(A) Enforcement Officer. This subchapter shall be enforced by the Township Police Department and/or the township’s designated Code Enforcement Officer.
(B) Right of entry. The Enforcement Officer and his or her authorized representatives are hereby empowered to enter upon any premises or land in the township for the purpose of inspecting, removing of and/or destroying tall grass and weeds prohibited under this subchapter. No person shall interfere with such person or persons while they are engaged in carrying out the provisions of this subchapter.
(C) Violation notice. After inspection, if any property is determined to be in violation of this subchapter, a violation notice will be sent to the property owner and/or occupant of said premises in which the name appears in the last local assessment record of the township. The notice shall be sent by both first-class and by posting a copy of said notice on the property. The notice shall give the property owner ten days from the date of the notice to cut the tall grass and weeds.
(D) Appeal provisions. A party aggrieved by a decision under division (C) above may appeal the violation notice as follows.
(1) Within the ten-day time period for which a lawn must be cut in division (C) above, an aggrieved party may file a written request with the Township Clerk setting forth an appeal of the violation notice, along with specific reasons alleging why the allegations in the violation notice are improper.
(2) The Clerk shall notice the aggrieved party in writing of the time, place and date that the Township Supervisor or his or her appointed Hearing Officer will hold a hearing on the appeal.
(3) The Township Supervisor or his or her appointed Hearing Officer may grant relief on appeal if it finds that there is good cause to believe that the violation notice was issued in error. GOOD CAUSE shall mean that the Township Supervisor or his or her appointed Hearing Officer finds by a preponderance of the evidence that the area ordered to be mowed is exempt from the provisions of this subchapter.
(E) Failure to comply. If no appeal is filed, and the tall grass and weeds are not cut within ten days, or if the tall grass and weeds are not cut within five days of a decision on appeal ordering the cutting of the grass and weeds, the township shall have the authority to enter upon the land and/or to cause the grass and weeds to be mowed by an authorized representative who is hereby empowered to enter upon any premises or land in the township for the purpose of mowing tall grass and weeds in violation of this subchapter, even if the property owner and/or occupant failed to actually receive said notice. The township, its agents and representatives shall not be responsible for damage to buildings, vehicles, landscape, trees, shrubs and the like during the mowing of property in violation of this subchapter.
(F) Assessment of costs. All expenses of such cutting, to include equipment usage, transportation, man-hours involved, and overhead, including any and all cost incurred in the removal or relocation of debris, junk or other miscellaneous obstructions which would be necessary or convenient to carry out the requirements of this subchapter shall be paid by the owners of such land, thereof per residential parcel, per cutting. After having a lot mowed, the township shall then submit a bill to the property owner for the cost of the mowing. If the property owner does not pay the bill within 60 days of the date of the invoice, the cost of such payment shall be charged against the premises and it shall become a lien on the land or property assessed of the same character in effect as the lien created by general law for taxes.
(Ord. 35, passed 4-2-2019)