ROBERTSDALE — Some Robertsdale area residents might receive a surprise in the mail in the coming weeks. A new city ordinance, approved at last week’s city council meeting, is aimed at cleaning up eyesores on properties near roadways and intersections. The ordinance specifically addresses the issue of abandoned vehicles, functioning or non-functioning, that are left sitting on area properties in city limits.

The owner of the vehicle may or may not be contacted, however the property owner will recieve a letter from the Robertsdale Police Department. Neither the property owner, nor the vehicle owner are permitted to leave the vehicle on the property for longer than 72 hours. After receiving the notice, the property owner is thereby given 10 days to move the vehicle from the premises before a citation is issued to appear in court and the city has the vehicle towed at the property owners’ expense.

Before any of this can take place, there must first be a complaint in reference to the violation. This complaint must then be verified by a police officer. The violation can be found in Section 9-53 of the Code of Ordinances for the City of Robertsdale.