It appears city officials are about to open a Pandora’s Box offinancial and legal troubles when they tackle the thorny issue ofremoving abandoned vehicles from private property.

The city’s involvement is unfortunate because the propertyowners hold the key the keeping the box closed. Junk vehicles areunsightly, and the best course of action for everyone involvedwould be for owners to clean up the mess themselves.

Apparently, however, property owners have developed someaffinity for the old vehicles and have been resistant to cityattempts to have them moved.

The city has ordinances against the accumulation of abandonedvehicles, but the most effective enforcement method seems elusiveand potentially costly.

In removing the vehicles, the city faces incurring hundreds ofdollars in towing, manpower and other expenses. After that comesthe possibility that the city will realize only a few dollars fromthe sale of the old vehicle at auction and even a chance of thecity being stuck with the junk cars if they don’t sell.

Liability issues while the vehicles are impounded and theowners’ constitutional private property rights must also beconsidered, City Attorney Joe Fernald pointed out during the lastweek’s board discussion.

From a city wide perspective, it is not fair for everyone elseto have to cover costs of dealing with a few problem areas. If cityofficials are intent on getting rid of junk vehicles, they musthave an appropriate method to make sure the owners pay thebill.