City: Inoperable vehicle ordinance doesn’t need a tune-up

By KARI BLURTON
Hays Post

Hays City Commissioner Ron Mellick said “the wheel is not broken” as city commissioners agreed the vehicle abatement ordinance should not be amended for commercial businesses at Tuesday’s work session.

The city’s ordinance bans businesses and residences from parking inoperable vehicles on property for extended periods of time unless the vehicle is hidden from view in a building or behind a fence. After the discussion at the work session, it appears unlikely any action will be taken in a regular meeting to alter that regulation.

The issue was brought to commissioners after Chris Miller, owner of Auto Tech, 600-602 Vine, received an vehicle abatement notice in December and argued the ordinance hurt business owners like himself whose job it is to work on inoperable vehicles.

Miller has since removed the vehicles in question but was present — along with more than 20 of his supporters — at Tuesday’s commission meeting.

Miller and Scott Simpson, owner of Best Radiator, asked commissioners to exempt commercial businesses from the vehicle abatement ordinance or at least come to “middle ground” and give business like theirs more than 10 days to contact the owner or tow the vehicle.

Mellick said inoperable vehicles at a business is not the problem.

“What catches someone’s eye is vehicles with no tags, no windows, tires on blocks,” he said.

City Manager Toby Dougherty added, “Typically tickets are given to someone who has a car (on property) that has been there for six months to a year.”

Dougherty also said when it comes to “extenuating circumstances,” property owners are welcome to address the city commission once a notice is given, and the city will try to work with them.

A 13-page report prepared by city staff concerning the city’s abatement ordinance was also presented. The report sited similar vehicle abatement ordinances in 14 surrounding cities in the state.

Mayor Kent Steward noted he had not seen so many people at a meeting in years and was glad the ordinance was brought to the table but believed commercial businesses having “total exemption is not the answer.”