92-9523 Enable Weed AssessmentsKuhn -Co, Priming — Sal—. Kansas
(Published in The Salina Journal August 7 , 1992)
ORDINANCE NUMBER 92-9523
AN ORDINANCE RELATING TO THE CUTTING OF WEEDS AND
VEGETATION, PROVIDING FOR NOTICE AND PROVIDING FOR CUTTING BY
THE CITY OF SALINA, AND PROVIDING FOR CHARGES THEREFOR.
BE IT ORDAINED by the Governing Body of the City of Salina,
Kansas:
Section 1. WEEDS TO BE REMOVED. It shall be unlawful for any
owner, agent, lessee, tenant, or other person occupying or having charge or
control of any premises to permit weeds to remain upon the premises or any
area between the property lines of the premises and the centerline of any
adjacent street or alley, including but not specifically limited to sidewalks,
streets, alleys, easements, rights-of-way and all other areas, public or
private. All weeds as hereinafter defined are hereby declared a nuisance and
are subject to abatement as hereinafter provided.
Section 2. DEFINITIONS.
(a) Calendar Year as used herein, means that period of time
beginning January 1 and ending December 31 of the same year.
(b) Weeds as used herein, means any of the following:
(1) Brush and woody vines shall be classified as weeds;
(2) Weeds and indigenous grasses which may attain such large
growth as to become, when dry, a fire menance to adjacent
improved property;
(3) Weeds which bear or may bear seeds of a downy or wingy
nature;
(4) Weeds which are located in an area which harbors rats,
insects, animals, reptiles, or any other creature which
either may or does constitute a menace to health, public
safety or welfare;
(5) Weeds and indigenous grasses on or about residential
property which, because of its height, has a blighting
influence on the neighborhood. Any such weeds and
indigenous grasses shall be presumed to be blighting if
they exceed twelve (12) inches in height.
Section 3. PUBLIC OFFICER; NOTICE TO REMOVE. The City
Manager shall designate a public officer to be charged with the administration
and enforcement of this ordinance. The public officer or an authorized
Kinn -Cox Priming — Sabina. Kansas _
assistant shall notify in writing the owner, occupant or agent in charge of any
premises in the city upon which weeds exist in violation of this ordinance, by
mail or by personal service, once per calendar year. Such notice shall include
the following:
(a) That the owner, occupant or agent in charge of the property is
in violation of the city weed control law.
(b) That the owner, occupant, or agent in charge of the property is
ordered to cut the weeds within ten (10) days of the receipt of
notice.
(c) That the owner, occupant or agent in charge of the property
may request a hearing
before
the
governing
body or
its
designated representative
within
five
days of
the receipt
of
notice.
(d) That if the owner, occupant or agent in charge of the property
does not cut the weeds, the city or its authorized agent will
cut the weeds and assess the cost of the cutting, including a
reasonable administrative fee, against the owner, occupant or
agent in charge of the property.
(e) That the owner, occupant or agent in charge of the property
will be given an opportunity to pay the assessment, and, if it
is not paid, it will be added to the property tax as a special
assessment.
(f) That no further notice shall be given prior to removal of weeds
during the current calendar year.
(g) That the public officer should be contacted if there are any
questions regarding the order.
If there is a change in the record owner of title to property
subsequent to the giving of notice pursuant to this subsection, the city may
not recover any costs or levy an assessment for the costs incurred by the
cutting or destruction of weeds on such property unless the new record owner
of title to such property is provided notice as required by this section.
Section 4. ABATEMENT; ASSESSMENT OF COSTS.
(a) Upon the expiration of ten (10) days after receipt of the notice
required by Section 3, and in the event that the owner,
occupant or agent in charge of the premises shall neglect or
fail to comply with the requirements of Section 1, the public
officer or an authorized assistant shall cause to be cut,
KuhmC1. Printing — Salina, Kansas
destroyed and/or removed all such weeds and abate the nuisance
created thereby at
any
time during the current
calendar year.
(b) The public officer
or
an authorized assistant
shall give notice
to the owner, occupant or agent in charge of the premises by
restricted mail of the costs of abatement of the nuisance. The
notice shall state that payment of the costs is due and payable
within thirty (30) days following receipt of the notice.
(c) If the costs of removal or abatement remain unpaid after thirty
(30) days following receipt of notice, a record of the costs of
cutting and destruction and/or removal shall be certified to the
city clerk who shall cause such costs to be assessed against the
particular
lot or piece of
land
on which such weeds were so
removed,
and against such
lots or pieces of land in front of or
abutting on such street or
alley
on which such weeds were so
removed.
The city clerk
shall
certify the assessment to the
county clerk at the time other special assessments are certified
for spreading on the tax rolls of the county.
Section 5. RIGHT OF ENTRY. The public officer, and the public
officer's authorized assistants, employees, contracting agents or other
representatives are hereby expressly authorized to enter upon private property
at all reasonable hours for the purpose of cutting, destroying and/or removing
such weeds in a manner not inconsistent with this ordinance.
Section 6. UNLAWFUL INTERFERENCE. It shall be unlawful for
any person to interfere with or to attempt to prevent the public officer or the
public officer's authorized representative from entering upon any such lot or
piece of ground or from proceeding with such cutting and destruction. Such
interference shall constitute an ordinance violation.
Section 7. NOXIOUS WEEDS.
(a) Nothing in this ordinance shall affect or impair the rights of
the city under the provisions of Chapter 2, Article 13 of the
Kansas Statutes Annotated, relating to the control and
eradication of certain noxious weeds.
(b) For the purpose of this section, the term noxious weeds shall
mean kudzu (Pueraria lobata), field bindweed (Convolvulus
arvensis) ,
Russian knapweed (Centaurea
picris) ,
hoary cress
(Lepidium
draba), Canada thistle (Cirsium
arvense),
quackgrass
(Agropyron repens), leafy spurge (Euphorbia esula),
Kuhn -Cox Riming — Salina, Kansas
burragweed (Franseria tomentosa and discolor), pignut
(Hoffmannseggia densiflora) , musk (nodding) thistle (Carduus
nutans L.), and Johnson grass (Sorghum halepense).
Section 8. Effective Scope of Ordinance. This ordinance shall be
effective only for the current calendar year.
Section 9.
This Ordinance shall
be
in full
force and effect from
and after its adoption
and publication once in
the
official
city newspaper.
(SEAL)
ATTEST:
'Ow4l.uw
Jacqul✓line Shiever, CMC
City Clerk
Introduced: July 27, 1992
Passed: August 3, 1992
&"w 'e- a"7.-2,
Carol E. Beggs, Mayor