Clarkstown, NY Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)

Section 278-12 lays out the town's abandoned-vehicle process in stages. Under subsection A, a vehicle parked or abandoned during a snowstorm, flood, fire or other emergency may be removed by the Highway Department; a vehicle found unattended and obstructing traffic, or abandoned where stopping, standing or parking is prohibited, may be removed on written authorization of the Police Department. Subsection B requires the town to store the vehicle at the owner's expense, capping storage charges at $25 per day or fraction of a day, on top of the actual removal cost.

Subsection C requires the Chief of Police or Superintendent of Highways to promptly report the removal to the Town Supervisor and to notify the owner, where identifiable, of the vehicle's location and the redemption cost. If the vehicle stays unclaimed, subsection D authorizes two dispositions: the town may sell it at public auction after due notice, applying proceeds to the general fund and having the Town Clerk execute the transfer of title, citing state Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1224; or the town may convert to its own use up to 1% of its unclaimed abandoned vehicles in a calendar year, or two vehicles, whichever is greater. These stages give Clarkstown a full pipeline from impound through storage to final disposition without requiring a court order at each step.