Tag: Lawn Mowing

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CITY CODE ENFORCEMENT LACKS TEETH

Most responsible homeowners  take pride in mowing their lawns and maintaining their property, but some  don’t.  That’s why  cities have  regulations about lawn mowing.  Currently,  any grass over 12 inches high is in violation of city code.  At that  point, they may  receive  a complaint in their mailbox. If the notice is ignored, the city mows the offenders  lawn and charges them $60. Which  happens to be less than what it would cost to have it mowed by a lawn service.  2nd, 3d and 4th offenses are charged at the same flat fee of $60.  Our city code enforcement lacks teeth. 

hOMEOWNERS should be fined if they refuse to mow their lawn.
if  a person isn’t fined for 2nd & 3d offenses, City Code Enforcement Lacks Teeth.

What happens to a nice neighborhood when one homeowner lets his yard get overgrown with knee high grass and mountains of weeds?  Property values decrease, and everyone feels frustrated.

In our subdivision, there is a homeowner  who thumbs his nose at society by refusing to mow his lawn more than once or twice a year.  Is he poor or disabled?  No, he’s an executive at a good company, who has the luxury of working from home.  He’s healthy enough to play golf.  Also, he owns an upscale lawn mower in good working condition.

This situation has gone on for several years.  When I asked the woman at code enforcement why there hasn’t been some kind of fine for 2nd 3d and 4th offenses, she responded that the city has over 700 un mowed lawns, and ‘you can’t make someone mow their lawn.” Wow,  if you’re going to apply that logic, you could say, “you can’t make a person stop running red lights.”  No, you can’t, but you can bet your sweet bippy it’s going to cost you more each additional time you run a red light.

Last spring, the Okemah. Oklahoma city council decided to  crack down on offenders by hitting them in the pocket book.  .  By a unanimous vote, they set a fee schedule for certain violations of the city code.  Under the resolution, failure to keep your lawn mowed could result in a $100 fine for the first offense, $150 for the second and $200 for the third offense. A warning will be issued before any fines are assessed.

The city of Ferndale, Michigan issued the following statement regarding code enforcement: ”  The lawn grass cannot be longer than 7″.  As a courtesy, we will send a notice once per season to the homeowner letting them know they have 7 days to cut their grass.  If the grass does not get cut, the City’s contractor mows it for them.  This service will cost the property owner $275.00.  Given the alternatives, the property owner normally realizes that it is much less expensive to maintain their lawn themselves or hire someone than having the City do it.”

You have to wonder why our  city council  is so lax about code enforcement.  What are they afraid of?  A person who won’t mow his lawn probably isn’t going to vote in the next election. But his neighbors will.

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WHAT IF YOU DON’T MOW YOUR GRASS?

Most people who live in a house with a yard mow their lawns..   But what about those who won’t?  in my city, lax code enforcement procedures actually encourage lazy property owners.  The officers are supposed  to patrol the city and find violations.   But in fact, they sit back and wait to receive a complaint before taking any action.  Shouldn’t they be more aggressive?   What if you don’t mow your grass.?

MANY CITIES IMPOSE STEEP FINES ON THOSE WHO DON’T MOW THEIR LAWNS

If you contact Code Enforcement here about someone’s overgrown lawn, the department will issue a citation which says they’ve received a complaint.    This creates a tense situation between neighbors.   Consequently, very few people will call to complain about their neighbor’s yard. Anyone driving around  our town will see numerous empty houses  and vacant lots with sky-high grass and weeds.  One housing developer, located directly across from a beautiful park, is allowed to let tall weeds proliferate on  acres of land.

Other towns have more pride in the appearance of their city.   This year, In  Dunedin Florida,  one man was fined $30,000 for not mowing his lawn

https://www.tampabay.com/pinellas/dunedin-fined-a-man-30000-for-tall-grass-now-the-city-has-foreclosed-on-his-home-20190508/

Many cities impose fines, liens, and even foreclosure on property owners who refuse to mow their grass.

https://www.lawnstarter.com/blog/landscaping/fines-liens-foreclosure-refuse-mow-lawn/

Along our street,  one  able bodied homeowner has been reported to Code Enforcement more than once for letting weeds and grass grow way beyond the allowed 8 inches.  Obviously, this  devalues all of the surrounding property.  You would think this individual would be on probation, or on a list of problem homeowners.  But apparently, the agency has no follow up procedures.  This homeowner continues to violate city codes –mowing only when he chooses– with no apparent  repercussions or penalties imposed.

If code enforcement officers  in this town can’t get up from their desks,  they should at least make it easier for those who complain.  Anyone should feel free to report a problem anonymously, without fearing reprisals from an angry neighbor.

You would think the Economic Development department might take a stand on lax code enforcement.  A city that takes no pride in its appearance isn’t appealing to new business.  In fact, our city has been steadily losing population for decades.

There are times when a homeowner is going through a bad time due to illness,   disability or family problems.  In this case, kindly neighbors might volunteer to help out with the yard work.  Most would be glad to do whatever it takes to maintain the appearance of their neighborhood.

Lax code enforcement is bad for the city,  bad for economic development,  and bad for homeowners who spend money and effort to maintain their property.