Columbia City council moves to approve ordinance codifying property maintenance for streets and sidewalks

Columbia City Common Council met Oct. 28, 2025, to consider Ordinance 2025-19, which would amend Chapter 97 (streets and sidewalks) of the city code to codify existing practice that property owners are responsible for vegetation and maintenance in rights-of-way and up to the center line of the roadway. The council asked for and recorded a motion to approve the ordinance on second and final reading; the transcript records a motion and a second but does not include an explicit roll-call tally or an announced outcome.

Supporters and staff said the ordinance primarily formalizes actions the city has already been taking in practice. The measure clarifies that privately planted landscaping in the right-of-way may be subject to a removal order by the city, with a 15-day written notice requirement before enforcement action, and that city-planted street trees are listed in a maintained street-tree database and are generally maintained by the city. The discussion also distinguished emergency city authority to trim or remove vegetation that interferes with utilities or presents an immediate hazard.

Council members asked and received clarification on liability and ownership when a street or alley is vacated; staff referenced prior attorney guidance and said this approach matches long-standing practice in other communities. Council members noted the code enforcement coordinator and other staff helped draft the ordinance language so that current practice and state law were aligned.

The transcript records the motion as: “Approve Ordinance 2025-19, an ordinance amending Chapter 97, streets and sidewalks, of the code of ordinances of the City of Columbia City, Indiana.” The motion was recorded as moved by Brent and seconded by Tad. The recorded discussion addressed property-owner responsibility, city authority in emergencies, and the city’s street-tree database; the transcript does not record a final vote tally or whether the ordinance was formally declared adopted on the record.

If the council formally adopted the ordinance at a later point in the meeting or issued a recorded roll-call vote, that result does not appear in the available transcript.

Minutes: The council also took a separate, earlier motion to approve the minutes from the Oct. 24 special budget meeting; the transcript records a motion and second but does not include a recorded vote tally for that item either.