Rock Island County, IL Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)

03(A) declares it a nuisance to store, keep, or maintain an inoperable motor vehicle outside an enclosed building once notice has been given to the owner, corporation, or other controlling party to remove it, tying the violation to the failure to act after that notice rather than to the mere presence of the vehicle. Division (B) defines an INOPERABLE MOTOR VEHICLE as one from which the engine, wheels, or other parts have been removed for at least 15 days, or altered, damaged, or otherwise treated so the vehicle cannot be driven under its own motor power; a car temporarily down for routine service or repair does not qualify.

The section carves out two exceptions: vehicles kept inside an enclosed building when not in use are not covered at all, and vehicles on the premises of a licensed wrecking or junk yard business are exempt regardless of where they sit, since that use is the business's purpose. 02 applies: the Sheriff, a Zoning and Building Department officer, or certified mail must notify the vehicle's owner, and the county cannot prosecute until 30 days after that notice directs removal. This rule reaches only unincorporated county land; cars abandoned inside Rock Island, Moline, or other cities fall under those cities' own codes.