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WEEDS AND LITTER ON PROPERTY
§ 93.40 KEEPING DOWN WEEDS.
   (A)   Any person owning or having charge of land within the municipality shall keep such property free and clear from all noxious weeds and rank vegetation and shall be required to cut all such weeds and vegetation on the lots owned or controlled by him or her at least twice in every year, once between June 1 and July 1 and once between August 1 and September 1.
   (B)   Noxious weeds and rank vegetation shall include but not be limited to:
      (1)   Shatter cane (Sorghum bicolor).
      (2)   Russian thistle (Salsola Kali var. tenuifolia).
      (3)   Johnsongrass (Sorghum halepense).
      (4)   Wild parsnip (Pastinaca sativa).
      (5)   Grapevines (Vitis spp.), when growing in groups of 100 or more and not pruned, sprayed, cultivated, or otherwise maintained for two consecutive years.
      (6)   Canada thistle (Cirsium arvense).
      (7)   Poison hemlock (Conium maculatum).
      (8)   Cressleaf groundsel (Senecio glabellus).
      (9)   Musk thistle (Carduus nutans).
      (10)   Purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria).
      (11)   Mile-a-minute weed (Polygonum perfoliatum).
      (12)   Giant hogweed (Heracleum mantegazzianum).
      (13)   Apple of Peru (Nicandra physalodes).
      (14)   Marestail (Conyza canadensis)
      (15)   Kochia (Bassia scoparia).
      (16)   Palmer amaranth (Amaranthus palmeri).
      (17)   Kudzu (Pueraria montana var. lobata).
      (18)   Japanese knotweed (Polygonum cuspidatum).
      (19)   Yellow groove bamboo (Phyllostachys aureasculata), when the plant has spread from its original premise of planting and is not being maintained.
      (20)   Field bindweed (Convolvulus arvensis).
      (21)   Heart-podded hoary cress (Lepidium draba sub. draba).
      (22)   Hairy whitetop or ballcress (Lepidium appelianum).
      (23)   Perennial sowthistle (Sonchus arvensis).
      (24)   Russian knapweed (Acroptilon repens).
      (25)   Leafy spurge (Euphorbia esula).
      (26)   Hedge bindweed (Calystegia sepium).
      (27)   Serrated tussock (Nassella trichotoma).
      (28)   Columbus grass (Sorghum x almum).
      (29)   Musk thistle (Carduus nutans).
      (30)   Forage kochia (Bassia prostrata).
      (31)   Water hemp (Amaranthus tuberculatus).
(O.A.C. § 901:5-37-01)
      (32)   Any weeds, grass, or plants, other than trees, bushes, flowers, or other ornamental plants, growing to a height exceeding 12 inches.
Statutory reference:
   List of prohibited and secondary noxious weeds, see O.A.C. §§ 901:5-31-01 and 901:5-37-01
§ 93.41 NOTICE TO OWNER TO CUT NOXIOUS WEEDS, REMOVE LITTER; SERVICE.
   (A)   Upon written information that noxious weeds are growing on lands in the municipality and are about to spread or mature seeds, the City Manager shall cause a written notice to be served personally or by certified mail upon the owner, lessee, agent, or tenant having charge of such land, notifying him or her that noxious weeds are growing on such lands and that they must be cut and destroyed within five (5) days after service of such notice. If the owner, lessee, agent or tenant cannot be reasonably located, then it is sufficient service to post a copy of this notice in a conspicuous place in or about the structure, building, premises or property affected by such notice.
   (B)   Upon a finding by the City Manager that litter has been placed on lands in the municipality, has not been removed, and constitutes a detriment to public health, the City Manager shall cause a written notice to be served either personally or by certified mail upon the owner, lessee, agent, or tenant having charge of such land, notifying him or her that litter is on the land, and that it must be collected and removed within 15 days after the service of the notice. If the owner, lessee, agent or tenant cannot be reasonably located, then it is sufficient service to post a copy of this notice in a conspicuous place in or about the structure, building, premises or property affected by such notice.
   (C)   As used in this section and § 93.43, LITTER includes any garbage, waste, peelings of vegetables or fruits, rubbish, ashes, cans, bottles, wire, paper, cartons, boxes, parts of automobiles, wagons, furniture, glass, oil of an unsightly or unsanitary nature, or anything else of an unsightly or unsanitary nature.
   (D)   This section does not apply to land being used under a municipal building or construction permit or license, a municipal permit or license, or a conditional zoning permit or variance to operate a junkyard, scrap metal processing facility, or similar business, or a permit or license issued pursuant to R.C. Chapter 3734, §§ 4737.05 to 4737.12, or R.C. Chapter 6111.
(R.C. § 731.51)
§ 93.42 FEES FOR SERVICE AND RETURN.
   The Building Department, its designee, or Clerk of the City Manager may make service and return of the notice provided for in § 93.41 and shall be allowed the same fees as that provided for service and return of summons in civil cases before a magistrate.
(R.C. § 731.52)
§ 93.43 PROCEDURE WHEN OWNER FAILS TO COMPLY WITH NOTICE.
   If the owner, lessee, agent, or tenant having charge of the lands mentioned in § 93.41 fails to comply with the notice required by such section, the City Manager or his designated agents shall be entitled to enter upon such property and shall cause such noxious weeds to be cut and destroyed or such litter removed and may employ the necessary labor to perform the task. All expenses incurred shall, when approved by the City Manager, be paid out of the money in the treasury of the municipality not otherwise appropriated.
Statutory reference:
   Similar provisions, see R.C. § 731.53
§ 93.44 WRITTEN RETURN TO COUNTY AUDITOR; AMOUNT AS A LIEN UPON PROPERTY.
   The City Manager shall make a written return to the County Auditor of their action under §§ 93.41, 93.42, and 93.43, with a statement of the charges for their services, the amount paid for labor, equipment or materials to correct and remove such violation, the fees of the officers serving the notices, an administrative fee equal to 3% of the amount assessed, but such administrative fee shall not exceed $100 nor be less than $25, and a proper description of the premises. These amounts, when allowed, shall be entered upon the tax duplicate and be a lien upon such lands from and after the date of entry and be collected as other taxes with 10% per annum added upon the unpaid balance collectible over a period not to exceed five year. If the amount assessed is less than $1,000 total, it shall be payable in full within the following tax year.
Statutory reference:
   Similar provisions, see R.C. § 731.54
§ 93.99 PENALTY.
   Whoever violates any of the provisions of this chapter for which no other penalty has been provided shall be subject to the penalty provided in § 10.99.