Waukesha, WI Parking Rules: Abandoned Vehicles (2026)
Key Facts
- Abandonment threshold
- More than 72 hours without permission
- Licensed dealer/repair window
- Up to 20 days outdoors
- Minimum hold before sale
- 10 days after certified mail notice
- DOT notification deadline
- 5 days after sale or disposal
- Notice-to-removal window
- 72 hours after Building Inspector notice
Summary
Waukesha treats any vehicle left standing on public or private property without the owner's permission for more than 72 hours as abandoned and a public nuisance, requiring removal, with the City able to impound, notify lienholders, and sell or junk unclaimed vehicles.
"Abandoned Motor Vehicle." Any vehicle that has been allowed to remain standing on any alley, street, highway, private or public property in the City without the owner's permission for more than 72 hours is deemed abandoned and constitutes a public nuisance. ... STORAGE RESTRICTED. No person shall accumulate, store or allow any dismantled, inoperable, junked, wrecked vehicle, or abandoned motor vehicle, truck bodies, tractors or trailers in the open, upon any private or public property within the City for a period exceeding 72 hours, unless it is in connection with an automotive sales, repair, or storage business enterprise located in a properly zoned area or a junkyard license under §8.02 of the Code. Any business engaged in automotive sales or repair may retain such vehicles in the open on private property for a period not to exceed 20 days after which such vehicles must be removed.
Full Breakdown
02. A licensed auto sales or repair business gets a longer window, up to 20 days, to keep such vehicles outdoors before removal is required. Junk, defined broadly to include discarded appliances, machinery, tools and building materials whose accumulation hurts neighborhood or property values, faces the same 72-hour outdoor limit. Once a vehicle is deemed abandoned, the City impounds it, and unless the Chief of Police determines towing and storage costs would exceed its value, the vehicle is held for a minimum 10 days after certified mail notice goes to the owner and any lienholders, who can reclaim it by paying accrued charges; failure to claim it waives all rights and consents to sale. The City must notify the Department of Transportation of any sale or disposal within 5 days. 06 also available.
Violations & Fines
The owner of an abandoned vehicle is responsible for all impounding and disposal costs, which the City can recover in a civil action for amounts not covered by the vehicle's sale. Failing to remove junk or an abandoned vehicle within 72 hours of the Building Inspector's notice results in a citation to the property owner or occupant under § 12.07(3), issued pursuant to Ord. #48-88.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long can a vehicle sit on the street in Waukesha before it's abandoned?
Can I keep a junked car on my property if I run an auto repair business?
What happens if I don't remove junk after the City notifies me?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Waukesha
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