[Adopted 7-9-2014 by Ord. No. 13-2014]
[Amended 6-8-2022 by Ord. No. 10-2022]
All premises and exterior properties shall be maintained free
from weeds or lawn growth in excess of 10 inches, except that this
requirement shall not apply to areas of cultivated gardens and plants,
and areas of natural growth that are not ordinarily maintained, such
as, without limitation, areas containing wetlands or marshes, or densely
wooded areas. All noxious weeds shall be prohibited.
A.Â
The Code Enforcement Official is hereby designated as the enforcement
officer for this article. The Code Enforcement Official shall have
the power to make periodic inspections within the City in order to
ascertain when and where there exist conditions, or any of them, as
hereinbefore described, and which constitute conditions which adversely
could impact the public health, safety and welfare and/or are injurious
to the public health and safety. Where such a condition is found to
exist, the Code Enforcement Official shall notify the owner of the
lands to abate such condition within 15 days from the date of the
notice. Any such notice may be served personally upon the owner, tenant,
agent of owner or tenant or occupier of the land upon which said condition
exists or, if such person cannot be personally served within the City
of Linwood, may be mailed by certified mail, return receipt requested,
to the address of the owner as set forth in the tax records of the
City of Linwood. Notice to the tenant, agent or occupier shall be
constructive notice to the owner.
B.Â
A violation that is recurring justifies imposition of an immediate
penalty without the necessity for an interval in which correction
can be made. A violation shall be deemed to be a recurring violation
if the notice has been served within two years from the date that
a previous notice was served and the violation, premises and responsible
party are substantially the same.
[Amended 9-9-2020 by Ord. No. 12-2020]
In the event of the failure of the owner so notified to abate
the condition within 15 days from the date of the notices aforesaid,
the Code Enforcement Official may cause the removal or abatement of
such condition or conditions and, in such case, the office in charge
of removal or abatement shall certify, in writing, to the Code Enforcement
Official the cost thereof, which cost, if found correct, shall be
charged against said land, and the amount so charged shall forthwith
become a lien upon said land and shall be assessed and levied upon
said land and shall bear interest of the same rate as taxes and shall
be collected and enforced by the same officer in the same manner as
taxes. Said notice of lien shall be filed with the Municipal Tax Collector
of the City of Linwood.
In the event of the failure of the owner of said land to remove
or abate such condition existing thereon within the time required
after the service of the notice hereinbefore mentioned, and in addition
to the remedies hereinbefore provided, such person shall be in violation
of this article. Penalties for violations shall be imposed against
an owner of said land as follows: a fine of $250 for a first offense;
a fine of $500 for a second offense; and a fine of $2,000 for a third
offense. For the fourth offense and each subsequent offense thereafter,
the owner shall appear in Municipal Court and, upon conviction thereof
by the Judge of the Municipal Court of the City of Linwood, shall
be punished by a maximum fine not to exceed $2,500 per occurrence
and/or imprisonment in such a place as is maintained for offenders
in the City of Linwood for a period not to exceed 30 days. Each day
during which the violation continues after notice shall be considered
as a separate offense.
