(A) Weeds declared a nuisance; duty of owner.
(1) Any weeds, whether noxious or not as defined by state law, or turf grass growing at a height greater than six inches upon any privately-owned lot or tract of land in the city or upon any public boulevard or similar public property alongside the traveled portion of a street or alley abutting the private property are hereby declared to be a nuisance, except as authorized in § 95.04 of this chapter. Turf grass is any type of vegetative grasses used for recreational or residential purposes.
(2) The owner or occupant of any such property or abutting property shall prevent the nuisance and, if the nuisance occurs, the owner or occupant shall cut and remove the weeds from the property or cut the turf grass to a height of less than six inches.
(B) Notice; abatement and assessment.
(1) The city shall determine that conditions exist which may violate this section. Upon identification of a violation, notice shall be served upon the property owner or responsible party as provided herein. The notice shall identify the nature of the nuisance and the violation of this chapter and it shall specify an abatement deadline, which shall be determined by the enforcement officer and which shall allow for a reasonable amount of time for abatement, and it shall order the property owner or responsible party to abate the nuisance within the specified time. Upon receipt or posting of the notice, the property owner or responsible party shall abate the nuisance with the time specified in the notice. For purposes of this chapter, when service of a notice is required, any one or more of the following methods of service upon the property owner or responsible party shall be adequate:
(a) By personal service;
(b) By certified mail via the United States Postal Service; or
(c) If the appropriate party or mailing address cannot be determine after reasonable effort, or if the notice sent certified mail is returned undelivered, or if the nature of the nuisance is such that delay resulting from personal service or service by mail would unreasonably delay abatement of the nuisance by posting a copy of the notice in a conspicuous place on the property; in which case, the notice shall also state the date on which it was posted.
(2) The property owner or responsible party may appeal the order to the City Administrator; provided that, any appeal must be submitted in writing to the City Administrator no later than the time for abatement specified in the notice or ten days, whichever is sooner.
(3) If the property owner or responsible party requests and appeal in compliance with the provisions established in this division (B), a hearing before the City Administrator, or his or her designee, shall be scheduled within 15 days after the filing of the notice of appeal. Following the hearing, the City Administrator, or his or her designee, shall report its determination and findings to the City Council and the City Council shall determine whether a violation is evident. The property owner or responsible party may present at the City Council meeting and may present information to the City Council as determined necessary by the City Council. Upon finding a violation, the City Council shall order that the cited conditions be abated.
(4) The city shall proceed with making the necessary arrangements to have the cited violation abated. Any and all costs that may be incurred by the city to alleviate the cited violation shall be the property owner’s or responsible party’s obligation.
(5) Failure by a property owner or responsible party to reimburse the city for any reasonable costs incurred concerning the enforcement of this chapter shall be cause to certify the costs to the County Auditor as a special assessment against the property in question.
(C) Abatement notice. In all cases of nuisances described in this chapter, the written notice to be served upon the property owner or responsible party shall identify property address or parcel identification number of the property in question, include a description of the nuisance, advise the property owner or responsible party he, she or they may appeal the order to the City Administrator; provided that, any appeal must be submitted in writing to the City Administrator no later than the time for abatement specified in the notice or ten days, whichever is sooner, and advise that an administrative fee in an amount approved by Council and costs of abatement incurred by the city shall be assessed and a lien may be imposed on the property to secure the payment, and that a third or subsequent violations with a 12-month calendar year shall be a misdemeanor.
(2002 Code, § 6.23) (Ord. 31, Seventh Series, effective 7-25-2015; Ord. 48, effective 10-10-2016; Ord. 68, Seventh Series, effective 6-10-2018) Penalty, see § 95.99