City Manager Rogers told the council that the city has been stepping up enforcement on inoperable and abandoned vehicles and asked for direction on escalating remedies for vehicles that remain in residential areas.

“For the month of September, we had approximately a 150 citations issued on inoperable vehicles abandoned and so forth,” Rogers said, reporting staff activity and telling the council a third‑party towing contract is in development.

Council member Ford pressed for clearer expectations for residents whose neighborhoods have occupied motorhomes or long‑term RV parking. He asked how long an occupied vehicle might sit in front of a home and urged staff to research legal and operational options to shorten that timeline.

City Attorney Zareczek told the council the municipal code contemplates citation and progressive enforcement for abandoned vehicles but does not currently include a clear, automatic towing remedy where a vehicle is occupied. “There is not language that contemplates an automatic towing of a vehicle if it has not been abandoned,” he said, and recommended staff return with options, including potential code revisions.

Key facts and timelines mentioned during the reports and discussion:

- Staff reported roughly 150 citations for inoperable or abandoned vehicles in September.

- The city’s current rules distinguish between operable vehicles used for loading/unloading (48‑hour allowance) and abandoned vehicles (72‑hour posting requirement before removal procedures).

- City staff said a contract with a towing vendor is near completion and the city manager expected to have a clearer schedule for that contract by the end of the week.

- On commercial motor vehicle enforcement, staff reported one day of targeted enforcement with four stops, two inspections, four summons, 20 violations and five out‑of‑service violations.

What council asked staff to do: Council members asked staff and the city attorney to research approaches other municipalities use to address occupied but inoperable vehicles, draft potential municipal code changes and present recommended options in a future council agenda item (staff suggested submission via Notice of Council Business so it can be scheduled).

Why it matters: Councilors said occupied and inoperable vehicles can create nuisance conditions in residential neighborhoods and that current enforcement practices — issuing citations without an available towing remedy — leave residents frustrated. Council member Ford asked staff to examine immediate operational steps and legal changes so neighbors have clearer expectations about how long a vehicle may remain on their street.

Next steps: The city attorney and city manager will prepare options for council consideration. Staff will also finalize the towing contract and return to council with a recommended enforcement pathway and, if needed, proposed municipal‑code language.