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Hearing officer will rule next week on Salt Lake City homeowner’s appeal over 8-foot hedge
Summary
A Salt Lake City hearing officer took under advisement a homeowner's appeal of a notice of violation for an oversized hedge and will issue a decision by the end of next week. City staff says the hedge exceeds the 4-foot height limit; the homeowner says it provides habitat, has existed for years and a proposed ordinance change is underway.
Mary Woodhead, the hearing officer for the Salt Lake City Planning Division, took under advisement on Jan. 16 an appeal by homeowner Susan Klinker of a notice of violation at 1807 South 1900 East and said she will issue a decision by the end of next week.
The appeal centers on a dense, 43-foot hedge that city staff measured at about 8 feet and said exceeds the 4-foot maximum for hedges in the applicable residential zoning rule. The city’s civil enforcement team issued a notice and order on Aug. 29; Klinker filed an appeal in September, prompting the hearing.
City civil enforcement investigator Craig Weinheimer summarized the staff findings, saying the inspector’s measurements show "about 8 feet" from the front corner of the sidewalk to the front façade, exceeding the 4-foot allowance in the code section cited in the staff report. Nicholas Rush, the civil enforcement officer assigned to the case, also participated in the staff presentation.
Susan Klinker, who identified herself as the property owner, said she recognizes the condition "is in violation of the current ordinance," but urged the hearing officer to consider the hedge’s age, habitat value and the hardship of cutting it back. She said two landscapers advised her the hedge would not survive being cut from 8 feet to 4 feet and that remediation would cost "several thousand dollars." Klinker said the hedge is set back about 10 feet from the front sidewalk and provides habitat for "hundreds of birds and pollinators." She also said historical photographs show the hedge predates her 15 years of ownership.
Klinker said she had initiated a citizen petition and secured a letter of support from her community council. She said Councilwoman Sarah Young presented a motion at the Jan. 7 City Council meeting asking staff to address a possible text amendment to allow a 6-foot hedge along side-yard property lines; Klinker said that proposal is moving through the city process.
Catherine Pasker, a senior city attorney, advised that the appeals procedure in city code — cited in the hearing as Section 21A.16.030(e) — specifies there is "no automatic stay. Filing an appeal with a hearing officer does not stay the decision appealed unless a provision of city code specifically states otherwise." Pasker and Weinheimer also noted city code obligates staff to schedule the hearing within 180 days of the appeal filing, which is why the hearing proceeded.
A neighbor who identified themselves as Lane offered a brief public comment, saying walking the neighborhood the hedge "does not look unusual" and characterizing the enforcement as "a rather petty effort." No other members of the public spoke.
Woodhead closed the hearing and said she would issue a written decision by the end of next week. The city took no immediate enforcement action at the hearing; any enforcement or required remedial work will depend on the hearing officer’s forthcoming decision and any subsequent appeals or council action on a code change.
