ABANDONED AND/OR UNREGISTERED VEHICLES

As we were walking to catch the bus this morning, we noticed an old, white van parked near 158 Caldecott Lane emblazoned with a bright orange sticker.

This van used to be parked in front of 130 Caldecott Lane.  It’s marked with the initials “BP” which I believe are an acronym for “British Petroleum.”  After several months of sitting in the same place, the BP van was moved to its present location where it is sitting with two wheels resting on the sidewalk and the other set of wheels resting on the street.

The Monterey’s Sherriff’s Office posted this message on their Web site:

“A major part of urban blight and poor sanitation involves problems with discarded, abandoned or neglected personal property such as old cars. Many of these cars, ignored by their owners are left to decay and pose a health and safety risk. They become a target of vandals, dangerous to children and a home to rodents, stray animals and illegal activity. They usually have some amounts of old gasoline and oil, often leaking on the ground contaminating ground water. They also pose a risk of fire or explosion if accidentally exposed to flame.

Most people are well meaning and plan to "get around to" fixing or registering their vehicles. Others simply store their cars wherever they can. These never-ending repair or restoration projects cannot stay in a yard. Cars that people can't drive go neglected and unregistered. Some of the parked cars we notice for abatement have been motionless and a hazard for years.

Vehicles parked on public property, like streets, highways or public parking lots, can be removed by any Deputy or Code Enforcement Officer after placing a notice on the vehicle. If the vehicle is clearly a safety hazard or blocking traffic, it can be removed immediately without any notice.”

They further state:

“The Code Enforcement Officer or Sheriff’s Deputies check vehicles parked within the unincorporated areas of the county to see if any of the following apply:

1.  ABANDONED, WRECKED, DISMANTLED, INOPERATIVE or UNREGISTERED VEHICLES:

All vehicles parked or stopped on the street, or any public or private parking area, must be in running condition and have current vehicle registration. Vehicles cannot block a street, driveway, sidewalk, other vehicle or any public right-of-way, per 22651 (b)(d), (j), (r) CVC. If not able to drive safely or if not in running condition (Example: missing wheels, windshield, windows, engine, lights or other parts, no proof of current registration, etc.), they can be towed away by officers immediately, any time, per 22669(d) CVC.

Any vehicles parked or left on any public street may be marked by officers as possibly abandoned. Owners then have 72 hours (3 days) from the time it is marked to remove the vehicle before it is considered to be an abandoned vehicle and may towed away, per22651(k) CVC.”

There are a number of abandoned cars, vans, and trucks being “stored” on private or public property.

Please click here to determine how you can report these abandoned vehicles and begin to clean-up Caldecott Lane.  You can make your report anonymously.

We are proud to report that Tenants of Caldecott Lane have removed one vehicle from private property which sat for 8-months until it was finally towed by the Oakland Police Department.