[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Commissioners of Upper
Moreland Township as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted
where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Property maintenance — See Ch. 243.
[Adopted 9-2-1975 by Ord. No. 830; amended 9-6-1988 by Ord. No.
1165 (Title 5, Ch. 9, of the 1977 Code)]
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
Various green plants with blade-like leaves usually densely
grown and cultivated for lawns.
Harmful, distasteful or obnoxious plants, such as, but not
limited to, ragweed, goldenrod, Canadian thistle, milkweed, mustard,
honeysuckle, poison ivy, poison oak, poison sumac, jimson weed and
burdock.
Any individual, firm, corporation, partnership, unincorporated
association or municipality.
Growths of wild vegetation having little or no value.
After the passage of this article, no person who is the owner
of any improved or unimproved lot shall:
A.
Permit the lot or any portion thereof to become overgrown with grass,
weeds or noxious plants exceeding the height of 12 inches or permit
same to go to seed.
B.
Permit any hedge, shrub, bush or tree to obstruct normal passage
along streets, lanes, highways or sidewalks or to impair vision at
highway intersections whenever it is judged by the duly authorized
Township enforcement authority that a hazardous condition exists.
C.
Allow poison ivy, poison oak or honeysuckle to grow in trees.
All farmland is to be excluded from the provisions of this article,
excepting that owners of farms shall cut all thistle and poison ivy
prior to blooming or going to seed.
The Health Officer or other duly authorized agent of the Board
of Commissioners shall have the power and the duty to enforce the
provisions of the article.
It shall be the duty of the Health Officer to cause to be served
a notice upon the owner or occupant of any premises on which any such
weeds, vines, tall grasses or other objectionable vegetation are permitted
to grow in violation of the provisions of this article and require
abatement of the nuisance within 10 days from the date of service
of such notice. The service of such notice shall be made upon the
owner or occupant personally or by delivering the same to and leaving
it with any adult person in charge of the said premises or, in case
no such person is found upon the said premises, by affixing the same
in a conspicuous position upon the said premises.
In the event the owner or occupant shall refuse or neglect to
abate such nuisance within a period of 10 days as required by such
notice, the Health Officer may cause such weeds, vines, tall grasses
or other objectionable vegetation to be cut and removed, keeping an
account of the expenses of inspecting the premises, service of notice,
and abating the nuisance, and all such costs and expenses shall be
charged to and paid by such owner or occupant.
All costs and expenses incurred by the Township in the abatement
of such nuisances shall be a lien upon the premises, and whenever
a bill therefor remains unpaid for a period of 60 days after it has
been rendered, the Township Solicitor shall file a municipal claim
for such costs and expenses, together with a penalty of 10%, in the
manner provided by law for the collection of municipal claims.
Any person failing to abate such nuisance in accordance with
the requirements of any such notice shall, in addition to the payment
of said costs and expenses, be subject to a fine or penalty no less
than $100 nor more than $1,000 for each and every offense and whenever
such person shall have been notified by the Health Officer by service
or summons in a prosecution or in any other way that he is committing
such a separate offense punishable by a like fine or penalty. Such
fines or penalties shall be collected as like fines or penalties are
now collected by law.
