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Residents press council over bamboo ordinance enforcement; council schedules follow‑up meetings
Summary
Edison residents and council members spent significant time June 10 debating enforcement of an anti‑running‑bamboo ordinance and whether preexisting plantings are 'grandfathered'; council president pledged backyard site visits and a series of follow‑up discussions before any enforcement changes.
A prolonged public exchange on June 10 focused on the township’s bamboo ordinance and how enforcement has affected homeowners who say their plantings predate the law.
Residents said they have received recurring summonses despite believing their bamboo was grandfathered. One resident described repeated court appearances and called the enforcement “harassment.” Another explained that root systems routinely cross property lines, complicating enforcement and responsibility for removal. “If the bamboo’s there, the roots are everywhere,” one speaker said, urging the council to pause summonses while it reconsiders policy.
Council members and the municipal attorney cautioned about the limits of council authority: the attorney said the council should not directly instruct administrative staff not to enforce ordinances, and suggested instead that the council could amend the ordinance if it wished to change enforcement or penalties. The attorney noted state legislation that prohibits new bamboo planting but does not unambiguously preempt local rules for preexisting bamboo; courts are still clarifying that boundary.
The council president told residents he will ask administration to schedule four meetings (weekly on Tuesdays) with rotating council members to examine the ordinance language and conduct site visits to properties where disputes exist. He said he would also meet with the township attorney the following morning to review options, and that a revised ordinance or clearer guidance could come to council in subsequent meetings.
Council members urged restraint in taking immediate legislative action that could interfere with the administration’s enforcement role; others advocated a narrow legislative fix (for example, requiring bamboo removal on property transfer) as a long‑term solution.
Next steps: the council will conduct backyard inspections (with resident permission) and hold a series of council working sessions to consider drafting amendments; the timeline suggested by the president was to have a clarified plan in subsequent meetings leading up to the July 20 budget hearing cycle.
