(A) Any person who is the owner of or agent for any lot or parcel of land within the City limits, who permits or suffers to exist upon, in front of, or along such premises so owned by said person or for which said person is the agent, any growth of weeds or vegetation which is four inches or more in height or any tree or shrub of which the limbs or branches extend over any public sidewalk at a height of less than seven feet above such sidewalk, or which pose a direct threat to neighboring property or structures, shall be deemed guilty of maintaining a nuisance.
(B) For purposes of this part, an agent is considered to be a tenant or a property manager, but can also be any party who is authorized to act for the property owner or has taken responsibility for the property. The property owner is ultimately responsible for the care and maintenance of the property and all fixtures, buildings, or vegetation or trees on the property.
(C) A general notice regarding this chapter shall be sent to all property owners and their agents on or about June 15 of each year. The deadline for compliance shall be June 30 for bringing a property into compliance. A second notice shall be sent on or about August 1 of each year. The deadline for compliance shall be August 15 for bringing a property into compliance. At the election of the Mayor, the second notice may be sent only to those properties identified as being in noncompliance with this part.
(D) Notices shall be mailed to the last-known address on file for the property owner and agent of the property. The mailing address on file for water/wastewater service or the mailing address on file for the property title shall be relied upon for such notices. Failure to maintain a current mailing address with the City Clerk/Treasurer or the Meagher County Clerk and Recorder shall not exempt the owner or agent from their responsibility to bring the property into compliance.
(E) A separate Notice of Violation, specifically identifying compliance issues under this chapter, may be served upon the property at any time by posting the same on the front door of the structure or other conspicuous location or by personal service upon the occupant. Such Notice of Violation shall have a deadline which shall be not less than five business days after service.
(F) Any owner or agent who neglects or refuses to cut and remove or otherwise destroy any such growth of weeds or vegetation, or to cut away and remove or destroy such trees or shrubs impinging upon the sidewalk or constituting a direct threat to neighboring property, by the deadlines established in this chapter shall be deemed guilty of a violation of this section, and upon conviction shall be punished with a fine of not less than $50 and not more than $300, and upon a second or subsequent offense, shall be punished as provided in § 1.4.1. Each day any violation of any provision of this chapter shall continue shall constitute a separate offense.
(1985 Code, § 7.04.020) (Ord. 264-266, passed 3-3-1969; Ord. 374, passed 3-3-2020; Ord. 2023-3, passed 2-21-2023)