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Police chief outlines three-step abandoned-vehicle process and clarifies enforcement roles
Summary
Police Chief Dickey described a new three-step approach to abandoned vehicles — Day 1 warning, Day 30 citation, Day 45 impound — and clarified that code enforcement handles private residential complaints while police handle public right-of-way and vehicles on private businesses or streets.
Police Chief Dickey told the council the town is adopting a three-step process to address abandoned and junk vehicles.
Dickey described the sequence as: Day 1 — an initial notice and warning; Day 30 — if the owner has not complied, a citation will be issued by code enforcement; and Day 45 — if there is still no action, the matter will be passed to the police department for impoundment. He said the town’s ordinance mirrors the state law and promised a fuller explanation on the police department’s Facebook page.
Dickey also clarified division of responsibility: code enforcement will respond to complaints on private residential property, while abandoned vehicles on public right-of-way, on the street, or on private commercial property (for example, at a business parking lot) will be handled by the police department. He said the department and code enforcement will share a spreadsheet to coordinate cases and that the new approach is designed to be more effective than prior efforts.
The chief framed the proposal as procedural and not punitive at first contact: "It is going to be a, kind of a 3 step process," he said, outlining the timeline for warnings, citations and possible impoundment. Staff agreed to post detailed definitions and parameters (including how inoperability and registration status factor in) on the department’s public channels.
