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Milford - Town police will begin cracking down today on junk cars.
After getting the go-ahead from the town attorney, Police Chief David Hobbs said he will start tagging vehicles that fall within the junk car definition.
Town officials held off for months on taking any action against junk car owners after the town and local judges had reviewed the local ordinance, which addresses junk vehicles in public and private locations. However, the ordinance has few details about situations involving junk vehicles on private property.
The issue is a sore point for home owners who believe they can do what they want with their vehicles as long as they are on their property. Owners often set aside a vehicle in hopes of repairing it. But those plans often fade and then the owner is stuck with a vehicle that must be towed if they are to get rid of it, Hobbs said.
"To us, it's junk. To them, it's a treasure," Hobbs said.
Hobbs has a list of nearly trashy treasures they will begin tagging today with final warnings that urge owners to move the vehicle within seven days.
If vehicles aren't removed, the town will have them towed and a bill for the service will be sent to the owner by the Indiana Department of Motor Vehicles, Hobbs said.
While town officials waited for advice, the number of junk vehicles continued to accumulate. "We've got a lot more than we usually do," Hobbs said.
Vehicles fall within the parameters of the ordinance if they are inoperable and haven't been moved for 30 or more days. A new state law reduced the requirement to 20 days, but town officials will continue to use the old requirement until the town ordinance is updated, Hobbs said.
Hobbs has a record on all 30 vehicles including the length of time the car has remained unmoved.
He said he knows of one vehicle that's been in violation for more than three years. One property, he said, has five vehicles in violation of the ordinance.
Hobbs said it won't take long to tag the vehicles with the bright orange neon stickers.
The stickers should be no surprise to the owners. "They know who they are. We've talked to them," Hobbs said.
