The committee began review of Ordinance 2024‑64, a rewrite addressing noxious and invasive vegetation, managed natural landscapes, and a policy to encourage native species on public property.
Speakers emphasized relying on state definitions. "We don't want to be too prescriptive in the ordinance itself," one committee member said; several members recommended using lists from the Ohio Department of Agriculture or other state resources so the city does not need to maintain its own invasive species list. The draft language would allow the director to maintain a local list consistent with state designations.
Nut graf: Committee members supported clearer definitions and homeowner guidance but warned enforcement will be challenging: inspectors are not botanists, identification tools are imperfect, and inconsistent enforcement risks unequal treatment of residents.
Members discussed how enforcement would work in practice. Building and housing inspectors currently address noxious weeds and tall grass under the existing code and could cite the most egregious cases, but staff said identifying many invasive plants would require training, reference materials or outside expert consultation. Professor from John Carroll University (who previously advised the committee) had warned that manual plant‑ID tools are imperfect; members suggested outreach such as pictorial guidance and occasional expert consultation rather than routine invasive‑species inspections.
The committee also debated native‑plant goals for public lands. Draft language encouraged planting native vegetation on public tree lawns and in city plantings, with exceptions for community gardens, athletic fields, holiday displays, and other special uses. Members removed a rigid numeric quota after hearing that a fixed percentage (for example, 60 percent native species) may be impractical given tree‑lawn sizes, sidewalk clearance and climate‑adaptation concerns. The committee instead favored an approach that prioritizes native species "to the extent practical" and that references technical guidance and a species list maintained by staff in consultation with the city's arborist.
Committee members directed staff to: adopt state definitions where practical, prepare homeowner guidance materials (including images) to encourage desirable plantings, and return with revised language that clarifies enforcement responsibility and whether the building or service department will lead implementation on public lands.