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 said premises or any area between the property lines of said 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.

(Code 2012; Ord. 2017-02; Ord. 2022-06)

Weeds - as used herein, means any of the following:

(a)   Brush and woody vines shall be classified as weeds;

(b)   Weeds and grasses which may attain such large growth as to become, when dry, a fire menace to adjacent improved property;

(c)   Weeds which bear or may bear seeds of a downy or wingy nature.

(d)   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;

(e)   Weeds and 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 12 inches in height.

(Code 2012; Ord. 2017-02; Ord. 2022-06)

(a)   The City Council and/or Chief of Police of the City of McLouth shall designate a public officer to be charged with the administration and enforcement of this article. The public officer or an authorized agent of the city shall notify in writing the owner, occupant or agent in charge of the premises in the City upon which weeds exist in violation of this article, by certified mail, return receipt requested, or by personal service to cut or destroy weeds; provided, however, that if the property is unoccupied and the owner is a nonresident, such notice shall be sent by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the last known address of the owner. Such notice shall only be required to be given once per calendar year. Such notice shall include the following:

(1)   That the owner, occupant or agent in charge of the property is in violation of the City weed control law.

(2)   That the owner, occupant or agent in charge of the property is ordered to cut the weeds within ten (10) days of mailing of notice.

(3)   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 (5) days of the mailing of notice.

(4)   That if the owner, occupant or agent in charge of the property docs not cut the weeds, the City or its authorized agent will cut the weeds and assess the cost for the cutting, including a reasonable administrative fee, against the owner, occupant or agent in charge of the property.

(5)   That the owner, occupant or agent in charge of the property will be given the opportunity to pay the assessment, and, if it is not paid within thirty (30) days of such notice, it will be added to the property tax as a special assessment.

(6)   That for the remainder of the current calendar year, no further notice is required or shall be given prior to removal of weeds from the property.

(7)   That the public officer should be contacted if there are any questions regarding the order.

(b)   If there is a change in the record owner of title to property subsequent to the giving of the notice pursuant to this section, 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.

(Code 2012; Ord. 2017-02; Ord. 2019-13; Ord. 2022-06)

(a)   Upon the expiration of ten (10) days after mailing of the notice required by 8-403, 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 8-401, the public officer or an authorized agent of the City shall cause to be cut, 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 agent shall give notice to the owner, occupant or agent in charge of the premises by certified mail, return receipt requested of the costs of abatement of the nuisance. The charge for the abatement of the nuisance shall be one hundred dollars ($100.00) per hour with a minimum charge of $100.00. Additionally, the owner of the property shall be charged for any additional reasonable expenses incurred by the City or its agent to abate the condition, including, but not limited to, the costs of repair or replacement of equipment owned by the City or its agent which is damaged as a result of the abatement. The notice shall state that payment of the costs, including the cost of notice, is due and payable within thirty (30) days following mailing of the notice.

(c)   If the costs of removal or abatement remain unpaid after 30 days following mailing of the notice, a record of the costs of cutting and destruction and/or removal shall be certified by the City Clerk to the County 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 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

(K.S.A. 12-1617f; Code 2012; Ord. 2017-02; Ord. 2019-13; Ord. 2022-06)

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, and without notice, for the purpose of cutting, destroying and/or removing such weeds in a manner not inconsistent with this article.

(Code 2012; Ord. 2017-02; Ord. 2022-06)

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 code violation.

(Code 2012; Ord. 2017-02; Ord. 2022-06)

(a)   Nothing in this article 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 article, 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), bur ragweed (Franseria tomentosa and discolor), pignut (Hoffmannseggia densiflora), musk (nodding) thistle (Carduus nutans L.), and Johnson grass (Sorghum halepense), sericea lespedeza (Lespedeza cuneate).

(K.S.A. 2-1314; Code 2012; Ord. 2017-02; Ord. 2022-06)