[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees
of the Village of Brightwaters 9-5-2017 by L.L. No. 4-2017. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Property maintenance — See Ch. 90.
A.
Purpose. The purpose of this chapter is to promote and protect the
property, property values and welfare of the residents of the Village
of Brightwaters and their guests, and of the visitors to the Village,
and to protect the property and preserve the aesthetic qualities of
the environment of the Village of Brightwaters.
B.
Intent. It is the finding of the Board of Trustees that the planting
and/or the growing of bamboo within the Village of Brightwaters has
been and will continue to be destructive to the natural environment,
including indigenous flora, and destructive to structures and walks
on properties within the Village adjoining and neighboring those properties
where bamboo has been planted and/or permitted to grow; that because
of these effects the planting and the growing of bamboo threatens
the value and physical integrity of both public and private property
in the Village; and that therefore, in order to protect and preserve
said environment and values, the Village declares it necessary to
regulate or prohibit the planting and/or growing of bamboo within
the Village.
A.
BAMBOO
BAMBOO PROPERTY OWNER
Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall have
the meanings indicated:
Any tropical or semitropical grass of the genera Bambusa,
Dendrocalamus or of any other related genera.
A property owner in the Village who has planted or grown
or caused the planting or growing of bamboo on his property and/or
permitted or permits the growing of bamboo on his property that had
initially encroached onto his property from an adjoining or neighboring
property.
B.
Applicability. For purposes of this section, if bamboo is found growing
upon a property that shall constitute presumptive evidence that the
growing of bamboo on the property shall have occurred with the consent
of the owner of such property, except that such property owner shall
not be presumed to be a bamboo property owner if the property owner
did not plant or grow or cause said bamboo to be planted or grown
on his property and he shall provide the Building Inspector with proof,
satisfactory to the Building Inspector, that, within a reasonable
period of time after he first learned of the encroachment of bamboo
onto his property from an adjoining or neighboring property, he advised
the owner of such adjoining or neighboring property of his objection
to the encroachment of bamboo onto his property and/or initiated steps
for the removal of the bamboo from his property.
C.
Prohibition. Effective upon the date this provision shall become
law, the planting or growing of bamboo shall be prohibited within
the Village of Brightwaters. Any person who thereafter plants or grows,
or causes to be planted or to grow, bamboo within the Village shall
be deemed to be in violation of this section and shall be subject
to such penalties as are set forth hereunder.
D.
Regulation. Any bamboo which has been planted or otherwise permitted
to grow on any property within the Village of Brightwaters prior to
the effective date of this chapter may remain on such property subject
to compliance with this section. Each bamboo property owner shall
be responsible to ensure that the bamboo planted or growing on his
property prior to the effective date of this chapter does not encroach
or grow upon any adjoining or neighboring property or properties,
including all public property and rights-of-way held by the Village,
and 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 installation of
sheathing comprised of metal or other material impenetrable by bamboo
at a sufficient depth within the property line or lines where the
bamboo is planted or is growing to prevent the growth or encroachment
upon adjoining or neighboring property by said bamboo. The Board of
Trustees may from time to time prescribe such rules and regulations
as may be necessary to give effect to this.
E.
Removal.
(1)
In the event that bamboo growing on a bamboo property owner's
property invades or grows on an adjoining or neighboring property
that is owned or held on behalf of the Village of Brightwaters, the
Village shall notify the bamboo property owner that the bamboo said
owner had planted or caused to plant or had permitted to grow on his
property has invaded Village property and that the bamboo property
owner is responsible for the removal of such bamboo from the Village
property. This notice shall be sent by certified mail, return receipt
requested, and by regular mail to the latest address of the bamboo
property owner on file with the Village Clerk, and a copy of the notice
shall also be left in a conspicuous location on the bamboo property
owner's property in the Village of Brightwaters.
(2)
In the event that the bamboo property owner does not remove or contract for the removal of said bamboo from the Village property, or does not make an arrangement with the Village for removal of such bamboo within 30 days from the date the Village first deposited the notice as provided in Subsection E(1) above with the United States Postal Service, then the Village, at its discretion, may remove or arrange for the removal of such bamboo from the Village property. The bamboo property owner shall be liable and responsible to the Village for the Village's costs in removing the bamboo from the Village property. Such costs may be assessed against the property of the bamboo property owner as a tax payable by such bamboo property owner in the event that the costs remain unpaid more than 30 days after demand for payment has been made by the Village on the bamboo property owner.
(3)
In the event that the Village is compelled to undertake the removal or to contract for the undertaking of removal of bamboo, as provided for in Subsection E(2) above, neither the Village nor its employees shall have any liability for damages or other claims to the bamboo property owner by reason of the removal of such bamboo. In the event such removal entails or causes damages to the flora or other property of a person other than the property of the bamboo property owner, the bamboo property owner in violation of this section shall be responsible for such damages.
F.
Replanting prohibited. Any bamboo either planted or caused to be
planted or existing on a property prior to the effective date of this
section may not be replanted or replaced in kind once such bamboo
is or has become, for any reason, dead, destroyed, uprooted or otherwise
removed.
G.
Notification. Within 30 days after the effective date of this chapter,
the Village shall give notice by reasonable means to all property
owners in the Village advising them of the enactment of this section
and requesting that each property owner who would be deemed a bamboo
property owner hereunder as of the effective date of this section
notify the Village in writing no later than 60 days after the date
of the aforementioned notice from the Village that bamboo is present
on the property of such property owner and such other information
as may be requested in the notice from the Village.
In the event that any portion or portions of this chapter shall
be determined to be invalid or unenforceable for any reason, the remainder
of the chapter and its provisions shall remain in full force and effect.
