[Amended 10-25-2004 by Ord. No. 660-04]
A. It shall be unlawful for any person to
permit any vegetation, other than trees, cultivated crops or cultivated
ornamental shrubbery or plants, to grow to a height exceeding 12 inches
on any lot or parcel of land less than three acres located in an approved
and/or recorded residential subdivision having three or more lots
or parcels of land, on any residential lot or any lot within any residential
district and any part of which is within 150 feet of an occupied residence.
Lots or parcels of land devoted to bona fide agricultural use or designated
by any governmental agency as a wildlife preserve are exempt from
the application of this section.
B. It shall be unlawful for any person to
permit any vegetation, other than trees, cultivated crops or cultivated
ornamental shrubbery or plants, to grow to a height exceeding 12 inches
on any lot or parcel of land less than four acres located in the City
limits and any part of which is within 200 feet of an occupied residence.
C. Notice of abatement shall require that
the owner and/or occupant cut, trim or remove the vegetation that
is in violation of this section within seven calendar days from the
date of notice, except that in the case of a habitual violator the
time shall be two calendar days from the date of the notice.
[Amended 11-13-2017 by Ord. No. 17-O-15]
D. Notice of violation.
[Amended 11-13-2017 by Ord. No. 17-O-15; 10-9-2023 by Ord. No. 23-O-13]
(1) For
all violation of this section in a calendar year, service of the notice
shall be by personal service or by posting a copy of the notice on
the front door or in some other conspicuous location on the property.
(2) The
written notification shall cite the violation along with the process
and time to abate the violation. The time to abate shall be seven
calendar days from the date of the notice or posting for first or
second time violations, or within two calendar days in the case of
habitual violators. The Code Enforcement Officer, in the officer's
discretion and on a case-by-case basis, may extend the time to abate
if noticable efforts have been made to rectify the cited violation.
The Code Enforcement Officer shall also communicate directly with
the property owner on-site, or by mail, by telephone, or by email
if that information is available following delivery of a notice of
violation.
E. If the property owner, tenant and/or occupant
fails to cut, trim or remove the vegetation within seven calendar
days of date of notice, or within two calendar days in the case of
habitual violators, the City shall abate the violation by use of City
employees and equipment or by contract with private contractors.
[Amended 11-13-2017 by Ord. No. 17-O-15]
F. A violation of this section shall constitute a municipal infraction. A property owner and/or tenant or occupant who fails to abate a violation of this section shall be fined in accordance with the provisions in Article
X (Enforcement) of this chapter and assessed all costs incurred by the City associated with the abatement of the violation and the City's administrative costs. All costs shall be a lien on the owner’s land and shall be collected and enforced in the same manner as City real property taxes, except the land may not be sold at tax sale to satisfy the lien.
[Amended 5-23-2016 by Ord. No. 16-O-09]
G. No property shall be transferred unless
all outstanding fines have been paid to the City.
H. As used in this section, a "habitual offender" is a property for which the City has issued in the same calendar year more than two notices of abatement under Subsection
C of this section.
[Added 11-13-2017 by Ord. No. 17-O-15]