A. 
Definitions.
"Director"
means the director of the department of inspections.
"Graffiti"
means any marking, including, but not limited to, any inscription, slogan, drawing, painting, symbol, logo, name, character, or figure, that is made in any manner on public or private tangible property visible to the public. This does not include any of the foregoing being used for commercial advertising purposes or that is placed on any property in compliance with any applicable city ordinance, state or federal law.
"Minor"
means any person under eighteen (18) years of age.
"Owner"
means the owner of record or the person contractually responsible for the property.
"Parent"
means a person who is the natural or adoptive parent of any person. As used herein, parent shall also include a court-appointed guardian, or other person authorized by the parent or by a court-appointed guardian to have the care and custody of a person.
B. 
An owner of any tangible property in the city commits an offense if the owner fails to paint over or remove all graffiti from the property that is visible from any public property or right-of-way or from any private property other than the property on which the graffiti exists.
C. 
A parent of a minor commits an offense if the parent knowingly permits the minor to create graffiti.
D. 
Any other person commits an offense under this section if he or she creates graffiti.
E. 
Before the filing of a complaint for a violation under subsection (B) of this section, the director shall serve the property owner with written notice to remove the graffiti from the property within fifteen (15) days from the date the notice is served. The notice may be served by personal service to the property owner or by United States certified mail, return receipt requested, addressed to the property owner's address as shown on the tax rolls. If the owner cannot be found or the notice is returned by the United States postal service as undeliverable, then the owner may be notified by:
1. 
Publication two times within ten (10) consecutive days in a newspaper of general circulation in the city; or
2. 
Posting the notice on or near the front door of each building on the premises to which the violation relates.
3. 
The fifteen (15) days will be counted from the date the notice is personally served on the owner, from the day after the notice is placed in the United States certified mail or the day after one of the alternative methods of notice contained in subsections (E)(1) and (2) of this section is completed.
F. 
Before the issuing of a violation notice under subsection (B) of this section, the director shall review the defenses to prosecution under subsection (G) of this section to determine if any defense is applicable.
G. 
It is a defense to prosecution under subsection (B) of this section if:
1. 
No notice was served on the property owner in compliance with subsection (D) of this section;
2. 
The property owner, after notice, has removed graffiti from the property three or more times within the preceding twelve (12) months;
3. 
Before filing a complaint under this section, the director was given written authorization by the property owner to allow persons to enter onto the property and paint over or remove the graffiti pursuant to a program approved by the director at no cost to the owner;
4. 
A good faith effort was made to remove the graffiti to include, but not be limited to, the procuring of insurance; or
5. 
The graffiti was placed with consent and approval of the owner and the director. The director's decision not to approve may be appealed by the owner to the housing board of review.
H. 
In the event correction is not made within the time prescribed in the notice of violation provided for in subsection (E) of this section, the director or city solicitor shall cause an appropriate complaint to be brought before the municipal court of the city.
I. 
An offense under this section is punishable by a fine not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00).
(Prior code § 14-75)
No person shall throw, cast, deposit or dispose of, or cause to be thrown, cast, deposited or disposed of, any waste into an open or flowing water body or onto any property located in the city which is within two hundred (200) feet of a pond, river, other watercourse or wetland, as may be defined or regulated by the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management. For the purposes of this regulation "waste" shall be defined as any scrap or junk items, construction or demolition debris, yard or landscaping refuse, household refuse, hazardous waste as defined in Rule 3.25 of the "State of Rhode Island Rules and Regulations for Hazardous Waste Generation, Transportation, Treatment, Storage and Disposal, 1984" as amended; or other liquid or solid products regulated elsewhere in this code or by the state of Rhode Island in Rules 3.42, 3.53 and 3.69 of the regulation cited above. Any person found in violation of this section, or found to have aided or abetted any person in the violation of this section and who shall fail to remove the violation as set forth in Section 9.08.030 below shall be fined not less than twenty-five dollars ($25.00) and not more than two hundred dollars ($200.00) for each separate violation from the date of the initial violation. For the purposes of this section, each day of noncompliance shall be treated as a separate violation.
(Prior code § 18-7)
A. 
Complaints may be brought to the police department by an aggrieved landowner or any public official authorized to act on behalf of the city's residents.
B. 
Once a complaint has been brought to the police, a notice of violation shall be sent to the involved party or parties. Said notice may be hand delivered by a police officer or mailed certified mail, return receipt requested.
C. 
Upon receipt of said notice, the party or parties involved shall permanently remove the violating waste from the property within thirty (30) days of receipt of the notice. In extreme cases involving a public health hazard, the chief of police may instruct the involved party or parties to take temporary action within five days to alleviate the potential hazard to the public.
D. 
Failure to comply with the notice of violation within thirty (30) days shall result in prosecution for violation of the ordinance codified herein unless the involved party or parties obtain a written extension of time from the chief of police.
E. 
The notice of violation, once served upon the person involved shall be recorded in the land evidence records of the city in the same manner as a notice of violation for minimum housing standards.
F. 
Should the owner fail to take the temporary corrective measures within the five-day period when specified or the permanent corrective measures within the thirty (30) day period, the city shall then have the right to take whatever actions it deems necessary to correct the violations and to assert a lien on the subject property in an amount equal to the costs of remedial actions in addition to initiating legal action. The imposition of any penalty shall not exempt the offender from compliance with the provisions of this chapter.
(Prior code § 18-7.1)
Any person owning land in the city within which there is located a well, which such owner does not use for a consecutive period of thirty (30) days, shall, at the expiration of such period, cover such well with a cover so constructed as to bear a live load of one thousand (1,000) pounds and as not to be removable by children.
(Prior code § 18-9)
It is declared to be a nuisance and it shall be unlawful for any person to operate any motorcycle, motor bike, trail bike, snowmobile or any other vehicle, conveyance or animal conveyance over or along any premises in the city owned or controlled by the Providence water supply board, or to use such premises as a bridle path, without the express authorization of the Providence water supply board.
(Prior code § 18-10)
A. 
No person shall, without the written consent of the tree warden of the city of Cranston use climbing spurs for the purpose of climbing ornamental or shade trees, and no person or agent of a firm or corporation shall remove, cut down, prune, willfully injure, or deface any shrub or tree within the limits of any public way or municipal land without the written permission of the tree warden of the city of Cranston.
B. 
Any person, firm or corporation removing, cutting down, or damaging any tree located along a municipal city roadway shall, in addition to any fine levied, replace the tree with a hardy young tree of a similar kind in the same general location of the tree cut down or removed. Said replant of the replacement tree shall be to the satisfaction and under the direction of the city's tree warden.
C. 
Any person, firm or corporation violating subsection (A) shall be punished by a fine of not less than one hundred dollars ($100.00) and not more than five hundred dollars ($500.00) for each offense.
D. 
Each offense as set forth in subsection (C) shall be defined as each individual shrub, tree or other planting.
E. 
This section shall be enforced by the Cranston police department and summons issued shall be returnable to the Cranston municipal court.
(Ord. 06-17 § 1)
Whenever, in the opinion of the tree warden, it is necessary to remove or prune any tree or shrub under his or her control, he or she may cause the tree or shrub to be removed or pruned at the expense of the city, and the Cranston city council shall order paid to the person performing the work any reasonable compensation that may be determined and approved, in writing, by the tree warden. For any tree removed, the city shall plant a new tree of native species, and shall attempt to do so as close to the location of the previous tree as possible.
(Ord. 2011-42, § 1, 11/28/2011; Ord. 2023-2, § 1, 3/27/2023)
Unless the tree or shrub constitutes an imminent public hazard, the tree warden shall give ten (10) days' notice of the removal or pruning of trees located on public rights of way. Notice shall be posted in the immediate vicinity of the tree or shrub to be removed or pruned. Notice on the tree shall indicate the email and mailing address of the tree warden, the deadline for written objections, if no written objections, there will be no hearing. If any person, firm, or corporation objects to the removal or pruning of the tree or shrub, he or she may appeal to the tree warden, in writing. The tree warden shall hold a public hearing and give reasonable notice by email or if no email, by regular mail, of the date, time and location to all those persons, firms, corporations objecting in writing within the time prescribed. Within seven days of the hearing, the tree warden shall render his or her decision granting or denying the appeal and notify all those persons, firms, corporations having objected in writing of said final decision of the tree warden. At the city council public works committee meeting each month, the tree warden shall provide a list of trees removed, identifying the location of each tree removed.
Nothing in this section shall be construed to relieve the property owner of the responsibility to maintain trees on his or her property.
Nor shall this section be construed to change or otherwise designate the area of the city's responsibility for tree maintenance.
(Ord. 2011-42, § 1, 11/28/2011; Ord. 2013-38, § 1, 10/28/2013; Ord. 2013-40, § 1, 12/16/2013; Ord. 2023-9, § 1, 4/24/2023)
A. 
The "back of sidewalk" program is designed to plant new street trees in an environment that is more conducive to sustained growth. The improved growing environment provided through the "back of sidewalk" program will result in improved long-term health of the newly planted trees.
B. 
The purpose of the "back-of-sidewalk" program is:
1. 
Extend the life of tree;
2. 
Reduce the likelihood of the tree causing sidewalks to heave;
3. 
Provide trees where few exist; and
4. 
Expand diversity of street tree species.
5. 
Increase the attractiveness of small businesses in the city.
Increasing the diversity of Cranston's street trees reduces the risk of blight (such as Dutch Elm disease), and provides a more varied look to each street. Criteria for species selection include the size of house, or small business, the width of street and the existing tree species on the street. Because this program serves primarily to enhance the streetscape, the tree must be completely visible from and planted within twenty (20) feet of the sidewalk. Trees planted in the back of sidewalk program shall be at least eight feet from the property line, unless the neighboring property owners or business owners approves the plant site in writing.
C. 
To participate in the "back of sidewalk" program the property owner or small business owner or authorized agent of said small business must sign and submit a consent and release form giving permission to the city of Cranston employees and/or their agents/contractors, to enter upon their property for the purpose of planting a tree and agreeing to hold the city of Cranston and its employees harmless from all claims, liability, loss or damage to person or property arising from the planting of such tree(s). The consent and release form shall include an agreement by the homeowner or small business entity to water, mulch, and maintain such tree(s). The executed consent and release form must be recorded and filed with the city of Cranston and will be enforced against the present owner or small business and all subsequent owners or successors of said business entity in the future in perpetuity. The tree warden will review the homeowner's request and/or small business owner and render a decision.
D. 
For the purpose of the back of sidewalk program, small businesses shall be defined as a person, partnership, corporation or other form of business entity independently owned and operated which employs fewer than fifty (50) employees and has its principal place of business located in Cranston.
E. 
Small businesses will be eligible for this program only if all homeowner requests have been honored.
F. 
Tree plantings required by development plan review or other governmental requirements shall not be eligible for this program.
(Ord. 2013-38, § 1, 10/28/2013; Ord. 2013-40, § 1, 12/16/2013; Ord. 2017-13, § 1, 4/24/2017)