Palm Beach Gardens, FL Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)

Palm Beach Gardens Code § 34-181, in Chapter 34's Article VI (Junked, Wrecked, Abandoned Property), Division 2 (Vehicles on Private Property), declares a public nuisance whenever an inoperable motor vehicle sits outside a garage or carport on private property for a continuous period of ten days or more. The only carve-outs are vehicles on the premises of a duly licensed garage or repair facility, or a junk yard that conforms with the city's zoning regulations. The ordinance spells out what counts as prima facie proof of the nuisance: no current state license plate displayed, no engine in the vehicle or parts missing from it, or any other condition, such as vehicle damage or a flat tire, that renders the car inoperable.

Because Article VI carries no dedicated penalty clause of its own, a violation falls back on the citywide general penalty in Section 1-18: a fine of not more than $500.00 per day, imprisonment for up to 60 days, or both, with each day the vehicle remains a separate offense. Section 1-18(b) also lets the city abate the condition directly as a public nuisance. Enforcement runs through the Palm Beach Gardens code enforcement special magistrate under Chapter 2, the same body that handles the article's companion weeds-and-rubbish nuisance sections.

A related division of the same chapter, Section 34-201, separately covers personal property left on public streets, parks, or public grounds for 48 hours or more, which the police department may take into custody and eventually sell if unclaimed. That public-property track is a distinct process from the private-property vehicle nuisance in Section 34-181.