A. All articles found floating in the
Columbia or
Willamette River within
Oregon jurisdiction or on any of their sloughs within the Harbor Master’s jurisdiction shall be reported in writing to the Harbor Master within 72 hours after the article is found. The Harbor Master shall investigate the report, and, if possible, notify the owner, in writing, that the article has been found and request the owner to submit proof of his/her claim to the article.
B. If no
claim is made to the article within 90 days after notice to the owner, the
Harbor Master shall destroy the article, if it has an estimated value of less
than $100, or is a menace to life or property. If the article has an
estimated value of $100 or more, and is not a menace to life or property, the
Harbor Master shall sell the article by bid or public auction, after giving
notice of the finding and sale once each week for two consecutive weeks in the
Daily Journal of Commerce. The notice shall state the general description
of the article found and the date, time, and place of sale.
C. If no
person appears and establishes ownership of the article prior to the sale, the
City shall be owner of the proceeds of the sale.
D. Upon the sale, in accordance with this section, the interest in the article of the owner and any other person or corporation shall terminate.
