(A) It shall be unlawful for any property owner, lessee, tenant, occupant, or any person in charge of any premises within the City of Canton, Texas, to allow weeds to grow upon the premises, to allow weeds and grasses to grow in excess of 12 inches upon the premises, or to allow garbage, trash or rubbish to accumulate upon the premises.
(B) (1) Any weeds such as jimson, burdock, ragweed, thistle, cocklebur or other weeds of a like kind, found growing in any lot or tract of land in the city are hereby declared to be a nuisance and it shall be unlawful to permit any such weeds to grow or remain in any such place.
(2) It shall be unlawful for any owner, lessee, tenant, occupant or any person in charge of any premises located within the City of Canton, Texas, to permit or allow weeds, grasses or plants other than trees, bushes or flower or other ornamental plants to grow to a height exceeding 12 inches. Any such plants or weeds exceeding such height are hereby declared a nuisance.
(3) It shall be a nuisance and unlawful to plant or to permit the growth of the bush of the species of tall, common European Barberry, also known as Berberis Vulgaris or its horticultural varieties within the city.
(C) (1) The accumulation of garbage and rubbish and other deleterious substances on the premises of private residences, commercial institutions and in streets and alleys greatly increases the danger of fire and spread of infections, contagious and epidemic diseases and shall constitute a public nuisance.
(2) Every owner or occupant or lessee of a house or building used for residence, business or commercial purposes shall maintain litter collection, including garbage and rubbish, and storage area in a clean condition and insure that all garbage and rubbish is properly containerized. Failure to so maintain clean litter collection and storage area shall constitute a violation of this section.
(3) Residential refuse containers shall be placed at the curb for pickup no sooner than 12 hours prior to collection day. Containers, receptacles and any unaccepted waste or refuse must be removed no later than 12 hours after collection day. Containers shall be placed at curbside or within three feet of the road surface. Containers must not block or be placed in the path of the mailbox.
(4) All refuse containers shall securely contain all contents. Containers should be capable of being handled without spillage and all container lids must be secure and kept closed.
(5) Special collection days will be designated by the Public Works Department. Collection times and dates will be made available through the local media.
(6) Scavenging shall be prohibited. No person shall remove waste from any container located in the City of Canton except the owner of the container or the owner's agent or servant or an employee of the City acting in the line of duty.
(7) All litter, trash and rubbish subject to movement by the elements shall be secured by the owners or occupants of the premises where it is found before the same is allowed to be removed by the elements to adjoining premises.
(8) It shall be the duty of any person owning or controlling a house or other building or premises, including vacant lots visible from any public place or private premises, to maintain the premises in a reasonably clean and orderly manner and to a standard conforming to other orderly premises in that vicinity. It shall be a violation of this section to abandon, neglect or disregard the condition or appearance of any premises as so to permit it to accumulate litter, trash and rubbish thereon.
(9) It shall be unlawful for any person who is in control of any premises upon which is located or on whose behalf there is maintained any container of refuse, waste or garbage which has been containerized in accordance with a contract for its removal to allow that refuse, waste or garbage to remain collected beyond the date provided by the contract for its collection and removal, or in any case to allow that container to remain unemptied for longer than 14 days or, in any case, until after that refuse, waste or garbage creates any condition which is offensive to persons upon private premises or a public place, or which constitutes a fire or health hazard.
(D) It shall be the duty of the City Manager and/or the Building Inspector to serve or cause to be served, either by personal service or by certified mail, a notice upon the owner or occupant of any premises on which weeds or grasses are permitted to grow in violation of provisions of this section and/or on which rubbish, trash or garbage is allowed to collect in violation of provisions of this section and to demand the abatement of the nuisance within ten days.
(E) If the person so served does not abate the nuisance within ten days and/or request a hearing before the City Council within the ten-day period, the City Manager and/or Building Inspector and/or persons authorized by either of these officials may proceed to abate such nuisance, keeping an account of expense of the abatement, and the expense shall be charged and paid by the owner or occupant.
(F) (1) Charges for weed removal and/or trash, garbage or rubbish removal shall be a lien upon the premises. Whenever a bill for the charges remains unpaid for 60 days after it has been rendered, the City Secretary may file through the record of deeds of Van Zandt County a statement of lien claim. This statement shall contain a legal description of the premises, the expenses and costs incurred and the date the weeds were cut or the rubbish was removed, and a notice that the city claims a lien for this amount.
(2) Notice of the lien claim shall be mailed to the owner of the premises at such address as is listed on the current tax roll.
(3) Failure of the Clerk of the City Secretary to record such lien claim or to mail such notice, or failure of the owner to receive such notice, shall not affect the right of the city to foreclose on the lien for such charges as provided in the following division.
(4) Property subject to a lien for unpaid weed or grass cutting or removal charges and/or for removal of garbage or rubbish shall be sold for nonpayment of the same and the foreclosure of statutory liens. Such foreclosure shall be in equity in the name of the City of Canton, Texas.
(5) The City Council, upon being notified by the City Secretary of the need of foreclosure, shall then authorize the City Attorney, or any attorney representing the city, to direct and institute such proceedings, in the name of the city in any court having jurisdiction over such matters, against any property for which such bill has remained unpaid for 60 days after it has been rendered.
(G) In addition to the above remedies, each individual violation of this ordinance is declared a misdemeanor and is punishable as follows:
(1) First or second conviction. For a person's first or second conviction of violation of this section the court may impose a fine of not less than $1 and not more than $200.
(2) Third or fourth conviction. For a person's third or fourth conviction or any subsequent conviction of violation of this section, the court may impose a fine of not less than $201 and not more than $400.
(3) Each day a separate offense. Each day that a violation of this section is permitted to exist shall be deemed a separate offense for which a separate fine may be assessed.
(4) Definitions. For purposes of this division, the term CONVICTION shall mean any instance in which the defendant was adjudged guilty or in which the defendant entered a plea of guilty or nolo contendere in return for a grant of deferred disposition, regardless of whether the sentence for the offense was ever imposed or whether final disposition was deferred and the complaint was subsequently dismissed upon the defendant's successful compliance with the requirements imposed as conditions of the deferred disposition.
(H) That this section shall take effect immediately from and after its passage and the publication of the caption as the law in such cases provides.
(Ord. 88-11, passed 12-13-1988; Ord. 2007-16, passed 5-15-2007)