TOWN OF ST. PAUL , TEXAS

ORDINANCE NO. 34

AN ORDINANCE OF THE TOWN OF ST. PAUL , TEXAS ,

DEFINING A JUNKED VEHICLE; ESTABLISHING A JUNKED VEHICLE AS A PUBLIC NUISANCE; PROVIDING FOR NOTICE TO ABATE OR REMOVE JUNKED VEHICLES;
PROVIDING A MEANS FOR DISPOSITION OF JUNKED VEHICLES; PROVIDING A PENALTY NOT TO EXCEED TWO HUNDRED DOLLARS ($200.00) FOR EACH VIOLATION; PROVIDING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE AND EFFECTIVE DATE.

BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF ST. PAUL ,
TEXAS THAT:

A.  JUNKED VEHICLE DEFINED

 Junked vehicle means any motor vehicle as defined in  Section 1 of Article 6701d-ll, Vernon 's Texas Civil Statutes, as amended, which:

 (1) is inoperative and which does not have lawfully     affixed thereto both an unexpired license plate or plates and a valid motor vehicle safety inspection certificate and which is wrecked; dismantled; partially dismantled; or discarded; or

(2)  remains inoperable for a continuous period of more than one hundred-twenty (120) days.

 B. JUNKED VEHICLES WITHIN THE CITY DEEMED PBLIC NUISANCE;      EXCEPTIONS

The location or presence of any junked vehicle or junked vehicles on any lot, tract, parcel of land or portion thereof, occupied or unoccupied, improved or unimproved,
within the Town of St. Paul shall be deemed a public nuisance and it shall be unlawful for any person or persons to cause or maintain such public nuisance by
wrecking, dismantling, rendering inoperable, abandoning or discharging his or their vehicle or vehicles on the property of another or to suffer, permit, or allow the
same to be placed, maintained, or exist upon his or their own real property; provided that this section

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shall not apply to (1) a vehicle or part thereof which 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 or part thereof which is stored or parked in a lawful manner on private property in connection with the business of a licensed vehicle dealer or a junkyard; or (3) unlicensed, operable or inoperable antique or special
interest vehicles stored on private property provided, however, that the vehicles and outdoor storage areas 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, trees, shrubbery, or other appropriate means.

 C.  NOTICE TO ABATE OR REMOVE JUNKED VEHICLES

Whenever such public nuisance as described in subsection B hereabove exists within the city, the code enforcement officer or any police officer or other designated official enforcing this ordinance shall either serve written
notice personally or by registered mail with a return receipt requested the following notice as appropriate:

 (1) Nuisances on Private Property

To the owners or the occupant of the private premises where upon such public nuisance exists stating the nature of the public nuisance on the private property and that it must be removed and abated within ten (10) days and further that a request for a hearing must be made before the expiration of said ten (10) day period.

 (2)  Nuisances on Public Property or Right-Of-Way

To the owners of the alleged public nuisance where upon it exists on public property or on a public right-of-way stating the nature of the public nuisance and that it must be removed and abated within the ten (10) days and further that a request for a hearing must be made before the expiration of said ten (10) day period.

If the notice is returned undelivered by the U. S. Postal Service, official action to abate said nuisance shall be continued to a date not less than ten (10) days from the date of such return.

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D. PUBLIC HEARINGS

Whenever a hearing is requested by the owner, occupant, or their designated representative to whom notice to abate a public nuisance has been served, said hearing shall be held before the governing body of the city within thirty (30) days after service of the notice to abate the nuisance. Any resolution or order requiring the removal of the junked vehicle or part thereof shall include a description of the vehicle, and the vehicle identification number and license number of the vehicle, if available.

E. FAILURE TO REMOVE JUNKED VEHICLES; DISPOSTION

If such junked vehicle is not removed and the public nuisance is not abated by said owner or occupant after notice is given in accordance with this  ordinance, the code enforcement officer or any police officer, or any person delegated by them, may enter the property and take possession of the junked vehicle or part thereof an remove it from the premises after a showing of the facts to the municipal court judge and such an order is issued by the court to have the same removed.

After any vehicle has been removed it shall not be reconstructed or made operable.

Junked vehicles, and/or parts thereof, may be disposed of by removal to a scrapyard, demolishers, or any suitable site operated by the city for processing as scrap or salvage.

 F. PENALTY FOR VIOLATIONS

     Any person who fails to comply with or violates any of the provisions of this ordinance shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall be fined not more than two hundred dollars ($200.00), and each and every day of such violation shall be a separate and complete offense.

 G. SEVERABILITY

 It is hereby declared to be the intention of the city council that the sections, paragraphs, sentences, clauses, and phrases of this ordinance are severable
and, if any phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph, or section of this ordinance shall be declared unconstitutional by the valid judgment or decree of any court of

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competent jurisdiction, such unconstitutionality shall not affect any of the remaining phrases, clauses, sentences, paragraphs, and sections of this ordinance, since the same would have been enacted by the city council without the incorporation in this ordinance of any such unconstitutional phrase, clause, sentence,paragraph, or section.

 H.  EFFECTIVE DATE

This ordinance will take effect immediately from and after its passage and publication as the law in such cases provides.

PASSED AND APPROVED this ____ day of _____________________,

1986, by the Town Council of the Town of St. Paul , Texas .

APPROVED:

                                 Mayor  Dennis R. Allen

ATTEST:

City Secretary   Joyce Pockrus

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