Have many of you had problems with city ordinances for junk cars?

[momo]

So, my situation is this:

Flame_sk8er90 has generously offered me a free mk2 Jetta GLi, a pretty clean shell as it sounds, but with no engine (and a possibly shot 16v transmission). My plan was to take it off his hands and swap in an ABA or almost any other easily swappable engine once I can get the money for it. All went pretty fine until I read up on the city ordinances for Baxter, which I will post below. (most of the seemingly more important stuff is at the top)

Chapter 3
JUNK OR ABANDONED VEHICLES

6-3-1: JUNK VEHICLES:
6-3-1-1: DEFINITIONS:

As used in this section 6-3-1, the following words and terms shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section:

JUNK VEHICLE: A vehicle that:

A. Is three (3) years old or older;

B. Is extensively damaged, with the damage including such things as broken or missing wheels, motor, drive train, or transmission;

C. Is apparently inoperable;

D. Does not have a valid, current registration plate; and

E. Has an approximate fair market value equal only to the approximate value of the scrap in it.


PERSON: Any person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, company or organization of any kind.

PROPERTY: Any real property within the city which is not a street or highway.

STREET OR HIGHWAY: The entire width between the boundary lines of any way or place when any part thereof is open to the use of the public for purposes of vehicular travel.

VEHICLE: Every device in, upon, or by which any person or property is or may be transported or drawn upon a highway, excepting devices used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks. (Ord. 42, 6-5-1984; amd. 2002 Code)
6-3-1-2: PARKING AND STORAGE PROHIBITED:

It is unlawful for any person in charge or control of any property within the corporate limits of the city, whether as owner, tenant, occupant, lessee, or otherwise, to allow or in any manner permit any junk vehicle to remain on such property for a period longer than ninety six (96) hours, unless housed within a lawfully erected building or unless the junk vehicle is on the premises of a bona fide business enterprise operated in a lawful place and manner and such junk vehicle is necessary to the operation of such business enterprise. (Ord. 42, 6-5-1984)
6-3-1-3: NUISANCE DECLARED:

Any violation of this section 6-3-1 is hereby declared to be a public nuisance pursuant to the authority granted in Minnesota statutes section 412.221, subdivision 23, and subject to further provisions of title 4, chapter 1 of this code. (Ord. 42, 6-5-1984)
6-3-1-4: PENALTY:

Any person who parks or stores a junk vehicle within city limits in violation hereof is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be subject to penalty as provided in section 1-4-1 of this code. (Ord. 42, 6-5-1984; amd. 2002 Code)
6-3-2: ABANDONED MOTOR VEHICLES:

Notwithstanding title 1, chapter 9 of this code, the following shall apply to abandoned motor vehicles: (Ord. 42, 6-5-1984)
6-3-2-1: DEFINITIONS:

As used in this section 6-3-2, the following words and terms shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section:

ABANDONED VEHICLE: A. A motor vehicle as defined in Minnesota statutes section 168B.011 that:
1. Has remained illegally: a) for a period of more than forty eight (48) hours on any property owned or controlled by a unit of government, or more than four (4) hours on that property when it is properly posted; or b) on private property for a period of time, as determined under Minnesota statutes section 168B.04, subdivision 2, without the consent of the person in control of the property; and
2. Lacks vital component parts or is in an inoperable condition such that it has no substantial potential for further use consistent with its usual functions, unless it is kept in an enclosed garage or storage building.

B. A classic car or pioneer car, as defined in Minnesota statutes section 168.10, is not considered an abandoned vehicle.

C. Vehicles on the premises of junk yards and automobile graveyards that are defined, maintained, and licensed in accordance with Minnesota statutes section 161.242, or that are licensed and maintained in accordance with local laws and zoning regulations, are not considered abandoned vehicles.

D. A vehicle being held for storage by agreement or being held under police authority or pursuant to a writ or court order is not considered abandoned, nor may it be processed as abandoned while the police hold, writ, or court is in effect.


VITAL COMPONENT PARTS: Those parts of a motor vehicle that are essential to the mechanical functioning of the vehicle, including such things as the motor, drive train and wheels. (Ord. 42, 6-5-1984; amd. 2002 Code)
6-3-2-2: POWER TO IMPOUND:

The city police department shall take into custody and impound any abandoned motor vehicle. (Ord. 42, 6-5-1984)
6-3-2-3: NOTICE OF IMPOUNDMENT:

A. Notice Required: When an abandoned motor vehicle is taken into custody, the police department shall give notice of the taking within ten (10) days.

B. Contents Of Notice: The notice shall set forth the date and place of the taking, the year, make, model and serial number of the abandoned motor vehicle and the place where the vehicle is being held, shall inform the owner and any lienholders of their right to reclaim the vehicle under section 6-3-2-4 of this chapter, and shall state that failure of the owner or lienholders to exercise their right to reclaim the vehicle be deemed a waiver by them of all right, title and interest in the vehicle and consent to the sale of the vehicle at a public auction pursuant to section 6-3-2-5 of this chapter.

C. Service Of Notice: The notice shall be sent by certified mail to the owner, if any, of the abandoned motor vehicle and to all readily identifiable lienholders of record. If it is impossible to determine with reasonable certainty the identity and address of the registered owner and all lienholders, the notice shall be published once in a newspaper of general circulation in the area where the motor vehicle was abandoned. Published notices may be grouped together for convenience and economy. (Ord. 42, 6-5-1984)
6-3-2-4: REDEMPTION:

A. Right To Reclaim: The owner or any lienholder of an abandoned motor vehicle shall have a right to reclaim such vehicle from the city, upon payment of all towing and storage charges resulting from taking the vehicle into custody within fifteen (15) days after the date of the notice required by section 6-3-2-3 of this chapter.

B. Garagekeeper Lien; Right To Foreclose: Nothing in section 6-3-2-2 or 6-3-2-3 of this chapter shall be construed to impair any lien of a garagekeeper under the laws of this state, or the right of a lienholder to foreclose. For the purpose of this section, "garagekeeper" is an operator of a parking facility, or an operator of an establishment for the servicing, repair or maintenance of motor vehicles. (Ord. 42, 6-5-1984)
6-3-2-5: UNCLAIMED VEHICLES; SALE:

A. Sale; Notice: An abandoned motor vehicle taken into custody and not reclaimed under section 6-3-2-4 of this chapter shall be sold to the highest bidder at public auction or sale, following two (2) weeks published notice thereof.

B. Receipt: The purchaser shall be given a receipt which shall be sufficient title to dispose of the vehicle. The receipt shall also entitle the purchaser to register the vehicle and receive a certificate of title, free and clear of all liens and claims of ownership.

C. Immediate Sale: When an abandoned motor vehicle is more than seven (7) model years of age, is lacking vital component parts, and does not display a license plate currently valid in Minnesota or any other state or foreign country, it shall immediately be eligible for sale at public auction, and shall not be subject to the notification, reclamation, or title provisions of sections 6-3-2-3 or 6-3-2-4 of this chapter.

D. No Bid Received: Where no bid has been received for an abandoned motor vehicle, the city may dispose of it pursuant to contract under Minnesota statutes section 68B.10.

E. Proceeds Of Sale: From the proceeds of the sale of an abandoned motor vehicle, the city shall reimburse itself for the cost of towing, preserving and storing the vehicle, and all notice and publication costs incurred pursuant to this section 6-3-2. Any remainder from the proceeds of a sale shall be held for the owner of the vehicle or entitled lienholder for ninety (90) days and then be deposited in the city treasury. (Ord. 42, 6-5-1984)
6-3-2-6: PENALTY:

Any person who abandons a motor vehicle on any public or private property, without the consent of the person in control of such property, is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be subject to penalty as provided in section 1-4-1 of this code. (Ord. 42, 6-5-1984; amd. 2002 Code)

The problem with this is that my parents won't let me use the garage... however I do have a car cover. What really sucks is that I live on a pretty often traveled street, so if I put a car cover on it (which I do have), I'm thinking it might get noticed.

So, do you guys think I would get noticed with it under a car cover in the front yard for awhile, or have any ideas?

Thanks!
-Taylor

[magz]

Don't know how anal they are up there, but I got a nastygram from Minneapolis a couple years ago for a car I had sitting in my driveway. It was an old B3 Audi 90 that I picked up with the intention of making it in to a winter beater/ice racer/bar car. Didn't run when I bought it, and never quite got around to making it run on its own power. It was super beat up, no front bumper or headlights, one tire was flat, etc.

So it sat hidden in the gravel driveway of the place I was renting, out of sight from the street, for a solid 6-9 months. One day I went to drive to work and found a big warning ticket from the city pasted on the window. It gave a big laundry list of shit that was against city ordinance, and gave me like 7 days to move it. If it wasn't gone when they came back, the car would be towed/impounded and I would have to pay to get it back.

I ended up just giving the car away to the A&P guys and wrote off my loss as a life lesson. I still have no idea who found the car & reported it since the only way you could see the car was if you specifically walked around the side of the house looking for it. Unless you have a dedicated garage space or a shelter for the car, I would be weary of leaving a car with no engine sitting in your yard.

[momo]

Thanks for the input.

And yeah, sounds like it won't work... we don't even have fences around our house, and it would be right in plain view of the street. So it seems like unless I can get it running within just a few days (which is very likely that that wouldn't happen, even if I had the engine at hand, being a first-timer at this sort of thing), it won't be able to work.

[palmer]

Put a plate on it? register it?

Seems like that would take care of things.

[JTapper]

I have Hamsteaks old 1991 Saab 9000 in my driveway still. Hasn't moved since I picked it up. I just start it once a week. They haven't said anything....YET....

[TJ914]

Having done code enforcement for a couple of Cities I'm fairly familiar with these types of situations.

Looking at Baxter's ordinance they're quite a bit more strict than other Cities. I think in Hugo you can have up to two unlicensed vehicles on your property, but that doesn't really help you any.

For the most part Cities tend to enforce issues like this on a complaint basis, as opposed to driving around and looking for violators. So provided no one complains you can probably get away with anything, but if someone does you'll need to have a way of signifying that it is not a "junk vehicle". The car cover should help hide the vehicle as an obvious violation, but it won't change the actual status of it.

Looking at the ordinance it appears that the easiest way to avoid the issue is to have the vehicle licensed. I don't know what the procedure is for that, and if it can be obtained for a non-running vehicle, but slapping a plate with valid tags on it will make it so that the vehicle no longer qualifies under the definition of "junk vehicle". If you can do that, then you don't have an issue with this ordinance.

Though this doesn't necessarily mean you can just park a car in your front lawn. There is a good possiblity that may also be prohibited by ordinance regardless of the licensing of the vehicle. So you might still be SOL. You may just want to contact the City and speak with someone in planning and zoning and ask what the regulations are for storing vehicle's on one's property.

[Dakota_Ice]

Bloomington was quite quick on letting me know that my son's car, parked in the driveway with a tarp over it, was not allowed (he was getting engine work done). I was nice enough to go without a garage spot for my car that winter.

[Golf_Ballz]

Is the car an eye-soar (lots of people consider car covers to be eye-soars)?
Are your neighbors a-holes?
Is is going to be hard to get plates for the car?

If you answered yes to any of these, its probably not going to work. I've had cars sitting at all the places I've lived (NE Minneapolis, Ramsey, Andover) without problems. But if you piss your neighbors off, all it takes is one complaint to get the city out there.

[BimmerTim]

sore......eye-sore

[Lendo]

I'm working on getting a residence red tagged. Some jamokes have this rusted out Honda CRX and it's parked on the lawn of my development.

I can only see it if I go out of my way, but the guy is suck a jamoke I can't let it go.

[BimmerTim]

What is a "jamoke"

[sgtstein]

Jamoke - A clumsy loser who is incapable of doing normal human tasks. "That stupid jamoke cant even cut the grass the right way."

From: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=jamoke

[BimmerTim]

Thank you.

I don't like to look things up for myself when you jamokes will do it for me.

[sgtstein]

I was bored and my arms/fingers are going numb from sanding. So, being focused on that this jamoke doesn't seem to care.

[momo]

Haha, my neighbors are pretty nice actually... and after I make this post I'll get on the Phone with the Baxter pd, let see how that goes.