(A) Any owner of real estate located within the city or the tenant residing therein shall be required to cut high weeds and grass, and remove debris and rubbish from said real estate within five days after receiving written notice of such requirement from the planning department. Property owners shall also be responsible to cut high weeds and grass, and remove debris and rubbish from the area between the streets and sidewalks adjacent to the real estate. All parcels/land located within a floodplain, wetlands, woods, or undeveloped areas may be exempt from the above requirements, as determined by the Planning Director upon request of a landowner. In determining whether a parcel of land is exempt from the provisions of this section, the planning director shall consider the following:
(1) The impact of the exemption upon surrounding property owners and their use of their real estate;
(2) The ecological impact of the exemption including the potential impact upon wildlife habitat, water quality, air quality, flood control, and erosion control;
(3) The contributory effect of the exemption upon the creation or preservation of green space and natural undeveloped land; and
(4) The general health, safety, and welfare of the citizens of the city.
(B) Weeds shall mean any plant exceeding six inches in height. Plant material in a floodplain area exempted from the provisions of this section, as described in division (A) of this section, shall not be subject to these regulations. Trees, shrubberies, flowers, ornamental grasses, and agricultural crops, including hay and pasture, exceeding six inches are not considered to be weeds or rank vegetation.
(C) Rank vegetation shall include the following weeds.
(1) Canada thistle (Cirsium arvense).
(2) Johnson grass and Columbus grass (Sorghum halepense and Sorghum album).
(3) Bur cucumber (Sicyos angulatus).
(4) Shattercane (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench spp. Drummondii (Seud.) deWet).
(5) Poison ivy.
(6) Poison sumac.
(7) Poison oak.
(8) Quackgrass (Elytrigia repens).
(9) Carolina horsenettle (Solanum carolinense).
(10) Cocklebur (Xanthium strumarium).
(11) Wild Mustard (Brassica kaber var, pinnatifida).
(D) Grass, excluding ornamental grass, shall not exceed six inches in height.
(E) In the event that the owner of the real estate shall fail to perform as required in this section for a period of five days after the giving of notice of non-compliance described in § 93.07 of this chapter, the city or a contractor acting on behalf of the city shall have the right to enter onto the real estate and bring the real estate into compliance with the requirements of this section.
(Ord. 43-11-12, passed 11-27-12) Penalty, see § 93.99