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Reidsville council adopts clearer nuisance rules for overgrowth, visible trash and repeat violators
Summary
The Reidsville City Council on Nov. 12 approved amendments to Chapter 9 of the city code to clarify standards for natural landscaping buffers, expand what counts as a public-view nuisance and create a chronic-violator provision that allows abatement with a lien after repeat offenses.
Reidsville — The City Council voted Nov. 12 to adopt amendments to Chapter 9 (Health and Sanitation) intended to make standards for nuisance abatement more specific, especially for natural landscaping areas and visible accumulations of trash and waste.
Jason Harden, the city’s Planning and Community Development director, told the council the changes target low vegetation encroachment and overgrowth—not tree trimming—and would require buffers for natural landscaping so plantings do not encroach on neighboring properties. Harden said the amendment also clarifies that open collection of garbage, food waste or animal waste visible from public rights of way (including porches and carports) can be treated as a nuisance and must be screened from public view.
Harden described a new chronic-violator provision that would apply when a property has at least three violations of Section 9-20 in a calendar year. Under the provision, the city will send a notice that no further courtesy notices will be given for subsequent violations that year and any abatement costs would be placed as a lien on the property. ‘‘There is a $100 administrative fee anytime there is a nuisance that’s abated,’’ Harden said, adding that abatement costs would be recovered through a lien on the tax record.
Councilors asked how the issue surfaced; Harden said community-watch meetings and complaints about a highly visible property prompted staff to study neighboring jurisdictions’ approaches and propose the changes. He said staff generally follows a short notice period to encourage voluntary compliance and that, in his recollection, the typical initial notice period for high grass is about seven days before enforcement follow-up.
No members of the public spoke during the public hearing opened at 6:13 p.m. and the council moved to adopt the amendment following a motion and second. The vote was taken by raised hands and the motion carried.
The amendment package also proposes repealing an older, vague subsection (referred to in staff materials as ‘‘subsection 8’’) that staff and the city attorney found difficult to apply; staff told the council they instead enumerated specific, objective standards to reduce reliance on subjective findings at public hearings. Harden cited a state statutory authority for chronic-violator provisions during his presentation.
What happens next: The ordinance amendments take effect as provided in the city’s code-adoption procedures. The council closed the public hearing after no speakers came forward; staff said they would answer follow-up questions if councilors wanted additional clarifications.
