El Campo passes ordinance limiting vehicles parked for sale on public and commercial property

The El Campo City Council unanimously approved Ordinance 2025-06 on March 20, adopting new enforcement language to address vehicles parked for sale in commercial parking lots and on the city right-of-way.

City staff told the council the proposed changes would allow the city to issue notices of violation to the owner of the vehicle and the owner of the commercial property when vehicles are parked publicly for the purpose of sale and left there. Staff said the rule is intended to prevent commercial parking areas—such as fast-food restaurant lots—from being used as informal vehicle-for-sale locations when the property owner has not authorized sales activity.

The ordinance does not prohibit a private property owner from selling a vehicle from their own residence. Staff also explained that the city’s existing rules for boats and recreational vehicles (RVs) remain in a separate section: the code allows a boat or RV to remain on a public right-of-way for short periods (interpreted at the meeting as between five and 24 hours) to permit cleaning or short-term use without triggering a violation.

Councilmembers discussed practical enforcement scenarios, including whether property owners who allow sales on their lots would need an SUP for auto sales; staff responded such property owners would need to apply for an SUP if they wanted to operate auto sales as a business. Council members repeatedly said the ordinance was aimed at keeping commercial corridors neat and preventing long-term stacking of vehicles for sale.

A councilmember moved to approve Ordinance 2025-06; the motion was seconded and the council voted unanimously to adopt it.