Margate, FL Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)

Section 40.352 bars any owner or person in control from leaving a vehicle, or parts of one, abandoned or inoperative on public streets, alleys, rights-of-way or any other property in the City of Margate. The ban also reaches the owner, occupant, tenant, lessee or person in possession of a property who permits the vehicle to be stored there. Under the § 40.201 definition, an inoperative vehicle is a wrecked or partially dismantled vehicle parked or stored longer than forty-eight (48) hours without all wheels mounted, a vehicle in substantial disrepair, one without all tires inflated, or one without a current license tag.

Lawful storage means inside a completely enclosed structure or a designated storage area. A designated area must sit in a B-3, C or M-1 district, be enclosed by an eight-foot stuccoed concrete block or precast concrete wall on every side visible from outside the property, and stay out of any required setback. Two exceptions apply: vehicles offered for sale on a lot zoned for vehicle sales that holds a Local Business Tax Receipt, and vehicles being actively and temporarily repaired at a licensed repair business, out of view from local residential roads and arterial roadways.

A police officer or code enforcement officer posts a notice on or beside the vehicle giving five (5) business days to remove it. The owner can request an informal hearing before the City Manager or designee within those five business days, and removal waits until two business days after the hearing. Missing the request or the hearing waives it. If the same vehicle reappears within three months, the notice period drops to twelve (12) hours. The city then removes and destroys or disposes of the vehicle.