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Council addresses weed‑ordinance enforcement after resident complaint about non‑ratepayer property
Summary
A council member relayed a neighbor's complaint that town staff told them the weed ordinance didn’t apply to non‑ratepayers; staff and council clarified the ordinance applies in town limits, described the notice‑and‑mow enforcement process and discussed staff capacity and the possibility of hiring part‑time code enforcement help.
Council members discussed a complaint brought by a resident who said a neighbor was told the weed ordinance did not apply because they are not town ratepayers. A council member relayed the complaint and provided the property address to staff.
Town staff clarified the town enforces the tall‑grass/weed ordinance within town limits: the town issues a notice, gives a timeframe to comply, and if the owner does not mow the town can perform the mowing and bill the owner, with fines available under the ordinance. "We'll give them a notice. We'll give them a time frame. If they don't mow it, the town will go and mow it and bill them for that service," the staff member said.
Council members pressed staff about enforcement capacity and whether the town should hire a dedicated code‑enforcement person versus relying on reactive complaint responses; staff said the water department employee who handles meters (Tim) performs inspections but has primary meter work priorities and cannot prioritize enforcement over those duties. Council asked staff for a list of addresses needing enforcement and asked staff to follow up.
The council did not record a formal policy change at the meeting but directed staff to follow up on the specific complaint and to report back on enforcement options.
