It shall be unlawful for an owner or tenant of lands lying within the limits of the Borough of Woodlynne to allow to accumulate on said lands any brush, weeds, dead and dying trees, stumps, roots, obnoxious growth, filth, garbage, trash and debris.
[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough of Woodlynne as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 11-8-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-17]
Whenever brush, weeds, dead and dying trees, stumps, roots, obnoxious growths, filth, garbage, trash and debris have been allowed to accumulate on lands lying within the limits of the Borough of Woodlynne and the Borough shall deem it necessary and expedient for the preservation of the public health, safety or general welfare or to eliminate a fire hazard to remove the same, said Borough shall give the owner or tenant of any such lands 10 days' written notice to remove the same.
A.
In the event that such lands shall be occupied by either the owner or the tenant, written notice shall be given to such owner or tenant personally or by leaving such notice on the premises with a member of the owner's or tenant's family above the age of 14 years.
B.
In the event that such lands shall not be occupied, written notice shall be sent to the assessed owner of said land at his last known residence as shown in the office of the Collector of Taxes of the Borough of Woodlynne, by registered mail, with postage thereon prepaid.
A.
In the event that any owner or tenant shall refuse or neglect to remove the debris within the time limited by such notice, then the Borough may remove or cause to be removed all such accumulations as hereinbefore set forth.
B.
In the event that such owner or tenant shall refuse or neglect to remove any such accumulations as hereinbefore set forth and it shall be necessary for the Borough to remove or cause such removal, the officer shall certify the cost thereof to the governing body.
Upon such certification to the governing body of the cost of removal as hereinbefore set forth, the governing body shall examine such certification and, if found correct, the cost as shown thereon shall, by resolution of the governing body, be charged against said lands.
Upon passage of said resolution by the governing body as set forth in § 196-5 above, the assessment so charged shall forthwith become a lien on such lands and shall be added to and become a part of the taxes next to be assessed and levied upon said lands, the same to bear interest at the same rate as taxes, and shall be collected and enforced by the same officers and in the same manner as taxes.
Any person violating any provision of this chapter shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine not to exceed $1,000, by imprisonment in the county jail for a period not to exceed 90 days or by a period of community service not to exceed 90 days, or any combination thereof.
[Added 1-10-2008 by Ord. No. 2007-24]
All ordinances and parts of ordinances in force on the date of the adoption of this article inconsistent with this chapter are hereby repealed as of the effective date of this article.
[Added 1-10-2008 by Ord. No. 2007-24]
In the event that any provision of this chapter shall be declared invalid such determination shall apply to the section determined to be invalid only and the balance of this chapter shall be severed therefrom.
[Adopted 9-9-2021 by Ord. No. 2021-11]
A.
Purpose. The article is adopted to control the planting, cultivating, and/or growing of bamboo and other invasive plant species in the Borough of Woodlynne. It is further intended to require barriers that will prevent the spread of invasive plant species, such as bamboo, into adjacent properties and other areas in the Borough of Woodlynne.
B. INVASIVE PLANT SPECIES(1) (2)
Definitions. For the purposes of this article, the following terms and phrases shall have the associated meanings:
All native and nonnative vines, trees, shrubs, herbaceous plants, vegetation, as well as their cultivars that are known or believed to be invasive to natural ecosystems in New Jersey shall be considered invasive as they grow out of place and are competitive, persistent and pernicious. Invasive plant species also includes plant species that may damage trees, vegetation, sidewalks or structures. Specific examples of invasive plant species include, but are not limited to, the following: bambo as well as invasive plant species developed by the New Jersey Species Strike Team and the New Jersey Forestry Association.
The terms "bamboo" and "invasive plant species" shall include, but not be limited to, the following plant genera (commonly known as "spreading" or "running-type"): Arundinaria, Bambusa, Chimonobambusa, Dendrocalamus, Fargesia, Japanese Knotweed, Phyllostachys, Pleioblastus, Sasa, Sasaella, Semiarundinaria, Ragweed, multi-flora rose, kudzu-vine and poison oak or ivy.
C.
Prohibition. No owner, tenant or occupant of a property, or person, corporation or other entity, shall plant, install, or cause or permit the planting or installation of any invasive plant species such as bamboo within any lot and/or parcel of ground anywhere within geographic boundaries of the Borough of Woodlynne.
D.
Duty to confine; inspection and approval of Code Enforcement Officer.
(1)
If there exists any species commonly known as "bamboo-running or clumping," or any other invasive plant species located upon any property within the Borough of Woodlynne prior to the effective date of this article, there shall be a duty to confine imposed upon the owner or occupant of the property. The duty to confine shall require owners and occupants to prevent the encroachment, spread, invasion or intrusion of bamboo and other invasive plant species onto any other private property, public property, or public right-of-way.
(2)
All places and premises in the Borough of Woodlynne shall be subject to inspection by the Code Enforcement Officer when there is reason to believe that any section of this article is being violated.
(3)
Property owners who seek to confine bamboo or other invasive plant species must do so in accordance with methods approved by the Borough of Woodlynne Code Enforcement Officer. The Code Enforcement Officer may permit, inspect and approve methods of confinement and amend the requirements of said confinement from time to time. The Code Enforcement Officer may also permit, inspect and approve proper methods for full removal of bamboo or other invasive plant species.
(4)
Failure to confine bamboo or other invasive plant species in accordance with the requirements of this article enforced by the Code Enforcement Officer shall require immediate removal by the property owner or occupant.
(5)
An owner or occupant with property containing bamboo or other invasive plant species prior to the adoption of this article may fully remove the bamboo or other invasive plant species in lieu of the duty to confine. Such removal must conform with the requirements set forth by the Code Enforcement Officer.
A.
Bamboo and any other invasive plant species shall be considered properly confined when its root system is entirely contained within an aboveground level planter, barrel, or other vessel of such design, material and location as to completely prevent the root system's growth beyond the container in which it is planted.
B.
When properly confined as described herein, all bamboo and invasive plant species shall be located, trimmed, and maintained so that no part of the plant shall be closer than 10 feet from any property line.
A.
Encroachment on public property; rights of Borough. When an encroachment of bamboo or any other invasive plant species occurs upon public property or a public right-of-way, the Borough of Woodlynne may remove or contract for the removal of such bamboo or other invasive plant species from public property or right-of-way. The cost of removal shall be the responsibility of the property owner and shall be assessed as a lien against the property on which the growth originated. The cost of removal of the bamboo and any other invasive plant species shall also include the installation of an appropriate barrier to prevent future invasion onto the public property or any right-of-way.
B.
Encroachment on private property; rights of property owner. Nothing herein shall be interpreted as limiting the rights of a private property owner to seek civil relief through a court of proper jurisdiction, nor the institution of civil proceedings against the proper parties.
A.
The cost of corrective action, together with any civil penalties, legal fees and other costs shall be recoverable from the responsible party in violation of this article.
B.
Whenever it shall be deemed for the preservation and protection of the public health, safety and welfare, or to eliminate a fire hazard, the Code Enforcement Officer, as well as the Director of the Department of Public Works, or their designees, shall require any owner, tenant, occupant, managing agent, executor, administrator or other similar person to remove or destroy invasive plant species, brush, weeds (including ragweed), dead and dying trees, stumps, roots, obnoxious growth, filth, garbage, trash and debris from any property or within the entire perimeter of the property that extends to the curbline of the roadway abutting the property, within five days after receipt of notice to remove or destroy the same.
C.
All such obnoxious growth and debris delineated in the preceding subsection shall be collected and either removed from the premises or accumulated in trash cans, bags or other similar containers for removal by any appropriate sanitation service; the property shall be cleared within the entire perimeter of the property and extend to the curbline or gutter line of the adjoining roadway, as the case may be.