Council Bluffs, IA Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)

A vehicle, piece of machinery, trailer or its parts counts as junk under CBMC 4.15.020 if it lacks current registration or has any one of a long list of defects: no engine, wheel, tire or battery; broken glass; missing body parts; harboring rodents or vermin; weed growth over eighteen inches around it; standing water; stored junk or hazardous material; or is otherwise abandoned, meaning left on public property more than twenty-four hours, unlawfully parked on private property without consent for more than twenty-four hours, or impounded and unclaimed for ten days.

CBMC 4.15.030 exempts vehicles fully enclosed in a garage or similar structure out of public view, vehicles lawfully stored at a licensed dismantler, dealer or body shop, and vehicles recently in a documented collision while repairs are pending. Outside those exemptions, CBMC 4.15.040 makes keeping the junk vehicle a nuisance, and both the vehicle's owner and the landowner share responsibility under CBMC 8.54. The enforcement officer, designated by the mayor or police chief, must serve a seven-day notice of intent to abate under CBMC 4.15.070, by certified mail, posting on the property, or civil-suit-style service.

A property owner can appeal to the city council within five calendar days of that notice under CBMC 4.15.080. If the nuisance isn't cured, the city can remove, impound, sell or dispose of the vehicle under CBMC 4.15.090, and bill the administrative fee plus towing, storage and disposal costs under CBMC 4.15.060, assessed against the land like a property tax if unpaid.