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(a) The owner of every lot or parcel of land within the city upon which a tree, plant or shrubbery stands, with any part thereof upon or overhanging a public street or sidewalk, shall be subject to the regulations provided in this chapter. Upon such owner’s failure to comply, after written notice, with this chapter, the city shall cause any such trees, plants or shrubbery to be trimmed or cut down and removed in accordance with these regulations and assess the cost thereof against the owner of such lot or parcel of land, as provided for in this chapter.
(b) The owner shall trim or cause to be trimmed any such tree, plant or shrubbery so that a clear height of eight feet between the lowest branches and the sidewalk is maintained and such height over the street as may be designated by the Public Works Director or the Urban Forester.
(c) The owner shall trim or remove, as the case may require, every dead, decayed or broken tree, plant or shrubbery, or part thereof, so that the same does not fall into the street or sidewalk.
(d) The owner shall cut down and remove any tree, plant or shrubbery, or any part thereof, as may be necessary to provide a clear and unobstructed view of traffic from all directions at any street, private driveway, or other intersection, or to abate a nuisance, where such abatement is necessary to protect life, limb or property of persons, drivers of vehicles or pedestrians using the street or sidewalk.
(e) Whoever violates this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor and shall be subject to the penalty provided in § 698.02.
(Ord. 40-92, passed 3-23-1992; Ord. 123-05, passed 7-11-2005; Ord. 43-2014, passed 4-14-2014; Ord. 23-84, passed 5-9-2023)
(a) Noxious weeds, invasive plant species and undesirable vegetation shall include:
(1) Any weed declared to be a noxious weed in the O.A.C. § 901:5-37-01, as amended;
(2) Any plant species declared to be invasive in the O.A.C. § 901:5-30-01;
(3) Poison ivy, ragweed, poison oak and poison sumac;
(4) Any vegetation, other than trees, bushes, flowers or other ornamental plants, which exceeds eight inches in height. In environmentally sensitive areas, native vegetation is hereby excluded from this classification; and
(5) Any vegetation which, by reason of the pollen or the seeds which it spreads or produces, or due to the density of its growth or its unsightliness, injuriously affects the public health or welfare.
(b) All noxious weeds and undesirable vegetation, as defined in division (a) of this section, are hereby declared to be a nuisance.
(Ord. 40-92, passed 3-23-1992; Ord. 123-05, passed 7-11-2005; Ord. 58-09, passed 6-8-2009; Ord. 23-84, passed 5-9-2023; Ord. 24-74, passed 6-24-2024)
(a) All noxious weeds and undesirable vegetation shall be cut and removed or destroyed by the owner, lessee, tenant, occupant or person having care or control of a plot of ground upon which such vegetation is growing as hereinafter described:
(1) All parcels in a recorded subdivision in their entirety;
(2) All residentially zoned property not within a recorded subdivision where subject property is less than two acres in area and fronts a public right-of-way;
(3) All land which lies within 25 feet of a lot line which is adjacent to lots or lands upon which a residential dwelling or commercial building exists, whether or not such dwelling or building is occupied; and
(4) All land which lies within 50 feet of a dedicated thoroughfare.
This section shall not apply to lands which are used for agricultural or horticultural purposes.
(b) Whoever violates this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor and shall be subject to the penalty provided in § 698.02.
(Ord. 40-92, passed 3-23-1992; Ord. 123-05, passed 7-11-2005; Ord. 58-09, passed 6-8-2009)
(a) Upon failure of the owner, lessee, tenant, occupant or person having care or control of a plot of ground to cut and remove trees, plants or shrubbery along public streets and highways, as required in this chapter, the city shall cause written notice to be served on the owner, lessee, tenant or agent having charge of such land, notifying him or her that such trees, plants or shrubbery are growing on such lands and that they must be cut and destroyed within five days after service of such notice. If there is not an imminent hazard, and upon agreement of the Urban Forester and the Code Administrator, the period of time for compliance may be extended up to 90 days.
(b) Upon failure of the owner, lessee, tenant, occupant or person having care or control of a plot of ground to cut and remove noxious weeds and undesirable vegetation, as required in this chapter, the city shall cause written notice to be served on the owner, lessee, tenant or agent having charge of such land, notifying him or her that such noxious weeds and undesirable vegetation are growing on such lands and that they must be cut and destroyed within five days after service of such notice. For purposes of this division (b), only one notice per calendar year is required for a lot or parcel. If, after a notice has been served in accordance with this section, the Code Administrator determines that a continuing violation is occurring or a subsequent violation has occurred, the city may proceed with the remedy set forth in this chapter without further notice.
(c) Upon a finding by the city that litter has been placed on lands in the city, has not been removed and constitutes a detriment to public health, the city shall cause written notice to be served upon the owner, or upon the lessee, agent or tenant having charge of the littered land, notifying him or her that litter is on the land and that it must be collected and removed within 15 days after service of such notice.
(d) As used in this section and § 668.06, “litter” includes, but is not limited to, any garbage, waste which shall include yard waste, peelings of vegetables or fruits, rubbish, ashes, cans, bottles, wire, paper, cartons, boxes, parts of automobiles, wagons, furniture, glass or oil of an unsightly or unsanitary nature, and anything else of an unsightly nature.
(e) Notice shall be served by regular mail, addressed to the last known address of the owner as shown in the office of the Lorain County Auditor. If the last known address of the owner cannot be ascertained, it is sufficient to publish the notice once in a newspaper of general circulation in the county. In either case, the notice shall be posted in a conspicuous manner on the property when possible. Date of service of the notice shall be determined (where service is by mail) as the day following the day of mailing for notices to addresses within the city and as of the fourth day after the day of mailing for notices to addresses outside the city. Where the day of service would fall upon a Sunday or other day when mail is not ordinarily delivered, then the day of service shall be the next regular delivery day. When notice is published, date of service shall be date of publication.
(f) This section does not apply to land being used under a permit or license issued pursuant to R.C. Chapter 3734, §§ 4737.05 to 4737.12 or R.C. Chapter 6111.
(g) Whoever violates this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor and shall be subject to the penalty provided in § 698.02.
(Ord. 40-92, passed 3-23-1992; Ord. 123-05, passed 7-11-2005; Ord. 58-09, passed 6-8-2009)
The Code Administrator may make service and return of the notice provided for in § 668.04 and shall be allowed the same fees as those provided for service and return of summonses in civil cases before a magistrate as provided for in the Ohio Revised Code.
(Ord. 40-92, passed 3-23-1992; Ord. 123-05, passed 7-11-2005)
If the owner, lessee, agent or tenant having charge of the lands mentioned in this chapter fails to comply with the notice provided for in this chapter, the city shall cause such trees, plants or shrubbery along public streets and highways, noxious weeds and undesirable vegetation, to be cut and destroyed, or such litter to be removed, and may employ the necessary labor to perform the task. “Labor” shall include removal of rocks, debris, garbage, wood or other materials which, by their presence, would damage or destroy mowing equipment or cause the cutting of weeds to be unachievable. All expenses incurred shall be paid out of money in the Treasury of the city not otherwise appropriated.
(Ord. 40-92, passed 3-23-1992; Ord. 123-05, passed 7-11-2005; Ord. 58-09, passed 6-8-2009; Ord. 1-2013, passed 1-14-2013)
Whenever any tree, plant, shrubbery, noxious weeds or undesirable vegetation, or parts thereof, are trimmed or removed or such litter removed in accordance with the provisions of this chapter by the city, then after such work is performed, the Code Administrator shall determine the cost of cutting and removal and shall cause a statement thereof to be mailed to the property owner of record. If such work is done by contract, the entire cost shall be determined by adding 15% to the actual contract cost as a reasonable charge to pay for the cost of supervision by the Code Administrator, the service of notice, inspection and/or other factors incidental to the completion of the work. The owner shall pay such costs as are charged in accordance with this chapter within 30 days after the statement of charges has been mailed to the owner at the address of record in the office of the County Auditor. Such payments shall be credited to the appropriation from which such cost was paid by the city. If the charge is not paid within 30 days after mailing, the Code Administrator shall make a written return to the County Auditor of his or her actions under this chapter with a statement of the charges or services, the amount paid for labor, the fee of the officers serving the notices, the charges incurred for notification and a proper description of the premises. These amounts, when allowed, shall be entered into the tax duplicate and become a lien upon such lands from and after the date of entry and be collected as other taxes and returned to the city with the General Fund.
(Ord. 40-92, passed 3-23-1992; Ord. 123-05, passed 7-11-2005; Ord. 58-09, passed 6-8-2009; Ord. 1-2013, passed 1-14-2013; Ord. 25-2014, passed 2-24-2014; Ord. 23-84, passed 5-9-2023)