[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Town Council of the Borough of Chambersburg 2-11-1976 by Ord. No. 76-34; amended in its entirety 1-9-2023 by Ord. No. 2023-01. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Health and sanitation — See Ch. 168.
Property maintenance — See Ch. 221.
Solid waste — See Ch. 248.
[Amended 3-25-2024 by Ord. No. 2024-03]
A. 
No person, firm or corporation owning or occupying any property within the Borough of Chambersburg shall permit or cause the following to occur:
(1) 
Any grass or weeds, or any vegetation whatsoever (not edible or planted for some useful or ornamental purpose), to grow or remain upon such premises, or upon the grass plot along the street or sidewalk abutting such premises, so as to exceed a height of 10 inches.
(2) 
Noxious weeds.
(a) 
Any noxious weed, as defined herein, to grow or remain upon such premises.
(b) 
"Noxious weed" shall refer to any of the following:
[1] 
Any weed or vegetation listed as a Class A, B, or C noxious weed at 3 Pa.C.S.A. § 1519;
[2] 
Any weed or vegetation that has been determined by the Pennsylvania Controlled Plant and Noxious Weed Committee to be a Class A, B, or C noxious weed in accordance with 3 Pa.C.S.A. § 1511; or
[3] 
Any weed or vegetation listed as a noxious weed at 7 CFR 360.200.
(3) 
Any grass clippings, tree trimmings, hedge clippings or tree leaves, hereinafter referred to as "yard waste," to be placed into a public street or alley along the curbline in such a manner that the yard waste covers or could cover or enter the stormwater drainage system of the Borough of Chambersburg. Tree leaves may be placed in the street between October 1 and December 31.
(4) 
Dumping or hosing debris into the storm drain system.
B. 
Any violation of any provisions of this section is hereby declared to be a nuisance and detrimental to the health, safety, cleanliness, comfort and welfare of the inhabitants of the Borough.
The owner of any property in violation of the provisions of § 109-1, shall remove, trim or cut all grass, weeds, or other vegetation growing or remaining upon such premises regardless of whether such property is owner-occupied, vacant, or occupied by one or more tenants.
The Town Council, or the Board of Health, or any officer or employee of the Borough designated for the purpose, is hereby authorized to give notice, by personal service or by mail, to the owner of any premises whereon grass, weeds or other vegetation is growing or remaining in violation of the provisions of § 109-1, directing and requiring the owner to remove, trim or cut such grass, weeds or vegetation so as to conform to the requirements of this chapter within five days after issuance of such notice. In case any owner shall neglect, fail or refuse to comply with such notice within the period of time stated therein, the Borough authorities or the Board of Health shall have the authority to remove, trim or cut such grass, weeds or vegetation, and the cost thereof, together with 10% additional, may be collected from such owner in the manner provided by law.
A. 
Any person who shall violate any provision of this article shall, upon conviction thereof, be sentenced to pay a fine as follows:
(1) 
First offense, a fine of $50.
(2) 
Second offense occurring within 12 months of the first offense, a fine of $100.
(3) 
Any third or subsequent offense that occurs within 12 months of a prior offense, a fine of $150.
(4) 
In addition to the fine, the violator shall be sentenced to pay the costs of prosecution and reasonable attorneys fees. Each day that a violation continues shall be deemed a separate violation.
B. 
Notwithstanding Subsection A above, a Code Enforcement Officer is hereby authorized to issue a ticket, in a form established by the Borough, to any person violating the provisions of this chapter. The ticket shall identify the address of the property where the violation occurred, as well as the nature of the violation. The ticket may either be: 1) handed to an owner or occupant of the property; 2) affixed to a door providing ingress and egress to the primary structure; or 3) conspicuously posted on the property. The ticket shall instruct the violator that if the violator reports to the Code Enforcement Officer and pays the Borough the sum of $50 within 10 days of issuance of the ticket, then such payment shall save the violator from persecution by a citation. If a ticket is not paid within 10 days of issuance, the Code Enforcement Officer shall issue a citation to the violator.
C. 
The Code Enforcement Officer shall have sole and absolute discretion to issue a citation in accordance with Subsection A above without first issuing a ticket as permitted herein.