of (setting forth ordinance or regulation violated) and must be removed within ten (10) days from the date of this notice unless a hearing has been demanded in accordance with the terms of Chapter 10, Boynton Beach Code of Ordinances within seven (7) days of the date of this notice; otherwise, it shall be presumed to be abandoned property and will be removed and destroyed by order of the City of Boynton beach and the owner will be liable for the costs of removal and destruction. Dated this: (setting forth date of posting of notice). Signed: (setting forth name, title, address, telephone number of enforcement officer). Such notice shall be not less than eight (8) inches by ten (10) inches and shall be sufficiently weatherproof to withstand normal exposure to the elements for a period of ten (10) days. In addition to posting the notice, on or before the date of posting the enforcement officer shall mail a copy of the notice to the owner of the real property upon which the abandoned articles are located, as shown by the real estate tax records used by the City of Boynton Beach, and if the abandoned property is a motor vehicle or boat, shall make a reasonable effort to ascertain the name and address of the owner and shall mail a copy of a notice to such owner. The notice shall also advise the person to whom the notices are applicable that they have seven (7) days from the date of posting and/or mailing of the notice to file a written petition to the City Manager or his designee for a hearing before a three (3) person board which shall be composed of the City Manager, the Director of Public Works, or the City Engineer, and the Director of Parks and Recreation, or their designees; which herein shall be held within ten (10) days of the date the petition is received by the City Manager. (d) Procedures. (1) Hearing. The issues to be determined at the said hearing are whether the conditions creating a nuisance, do in fact exist; why the conditions should not be abated by the City at the expense of the owner; the time limits for such abatement. The source of the condition shall not be a defense against the requirement that the condition shall be abated by the owner. If after a hearing the board determines that the conditions which exists on the property constitute a public nuisance, the owner or owners of the property shall have an additional seven (7) days to correct or remove the conditions after which the City shall have the right to have the conditions abated at the expense of the property owner. (2) Removal. If the owner or other interested person 4 has not requested a hearing within seven (7) days, the City shall have the right to have the objectionable condition corrected or removed at the expense of the owner. If the City has the condition abated and payment is not received within thirty (30) days after the filing of a notice of assessment for the cost of such work together with all costs of inspection and administration, the City shall have a lien placed against the property for the cost of the work, including inspection and administration cost, plus interest at the rate of eight (8) percent, plus reasonable attorneys fees and other costs of collecting said sums without further hearing. If, at the end of ten days after posting such notice, the owner or any person interested in the abandoned article or articles describing such notice has not removed the article or articles and complied~with the ordinance or regulations cited in the , the enforcement officer may cause by the local government to be applied against the cost of removal destruction thereof, unless the cost of ~nd destruction are paid by the owner as provided in subsection (10-54). The owner of any abandoned motor vehicle or the owner upon the real property upon which the vehicles or other abandoned property is located, who after notice is provided in this article, does not remove the vehicle or other property within the specified period then they shall be liable to the City of Boynton Beach for all costs of removal and destruction of such property, less any salvage value received by the local government. Upon such removal and destruction, the local government officer shall notify the owner of th~ amount owned and of the penalty provision of the section. (3) Notification of Removal to Owner and Other Interested Parties. The enforcement officer, after taking possession of any motor vehicle pursuant to this article, shall furnish notice in accordance with this section by certified mail (return receipt requested) to the last known registered owner of the motor vehicle at his last known address within fifteen (15) days of the date of which possession of the motor vehicle is taken, with a copy of the notice to the owner or occupant of the property from which the vehicle is taken. The enforcement officer shall also contact the Department of Motor Vehicles, State of Florida, and such other agencies and departments of government in this and other states as are reasonably necessary to ascertain the names and addresses of other persons with record interests in the motor vehicle, including lien holders. Such other persons shall be given notice in the same manner as stated in the previous section. Notice under this section shall contain the following information: (a) Year, make, model, and serial number of the motor vehicle. (b) The name and address of the last known registered owner of the motor vehicle, if available. (c) The vehicle registration number and the title registration number of the motor vehicle if available. (d) The date on which the motor vehicle was removed. (e) The location from which the motor vehicle was removed. (f) The location which the motor vehicle is being stored or in the alternative a number in which to contact. The Notice shall also advise the persons to whom it is given that the person who is entitled to possession of the motor vehicle may reclaim it upon payment to the City of all charges incurred by the City and the removal and storage of the motor vehicle, except that if such reclamation is not made within twenty (20) days after date of the notice, the right to reclaim the motor vehicle as well as all right, title and interest of said person in the vehicle, shall be deemed to be waived and that such person shall be deemed to have consented to the disposition of the motor vehicle by the City. If the City is unable to identify properly the last registered owner of any motor vehicle or if unable to obtain with reasonable certainty the names and addresses of the owner or other interested parties, including lienholders, it shall be sufficient notice under this section to publish the notice once in one newspaper of general circulation in the City of Boynton Beach. Such notice by publication may contain multiple listings of motor vehicles. A copy of any notice required in this section, as well as a copy of any certificate of sale issue hereunder by the City or its designee shall be forwarded to the Division of Motor Vehicles, State of Florida. 10-53. Nuisance Abatement Bid Procedure. The services entailed in carrying out the abatement of nuisances under this article may be performed by the City or be performed by an independent contractor obtained pursuant to the City's normal practices. 10-54. fees~ lien. Assessment of costs, interest and attorney's (a) Assessment. As soon after the abatement is feasible, the City Manager shall report to the City Council the cost of such abatement, including the costs of inspection and administration. Thereafter, the City Council shall by resolution assess the cost against any or all of the assets of the owner of the property or against the property from which the vehicle was removed. Such resolution shall describe the property assessed, including costs of inspection and administration, and indicate that the assessment shall bear interest at the rate of eight percent (8%) per annum plus, if collection proceedings are necessary, that the property owner would be required to pay the cost of such proceedings including reasonable attorney's fees. Such resolution shall become effective immediately upon adoption, and the assessment contained therein shall become due and payable after the mailing date of the notice of said assessment. In the event that payment has not been received within 6 the thirty (30) days after the mailing date of the notice of assessment, the City Clerk shall record a certified copy of the resolution in the public records of Palm Beach County, Florida, and upon the date and time of recording the certified copy of the resolution a lien shall become effective on the subject property which shall secure the cost of abatement, including costs of inspection and administration, and collection costs including a reasonable attorney's fee. At the time the City Clerk sends the certified copy of the resolution for recording a notice shall also be mailed to the property owner in substantially the following form: NOTICE OF LIEN TO: Date ADDRESS: You are hereby advised that the City of Boynton Beach did on or about the day of , 198 , abate the nuisance which was ~ound to exist on your property. The nuisance was abated at a cost, including costs of inspection and administration· of ! . In accordance with City Ordinar mailed to you a notice of ag The required payment has not pursuant to City Ordinance recorded against your prope~ resolution. Please take notJ addition to the original cog payment of eight per cent (~ cost of collection includin¢ At such time as the City of' payment for such lien, the representative will execute lien from your property, the be borne by you. CITY OF by: (B) Enforcement of As~ The City may enforce ti at law or foreclosure of the in the same manner as mortg~ law. In either type of actJ to interest at the rate of E of assessment, collection CE fees. Section 3. That all o] in conflict herewith be and Lces my office has previously :sessment requesting payment. ~ been received; therefore, · equirements a lien has been 'ty in the form of the attached .ce that the resolution, in :t of the abatement, requires I%) interest per annum and the I a reasonable attorney's fee. Boynton Beach has received ~ity Manager or his designated a release thereof to remove the recording cost of which shall BOYNTON BEACH~ FLORIDA :essment. Le assessment by either an action ~ lien, which shall be foreclosed Lges are foreclosed under Florida .on, the City shall be entitled tight per cent (8%) from the date ~st and reasonable attorney's 'dinances or parts of ordinances the same are hereby repealed. Section 4. That this ¢ ten (i-~ ~s ~fter passage FI~T READING this ~ [ day of ~. ~? ~ ~rdinance shall become effective on second and final reading. · 1987. 7 SECOND, FINAL READING AND PASSAGE this ~ day of ATTEST: City ~rk- CITY OF BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA Cou~il Member ~ ~ Coun~Member 8