[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village
of Northport 12-3-2013 by L.L. No. 2-2013. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Property maintenance — See Ch. 223.
The purpose of this chapter is to preserve and protect private
and public property from the damaging spread of certain running bamboo
grasses, protect indigenous plant materials from the invasive spread
of running bamboo and maintain the general welfare of the residents
of the Village of Northport.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
RUNNING BAMBOOHereinafter defined as any tropical or semitropical grasses with monopodial (leptomorph) rhizome (root) systems which typically send off rhizomes far away from the plant, including, but not limited to, the following plant genera: Arrow bamboo, Arundinaria, Bambusa, Chimonobambusa, Common bamboo, Golden bamboo, Phyllostachys, Pleioblastus, Pseudosasa, Sasa, Sasaella, and Semiarundinaria.
CLUMPING BAMBOOHereinafter defined as any tropical or semitropical or sympodial podial (pachymorph) grasses which typically send off rhizomes near the base of the plant, including, but not limited to, Bambusa, Chusquea, Dendrocalamus, Drepanostachyum, Fargesia, Himalayacalamus, Otatea, Thamnocalamus, Thyrostachys and Yushania.
Any property owner or resident who has planted and/or grows
bamboo, or who maintains bamboo on the property, or who permits bamboo
to grow or remain on the property even if the bamboo has spread from
an adjoining property. Any property owner or resident at whose property
bamboo is found will be considered a bamboo owner, except any property
owner or resident who:
Did not plant or grow or cause bamboo to be planted or grown
on his property; and
Has provided satisfactory proof to the Village of Northport
that, within a reasonable period of time after discovering the encroachment
of bamboo onto the property from an adjoining or neighboring property,
advised the owner of such property of an objection to the encroachment
of the bamboo; and
Has initiated steps for the removal of the bamboo from the property,
including remedies at law.
In the event bamboo is found to have encroached, spread, invaded
or intruded upon any other property or right-of-way, said species
shall be presumed to be classified as "running bamboo." This presumption
shall be rebuttable.
For the purposes of this chapter, bamboo found growing upon
a property shall constitute presumptive evidence that the bamboo was
planted and/or grown by and/or with the consent of the bamboo owner.
Upon the effective date of this provision the planting of running
bamboo shall be prohibited within the Village of Northport. Any person
who thereafter plants or causes to be planted any such running bamboo
within the Village of Northport shall be deemed to be in violation
of this Section and shall be subject to such penalties as are set
forth hereunder.
In the event any species of bamboo is located upon any property
within the Village of Northport, the owner or occupant of said property
shall confine such species to prevent the encroachment, spread, invasion
or intrusion of same within 20 feet of any other property or right-of-way.
Any bamboo that has been planted or otherwise permitted to grow
on any property within the Village of Northport prior to the effective
date of this section may remain on such property subject to compliance
with this section.
A.
Bamboo shall not be planted, maintained or otherwise be permitted
to exist within 20 feet of the edge of the pavement or traveled portion
of any public roadway in the Village of Northport;
B.
Any bamboo owner whose property contains bamboo shall remove and
abate the growth of the bamboo within 20 feet of an adjoining property
and within 20 feet of the edge of the pavement or traveled portion
of a public or private road in the Village of Northport;
C.
Each bamboo owner shall be responsible to ensure that the bamboo
planted or growing on their property prior to the effective date of
this section does not encroach or grow within 20 feet of any adjoining
or neighboring property or properties, including all public property
and Village of Northport rights-of-way;
D.
Each bamboo owner shall be required to take such measures as are
reasonably expected to prevent such bamboo from invading or growing
onto adjoining or neighboring properties. Such measures shall include,
but not be limited to, installation of sheathing impenetrable by bamboo
at a sufficient depth, which shall be at a depth of a minimum of three
feet, within the property line or lines where the running bamboo is
planted or is growing to prevent the growth or encroachment upon adjoining
or neighboring property by the bamboo; and
E.
The Board of Trustees may from time to time prescribe such rules
and regulations as may be necessary to give effect to this section.
A.
Notice. In the event that bamboo growing on a bamboo owner's
property invades or grows on an adjoining or neighboring property
that is owned or held on behalf of the Village of Northport, the Village
Administrator or his designee on behalf of the Village of Northport
shall notify the bamboo owner in writing that the bamboo has invaded
Village of Northport property and that the bamboo owner is responsible
for the removal of such bamboo from the Village of Northport property
within 30 days. Such period may be extended for good cause shown,
as long as it can be demonstrated that remedial measures have been
started and the delay is not under the control of or due to the actions
of the person to whom the notice has been issued. The bamboo owner
shall be liable and responsible to the Village of Northport for all
costs incurred in removing the bamboo from the Village of Northport
property. Such costs may be assessed against the property of the bamboo
owner.
B.
Service of the notice. The notice shall be served either personally
in accordance with the CPLR or by registered or certified mail, return
receipt requested, and addressed to the property owner at the last
address shown on the most current assessment roll or property tax
bill, or to the owner's agent at the last known address, or to
the occupant of the property, or person having a vested or contingent
interest in the property as shown on the most current assessment roll
and/or property tax bill. A copy of the notice shall also be posted
at and mailed to the bamboo owner's property.
C.
Action upon noncompliance. Upon the failure, neglect or refusal of
such owner, agent, or person or business entity occupying the premises
to remove, remedy or abate the bamboo nuisance within the specified
period of time; or if the mailing is returned by the post office because
of the inability to make delivery for any reason, as long as the notice
was properly addressed, the Village Administrator or his designee
may take enforcement action as authorized by the Village Code and
as may otherwise authorized by applicable law.
D.
The Board of Trustees may direct the bamboo owner whose property has caused the bamboo nuisance to remove, remedy or abate the bamboo nuisance within 30 days of mailing of the notice as set forth in Subsection B above, and upon the failure, neglect or refusal of such person or business entity to comply with the decision of the Board of Trustees, the Village Administrator or his designee may direct Village personnel, or an outside contractor authorized by the Board of Trustees, to remove, remedy or abate the nuisance, by whatever means deemed necessary or proper by the Village, at the expense of the property owner, or his agent and/or the occupier of land.
E.
Removal of the nuisance. Upon the failure, neglect or refusal of
the owner, his agent, or person, or business entity occupying the
premises to remove, remedy or abate such nuisance within the period
provided by the Board of Trustees, or if the mailing is returned by
the Post Office because of the inability to make delivery for any
reason, as long as the notice was properly addressed, Village personnel
or an outside contractor authorized by the Board of Trustees may enter
the property and take all necessary action to remove or abate the
nuisance at the expense of the property owner, his agent, or occupier
of the land as set forth in this chapter.
F.
Any person or business entity who resists, obstructs or impedes the
agents, servants, officers and/or employees of the Village of Northport
in the remediation or removal process shall be in violation of this
chapter and shall be subject to the fines and penalties provided herein.
G.
Liability for the costs of removal and/or abatement. The property
owner, or his agent, and/or person or business entity who occupies
the land shall be liable for the direct and indirect costs of abating
the nuisance and all expenses incidental thereto, including but not
limited to, an administrative fee equal to 25% of the total cost of
said removal, remediation and/or disposal process. Said administrative
fee is intended to reimburse the Village for the monies and time expended
by its employees and attorney(s) in abating the nuisance and collecting
the sums due, including but not limited to, notifying the appropriate
party, certifying the amounts due to the Village, and/or charging
same against the property. The costs incurred by the Village as set
forth herein shall be certified by the Village Administrator who shall
mail written notice of such costs by certified or registered mail,
return receipt requested, to the owner of the premises at the last
address shown on the most current assessment role on file in the assessment
and property tax records, or to the owner's agent at the last
known address, and/or to the occupier of the premises at the location
of the property. Said notice shall further state that upon the failure
of the property owner, his agent, and/or occupier to pay such sums
within 10 days of receipt of such written notice by cash, certified
or bank check, or money order, shall be sufficient cause to add the
amount due to the property tax bill without further notice.
H.
Recovery of costs and tax lien. In the event the property owner,
his agent and/or the occupier of the land fails, refuses and/or neglects
to pay the monies due and owing to the Village within said ten-day
period, or if the mailing is returned by the post office because of
the inability to make delivery for any reason, as long as the notice
was properly addressed, such certification of costs shall be provided
to the Village Clerk who shall cause the costs as shown thereon to
be charged against such lands without further notice. The amount so
charged shall forthwith become a lien against such lands and shall
be added to and become part of the taxes next to be assessed and levied
upon such lands, the same to bear interest at the same rate as taxes,
and shall be collected and enforced by the same officers and in the
same manner as taxes.
Any bamboo either planted or caused to be planted or existing
on a property prior to the effective date of this chapter may not
be replanted or replaced in kind once such running bamboo is or has
become, for any reason, dead, destroyed, uprooted or otherwise removed.
B.
Any person or corporation violating any provisions of §§ 98-6, 98-7 and 98-8 prohibiting the maintaining, growing or failure to remove running bamboo in violation of these regulations shall be deemed guilty of a violation and, upon conviction, punished by a fine of $250 to $500. A violation may be charged no more than once per calendar month.
C.
The penalty provisions of this section shall not take effect for
a three-month period following the date this chapter is filed in the
Office of the Secretary of State of the State of New York.
