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HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinance 8557r ~ ~~ ORDINANCE D7O ~ S ~ / AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER 39 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF FORT WORTH TEXAS (1964) AS AMENDED WHICH CHAPTER REGULATES W RECKERS BY AMENDING SECTION 39-1 DEFINING CERTAIN W ORDS AND PHRASES B Y AMENDING SECTION 39-12(F) PROVIDING FOR AND AUTHORIZING (1) AN INCREASE IN THE FEE FOR T~nTAGE [39-12f(1)] FROM $30 00 TO $35 00 (2) AN INCREASE IN THE FEE FOR EXTRA WORK [39-12F(2)] FROM $20 00 PER HOUR TO $30 00 PER HOUR AFTER THE FIRST FIFTEEN MINUTES (3) AN INCREASE IN THE FEE FOR TANDEM AXLE WRECKER SERVICE [39-12F(3)] FROM $65 00 TO $75 00 (4) A DELETION OF THE PROVISION FOR 'WAITING TIME [39-12F(4).] (5) A FEE OF $20 00 WHEN USE OF A DOLLY IS NECESSARY (6) A FEE OF $50 00 FOR THE AUTHORIZED USE OF A CAR CARRIER (7) A FEE OF $100 00 FOR THE USE OF AIR CUSHIONS (8) A FEE IN THE AMOUNT OF ONE HUNDRED FIFT Y PER CENT (150%) OF THE NORMAL TOWAGE FEE WHEN HANDLING HAZARDOUS MATERIALS BY AMENDING SECTION 39-21 PROVIDING FOR AND AUTHORIZING AN INCREASE IN THE STORAGE RATES F ROM $2 00 PER DAY FOR THE FIRST 5 DAYS AND $5 00 FOR EACH DAY THERE- AFTER TO $5 00 PER DAY FOR THE FIRST 10 DAYS AND $10 00 PER DAY FOR EACH DAY THEREAFTER AND AUTHORIZING A DOUBLE RATE FOR EXTRA LARGE VEHICLES A SAVINGS CLAUSE A SEVERA- BILIT Y CLAUSE A PENAL CLAUSE AND THE NAMING OF AD7 EFFEC- TIVE DATE BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT WORTH TEXAS SECTION 1 That Section 39-1 of Chapter 39 of the Code of the City of Fort Worth Texas (1964) as amended be and the same is hereby amended to read as follows Sec 39-1 Definitions 'For the purposes of this chapter the following words and phrases shall have the meanings respectively as- cribed to them by this section Accident Any occurrence which renders a vehicle wrecked or disabled as defined herein Air Cushions Specialized Recovery Equipment utiliz- ing low pressure high volume air-filled bags to move lift or roll heavy loads "Car Carrier A motor vehicle designed and equipped as to be capable of lifting another vehicle upon itself for the purpose of transporting a motor vehicle that can- not be safely transported by a wrecker 'Disabled The status of any vehicle which has been rendered unsafe to be driven upon the streets as the re- sult of some occurrence other than a wreck including but not limited to mechanical failures or breakdowns fire the elements or vandalism so as to reasonably necessi- tate that such vehicle be removed by a wrecker a ~S Dolly A detached axle unit used to support a unit being towed by a wrecker Hazardous material Hazardous material means (a) any substance classified as a hazardous material under state law or federal law or under a rule adopted pursuant to state or federal law or (b) a chemical petroleum pro- duct gas or other substance that if discharged or r e- leased will or is likely to create an imminent danger to individuals property or the environment 'Motor vehicle Every vehicle which is self-pro- pell ed Owner s request The designation of the occasion when the owner of a wrecked or. disabled vehicle has selected a wrecker company to move his vehicle and has authorized the police department to call that wrecker com- pany when such selected wrecker company is not owned by or does not represent the place selected Place and wrecker selection form. The form provided for in section 39-10 Police pull The designation of the occasion when the police department has called a wrecker company from the rotation list to either remove a wrecked or disabled vehicle or to remove a vehicle in a safe driving condi- tion but the owner is not present able or permitted to drive or to make authorizations Represented automobile club Any person organized entirely or in part for the purpose of providing contract emergency road service to owners of vehicles which person has authorized a licensed wrecker company or companies to represent him on all calls concerning wrecked or disabled vehicles and has been permitted by the city police depart- ment to be so represented as provided for in section 39-6 "Represented repair business Any person in the bus- iness of repairing vehicles whether that be his sole busi- ness or a part of his other business which person has authorized a 1 icensed wrecker company to r epresent him on all calls concerning wrecked or disabled vehicles and has been permitted by the c ity police department to be so r e- presented as provided for in .section 39-6 Rotation The designation of the occasion when the owner of a wrecked or disabled vehicle fails to designate a specific repair place or wrecker operator to remove his vehicle and he has authorized the police department to call a wrecker from the rotation list Street Any street alley avenue lane public place square or highway within the corporate limits of the city 'Vehicle Every device in upon or by which any per- son or property is or may be transported or drawn upon a street except devices moved by human power or used exclu- sively upon stationary rails or tracks "hlrecked The status of any vehicle that has been damaged as the result of overturning or colliding with -2- ~~ -. another vehicle or object so as to reasonably necessitate that such vehicle be removed by a wrecker "Wrecker Any motor vehicle designed and used primar- il y for r emoving wrecked or d isabl ed vehicles upon any street "Wrecker business The business of removing wrecked or disabled vehicles on the streets from the site of an accident regardless of whether the purpose of the removal is to repair wreck store trade or purchase such wrecked or disabled vehicles "Wrecker company Any per son eng aged in the wrecker business Wrecker rotation list The list of wrecker companies as provided for in section 39-12 SECTION 2 That Section 39-12 of Chapter 39 of the Code of the,. City •of Fort Worth (1964) as amended be and the same is hereby amended to read as follows Section 39-12 In order to expedite wrecker company service the chief o f police is her eby empowered and d it ected to par ti- tion the city into zones for wrecker company service under a wrecker rotation list procedure and to assign wrecker companies to each zone Such partition and assignment shall be made in a manner fair and impartial to all licen- sees and in a manner calculated to best serve the public Notice of assignment of wrecker companies to any boundary lines of each zone shall be provided each licensee on such list No such zone shall be assigned more than six (6) companies Such companies shall be assigned only to those zones in which such company is physically located and/or to zones immediately adjacent to such location 'Wreckers dispatched from such list may be designated as rotation pull s or police pull s Such pull s shall be assigned by the dispatcher in any such zone by calling that wrecker company first in alphabetical order on such 1 ist and making the proper notation on such 1 ist of such assignment Succeeding assignments shall be made by first ex- hausting in alphabetical order that list of those com- panies serving any such zone and then returning to the alphabetical beginning of such list to continue such se- quential alphabetical assignment procedure Upon making any such assignment the dispatcher shall direct such company to remove the vehicle to the place designated in writing by the owner or the investi- gating police officer To implement such wrecker rotation list procedure the police department shall maintain a master list which list shall identify such zones and the names of such com- panies arranged in alphabetical order assigned to each -3- -, such zone No wrecker company shall be placed upon such list unless such company has otherwise complied with the provisions of this chapter and further (a) Has been issued a license as provided in Section 39-5 (b) Has applied to be on such wrecker rotation list (c) Maintains twenty-four hour wrecker service (d) Has at least one wrecker three-fourths (3/4) ton in with a power-operated winch boom in addition to the n ments for wrecker s Section 39-8 not less than size equipped winch 1 ine and iinimum require- r equ it ed in (e) Has at least two (2) wreckers in operating condition at all times (f) Has an established uniform fee for each service rendered standard passenger auto- mobiles and trucks (one ton maximum) not in excess of each of the following (1) Towage A charge up to a maximum of thirty-five dollars ( $35 00) for tow- ing such vehicle from one point on a street to another location within the corporate limits of the city as desig- nated in writing by the owner of the vehicle or by the police department at the place where the tow originated (2) Extra work An additional charge of thirty dollars ($30 00) an hour for removing vehicles which are off the street right-of-way such charge to be made from the time the operator begins to remove the vehicle until it is on the traveled portion of the street Even though the vehicle is within the street right-of-way an additional charge may be made in the event the car is located in some unusual condi- tion within the right-of-way such as but not 1 invited to a r fiver or creek bed or a ditch of greater depth than an ordinary bar ditch For fee calcu- lation fractions of an hour may not be considered a full hour one-quarter (1/4) of any hour shall be the small- est fraction permitted for such calcu- lation (3) Tandem axle wreckers An additional charge of seventy-five dollars ($75 00) per hour for the use of a heavy duty (tandem axle) wrecker No heavy duty (tandem axle) wrecker shall be used unless such use is approved by a police supervisor at the scene of the pull -4- I G (4 ) Making vehicl e oper abl e Wr ecker drivers at the scene of an accident when d it ected by the police o f f icer in charge shall pull a fender and/or bumper in order to make a vehicle operable for a fee of ten dollars ($10 00) per vehicle in addition to the standard fee collected All fees for making vehicles operable are payable at the scene A receipt will be issued for each such fee collected (5) Use of a dolly An additional charge of twenty dollars ($20 00) when the use of a dolly is necessary for towing any such vehicle (6) Use of a car carrier A charge up to a maximum of fifty dollars ($50 00) when the use of a car carrier is necessary for towing any such vehicle A car carrier may only be used when authorized by a police supervisor (7) Use of air cushions An additional charge of one hundred dollars ($100 00) when the use of air cushions is required (8) Handling hazardous materials A fee in the amount of one hundred fifty per cent (1500) of the normal towage fee shall be allowed when hazardous material s are to be towed SECTION 3 That Section 39-21 of Chapter 39 of the Code of the City of Fort Worth (1964) as amended be and the same is hereby amended to read as follows Sec 39-27_ Storage and pound fees The City of Fort Worth shall charge a storage fee of five dollar s ( $ 5 00 ) per day with each day computed on a basis of twenty-four (24) hours commencing with the time the vehicle is placed in storage This fee of five dollars ($5 00) will be charged for the first ten (10) days said vehicle is in storage Commencing with the eleventh twenty-four-hour period of storage the City of Fort Worth will charge a storage fee of ten dollars ($10 00) per day with each day computed on a basis of twenty-four (24) hours This rate is to be doubled for vehicles weighing in excess of two (2) tons The city shall also charge an impound fee of five dollars ($5 00) per impoundment SECTION 4 That this ordinance shall be cumulative of all provisions of ordinances and of the Code of the City of Fort Worth (1964) as amended affecting wreckers except where the provisions of this -5- •a. , ordinance are in direct conflict with the provisions of such ordi- nances and such Code in which event conflicting provisions of such ordinances and such Code are hereby repealed SECTION 5 That all rights or remedies of the City of Fort Worth Texas are expressly saved as to any and all violations of the provisions of Chapter 39 of the Code of the City of Fort Worth (1964) as amended and of any other ordinances affecting wreckers which have accrued at the time of the effective date of this ordinance and as to such accrued violations and all pending litigation both civil and criminal whether pending in court or not under such chapter or other ordinances same shall not be affected by this ordinance but may be prosecuted until final disposition by the courts SECTION 6 That it is hereby d eclared to be the intention of the City Council of the City of Fort Worth Texas that the sections para- graphs sentences clauses and phrases of this ordinance are sever- able and if any section paragraph sentence clause or phrase of this ordinance shall be declared void ineffective or unconstitu- tional by the valid judgment or final decree of a court of competent jurisdiction such voidness ineffectiveness or unconstitutionality shall not affect any of the remaining sections paragraphs sen- tences clauses or phrases of this ordinance since the same would have been enacted by the City Council without the incorporation herein of any such void ineffective or unconstitutional section paragraph sentence clause or phrase SECTION 7 That any person violating any of the provisions of this ordi- nance shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and each such person shall be deemed guilty of a separate offense for each day or portion thereof during which any violation of any of the provisions of this ordinance is committed continued or permitted and each violation - 6- `< ~~.. p- ~ y ~.. shall be punishable by a fine not to exceed Two Hundred Dollars ($200 00) SECTION 8 That the City Secretary of the City of Fort Worth Texas is hereby directed to publish the caption penalty clause and effective date of this ordinance for five (5) days in the official newspaper of the City of Fort Worth Texas SECTION 9 That this ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after the date of its passage and publication as required by law and it is so ordained APPROVED AS TO FORR4 AND LEGALITY City Attorney ADOPTED ~ / ~~ ~ 7 S~ EFFECTIVE DATE ~e ~„ /} /qQ~ -7- •y` ~ ~ TER FILE 1. ~,j CITY MANAGER 1 ~ - ACCOUNT G '`.W_(~(,Q~/JJ~~ 'l.W~~ ~® (L/1V~lLi~~ ~®~0 U (L lLilV U Ui1L~~1.~L~~®~ 1TRANSPORTATION~PUSLIC WORKS-6 • C, S~Y~~ REFERENCE SUBJECT proposed Ordinance Amending PAGE NUMBER POLICE ADMINISTRA ION•11 Chapter 39 of the City Code to Provide I of~__ _ 4/13 82 -5278 .for Chan es in Rate Sch_e_dule for Wrecke _ Service and Storage - It has come to the attention of the Police Department that the rates for wrecker service provided for police-directed towing need to be updated Consequently - the-followi-ng--~a-t-e-changes are incorporated in the proposed amendment to Chapter - 3 9- o f. --the -C-it y- C-o d e 1 ~ Wrecker Fee•-..From $30 to $35 ___2.._-~e_l~-3r-~'.e.e.~-From none to $20 --3:----Ex-t-~-a--~a~o-r-~---From $20 per hour to $30 per hour after first 15 minutes "`4""""-"CraiEirig time`=-To be deleted ~5.-•.Car Carrier _. From $30 to $50 (to be used only when authorized by Police ~u~ es.~i.s.ox~---~ ----o : -~l-e-any-1}ti-t }~--S-e-r-~a i c e -From $ 6 5 t o $ 7 5 I -"~"-°Use-o-f~"ir`~-Cushions Not previously authorized but will be $100 per bag _ used upon adoption of the o--rdinance i ,Y.B.._. Handling_o.f Hazardous Materials - Not previously authorized but will be -- -150% of normal towage fee upon adoption of the ordinance It is further proposed that the current storage rate structure be changed as follows Present Storage $2 per day for the first 5 days $5 per day after fifth 24-hour period Proposed Storage $5 per• day for first 10 days $10 per day after tenth 24-hour period Double above rate for tractor-trailers and other large vehicles • After reviewing the existing ordinance staff determined that several changes arE needed A subsequent report outlining each of the proposed changes will be forthcoming ((--APPR((O--(V'~~ED 8Y Additionally the following words and phrases were define~!~ t~Yi`~~'~Sed ordinance air cushion car carrier dolly and hazardous material APR ~~3 19~~ Recommendation It is recommended that the City Council adopt the att ecxe ~~c~~ ~-am~'nt` ~i`Fig Sections 39-1 and 39-12 and adding Section 39-21 to C ~~a~~Fi®~+,tl~F'ort Worth City Code to provide for the changes outlined above ~S plw _ ___ ADOPTEa QRD(NA~VCE N~ ~Ss7 SUBMITTED FOR IH CITY MANAGER'S DISPOSITION BY COUNCIL. PROCESSED BY OFFICE BY `_ ~ [] APPROVED -__ ORIGINATING I_~ OTHER (DESCRIBE) DEPARTMENT HEAD• Wade Adk1nS CITY SECRETARY FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION CONTACT Wade Adkins Ext. 7600 DATE