(A) Lots or pieces of ground within the municipality shall be drained or filled so as to prevent stagnant water or any other nuisance accumulating thereon.
(B) The owner or occupant of any lot or piece of ground within the municipality shall keep the lot or piece of ground and the adjoining street and alleys free of any growth of 12 inches or more in height of weeds, grasses or worthless vegetation.
(C) The throwing, depositing or accumulation of litter on any lot or piece of ground within the municipality is prohibited; provided that, grass, leaves and worthless vegetation may be used as a ground mulch or in a compost pile.
(D) It is hereby declared to be a nuisance to permit or maintain any growth of 12 inches or more in height of weeds, grasses or worthless vegetation or to litter or cause litter to be deposited or remain thereon, except in proper receptacles.
(E) Any owner or occupant of a lot or piece of ground shall, upon conviction of violating this section, be guilty of an offense.
(F) (1) Notice to abate and remove such nuisance shall be given to each owner or owner’s duly authorized agent and to the occupant, if any, by personal service or certified mail. Within five days after receipt of such notice, if the owner or occupant of the lot or piece of ground does not request a hearing with the municipality or fails to comply with the order to abate and remove the nuisance, the municipality may have such work done. The costs and expenses of any such work shall be paid by the owner.
(2) If unpaid for two months after such work is done, the municipality may either:
(a) Levy and assess the costs and expenses of the work upon the lot or piece of ground so benefitted in the same manner as other special taxes for improvements are levied and assessed; or
(b) Recover in a civil action the costs and expenses of the work upon the lot or piece of ground and the adjoining streets and alleys.
(G) For the purpose of this section, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
LITTER. Includes, but is not limited to:
(a) Trash, rubbish, refuse, garbage, paper, rags and ashes;
(b) Wood, plaster, cement, brick or stone building rubble;
(c) Grass, leaves and worthless vegetation;
(d) Offal and dead animals; and
(e) Any machine or machines, vehicle or vehicles, or parts of a machine or vehicle which have lost their identity, character, utility or serviceability as such through deterioration, dismantling or the ravages of time, are inoperative or unable to perform their intended functions, or are cast off, discarded or thrown away or left as waste, wreckage or junk; and
WEEDS. Includes, but is not limited to, bindweed (convolvulus arvensis), puncture vine (tribulus terrestris), leafy spurge (euphorbia esula), Canada thistle (cirsium arvense), perennial peppergrass (lepidium draba), Russian knapweed (centaurea picris), Johnson grass (sorghum halepense), nodding or musk thistle, quack grass (agropyron repens), perennial sow thistle (sonchus arvensis), horse nettle (solanum carolinense), bull thistle (cirsium lanceolatum), buckthorn (rhamnus sp.) (tourn), hemp plant (canabis sativa), and ragweed (ambrosiaceae).
(Prior Code, § 6-325) (Ord. 13-95, passed 7-10-1995)
Statutory reference:
Related provisions, see Neb. RS 17-563, 18-1720