'Grass Cops' Use Tape Measures To Check For Overgrown Lawns

[matcom]

<snip>

TOWSON, Md. --Armed with a tape measure, Sophia Jennings keeps her eyes open for overgrown weeds and the owners of the yards that have them.

Jennings, a Baltimore County code enforcement officer, checks on residents who are not in compliance with rules about overgrown lawns.

In most area jurisdictions, letting grass grow more than a foot high, or 8 inches in Baltimore city, is against the law.

In some jurisdictions, the grass "cops" come in the form of code enforcement officers. In others, public works officials or environmental health workers are assigned to the task.

"We actually have a grass ruler," said Tommie Houck, chief of zoning enforcement for Harford County.

The number of complaints varies by county and so does the process that follows the complaint, although each county uses some form of notification process and time for landowners to comply with the law.

Officials say the goal is the same everywhere: for property owners to cut back the grass and weeds cluttering their land.

While most eventually do, for those who don't, officials in Baltimore and several counties said they step in and do the landscaping themselves, sending out government crews or contractors to slice through weeds and grass that have grown several feet high.

Not only are overgrown weeds and grass a nuisance, officials say, but they also can become breeding grounds for insects and rats.

The cost of the cut, which can run into the hundreds of dollars, is passed on to the property owner through a bill or a lien attached to the property, officials said.

http://www.boston.com/news/odd/articles/2005/08/22/grass_cops_watch_for_overgrown_lawns?mode=PF

[NJCher]

1. zoning officers

One time my husband piled some sticks up and we got a knock at the door from a zoning officer who told us we couldn't do that. Really something because I live on a property off a dead end and then down a private road back in the forest with no cross streets.

So a week later the guy comes back and knocks on the door. My husband answered the door and I asked, "Who is it?" and he responded, "The stick police."

He was just checking to make sure we had gotten rid of the sticks.

Oh well, at least he wasn't BTK.


Cher

[mrbill]

2. the magic number is 12 inches in my little town......

it's also against the local code to not park a vehicle on an "impervious driveway" Good luck with that one.

the yard police are coming to take you away.

[BikeWriter]

3. Sheeeeeeit...

[babylonsister]

4. It's amazing to me they can't find

anything more important to do in this age of terra. :eyes:

[Bridget Burke]

5. Houston has NO zoning.

There are gated communities with stringent rules & some neighborhood associations.

Recently, a yard in the Heights was in the news. A lady replaced the lawn with assorted plants--mostly native. They grew freely & were much frequented by butterflies & birds. Apparently, some of the neighbors objected. But I walked by the house yesterday fo find it adorned with a "Yard of the Month" sign!

Our June was the driest on record. Early July was just the opposite, with flooding in the usual areas. With weather like that, manicured lawns are a pain.