Sec. 134-425. Impoundment and immobilization.
(a) Impoundment. The director of public works is authorized to coordinate with the Aurora police department to impound, remove, or have removed a vehicle from a street or any public right-of-way or place to a garage or other place of safety, or an impound facility designated or maintained by the city under only the following circumstances:
(1) When there is probable cause to believe that a vehicle is an abandoned vehicle, as defined in section 134-146.
(2) When any vehicle is parked in a posted fire lane.
(3) When any vehicle is found on any property owned or controlled by the city or any other governmental agency. This subsection does not apply to city maintenance or city patrol vehicles.
(4) When any vehicle is parked upon any street scheduled for or upon which cleaning, sweeping, repair or maintenance operations are being conducted, provided that such street has been posted with an authorized sign temporarily prohibiting parking on such street during the involved operations.
(5) When a vehicle is parked in violation of any traffic ordinance and is an obstruction or hazard or potential obstruction or hazard to any lawful function or limits the normal access to a use of any public or private property.
(6) When a trailer or semitrailer, not connected to a motor vehicle or truck, is kept, stored, or parked on any public roadway within the city for more than 24 hours after having been cited for a violation of section 134-2(c)(4).
(7) When an unlawful vehicle, as defined in section 134-2(c), is kept, stored, or parked on any public right-of-way or roadway for more than 24 hours after having been cited as an unlawful vehicle. If an unlawful vehicle, which has been cited as an unlawful vehicle as defined in section 134-2(c), is found on any roadway within six months of the date of the original citation, it shall be subject to immediate removal or impoundment. It shall not be a defense to this section that the unlawful vehicle has been moved to a different location on the public right-of-way. To be in compliance with this section, the unlawful vehicle must be removed from the public right-of-way for no less than 72 consecutive hours.
(8) When any vehicle is parked upon any street, highway or city owned property which has been posted as a tow away zone.
(9) When a vehicle has a record of three or more currently outstanding delinquent parking citations with the city which have been outstanding for more than 60 days and are not being contested under section 134-430.
(b) Immobilization. The director of public works is authorized to immobilize a vehicle on a street or any public right-of-way or place when a vehicle has a record of three or more currently outstanding delinquent parking citations with the city which have been outstanding for more than 60 days and are not being contested under section 134-430.
(c) Charges. Except as may be otherwise provided by the model traffic code, no vehicle impounded in any authorized garage or other impound facility designated or maintained by the city, or immobilized, as provided in this section shall be released therefrom until the charge for towing such vehicle into the garage and the storage or immobilization charges have been paid. The charge for towing, immobilizing, or removal of any such vehicle and storage charges shall be fixed by the contract between the city and the towing service/garage. Such charge shall be posted for public inspection in the office of the authorized garage. The individual tow truck operator shall also carry in his or her possession a list of the charges for services.
(d) Notice. Whenever, as authorized in this article, the director of public works orders the towing, removal, or immobilization of a vehicle and the director of public works knows or is able to ascertain from the registration the name and address of the owner thereof, the director of public works shall give or cause to be given notice in writing to such owner of the fact of such removal and the reasons therefor and of the place to which such vehicle has been immobilized, towed, or removed. If any such vehicle is stored in an authorized garage, a copy of such notice shall be given to the proprietor of such garage. The written notice shall include, but is not limited to, the following:
(1) That the towing, removal, or immobilization of the vehicle has been ordered by the director of public works;
(2) That the vehicle owner has 10 days from the date of the notice to file a written request with the Aurora parking and traffic bureau located at 15151 East Alameda Parkway, Aurora, Colorado 80012, requesting a hearing regarding the propriety of the impoundment, removal, or immobilization;
(3) That a hearing will be scheduled within three days (excluding Saturday, Sunday and city holidays) from the date a written request is received by the Aurora parking and traffic bureau;
(4) That the Aurora parking and traffic bureau is empowered to waive the towing, immobilization, and/or storage fees if it is found that there was no reason to believe that legal authority existed under this Code for the towing or immobilization of the vehicle;
(5) That the retrieval of the owner's vehicle from impoundment does not waive the owner's right to a subsequent hearing and reimbursement;
(6) That the vehicle owner is encouraged to contact the director of public works at a phone number provided for purposes of resolving a dispute concerning the impoundment, removal, or immobilization of the vehicle in addition to requesting a hearing; and
(7) That the vehicle owner should retrieve the vehicle as soon as possible in order to minimize the accrual of storage fees and other charges.
(e) Service. The written notice shall be deposited in the United States mail within 24 hours from the time of the impoundment of the vehicle, excluding Saturday, Sunday, and city holidays. In lieu of mailing, the written notice may be personally handed to the registered owner of the vehicle. The date of deposit in the U.S. mail or the date of personal service upon the owner of the registered vehicle constitutes delivery of service.
(f) Hearing. Impoundment and immobilization hearings shall be administered through the Aurora parking and traffic bureau pursuant to section 134-432.
(g) Reimbursement for towing, storage, and immobilization. Upon affirmative determinations by the Aurora parking and traffic bureau that (1) the person demanding the hearing has the right to possession of the subject vehicle; and (2) that the impoundment and/or immobilization was unlawful, the Aurora parking and traffic bureau may order the City to either fully reimburse the owner of the impounded or immobilized vehicle for all fees paid by the owner, or authorize the payment of accrued fees by the City.
The hearing and reimbursement provisions contained in section 134-432 shall only be applicable to vehicles which have been impounded or immobilized for the reasons stated in 134-425.
(h) Compliance with time requirements. The time periods placed upon the city in this section are advisory in nature. Failure of the city to strictly comply with the time periods shall not cause an automatic forfeiture of the city's rights under this Code. (Ord. No. 2023-46, § 5, 10-23-2023; Ord. No. 2016-34, § 16, 8-8-2016)