Chapter 17.54 — WEED ABATEMENT

(a)

No owner, agent, lessee or other person occupying or having charge or control of any building, lot or premises within the city shall permit weeds to remain upon the premises, or public sidewalks, or streets, or alleys between the premises and the centerline of any public street or alley.

(b)

"Weeds," as used in this chapter, means all weeds growing upon streets, alleys, sidewalks or private property in the city and includes any of the following:

(1)

Weeds which bear or may bear seeds of a downy or wingy nature;

(2)

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

(3)

Weeds which are otherwise noxious or dangerous;

(4)

Poison oak and poison ivy when the conditions of growth are such as to constitute a menace to the public health;

(5)

Accumulations of garden refuse, cuttings and other combustible trash.

(c)

Every property owner shall remove or destroy such weeds from his property and in the abutting half of any street or alley between the lot lines as extended.

(Ord. 888 § l(part), 1973).

Whenever any such weeds are growing upon any private property or properties or in any street or alley within the city, the council shall pass a resolution declaring the same to be a public nuisance and order the fire chief to give notice of the passage of such resolution as herein provided, stating therein that, unless such nuisance is abated without delay by the destruction or removal of such weeds, the work of abating such nuisance will be done by the city authorities and the expense thereof assessed upon the lots and lands from which and/or in the front and rear of which, such weeds shall have been destroyed or removed. Such resolution shall fix the time and place for hearing any objections to the proposed destruction or removal of such weeds.

(Ord. 888 § 1(part), 1973).

The notice provided for in Section 17.54.020 shall be substantially in the following form:

"NOTICE TO DESTROY WEEDS

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that on_______, 19___, pursuant to the provisions of Section _______ of the Campbell Municipal Code, the City Council passed a resolution declaring that all weeds growing upon any private property or in any public street or alley, as defined in Section _______ of the Campbell Municipal Code, constitute a public nuisance, which nuisance must be abated by the destruction or removal thereof.

NOTICE IS FURTHER GIVEN that property owners shall without delay remove all such weeds from their property, and the abutting half of the street in front and alleys, if any, behind such property, and between the lot lines thereof as extended, or such weeds will be destroyed or removed and such nuisance abated by the City authorities, in which case the cost of such destruction or removal will be assessed upon the lots and lands from which, or from the front or rear of which, such weeds shall have been destroyed or removed; and such cost will constitute a lien upon such lots or lands until paid, and will be collected upon the next tax roll upon which general municipal taxes are collected. All property owners having any objections to the proposed destruction or removal of such weeds are hereby notified to attend a meeting of said City, to be held in the Council Chambers of the City Hall, City of Campbell, on_______, 19___, at ___ o'clock P.M., when and where their objections will be heard and given due consideration.

Date ________, 19.

___________, Fire Chief" City of Campbell

(Ord. 888 § 1(part), 1973).

At the time stated in the notice, the council shall hear and consider any and all objections to the proposed destruction or removal of such weeds and may continue the hearing from time to time. The council, by motion or resolution, shall allow or overrule any and all objections, if any, after which the council shall

thereupon be deemed to have acquired jurisdiction to proceed and perform the work of destruction and removal of such weeds.

(Ord. 888 § 1(part), 1973).

The council shall by resolution order the fire chief to abate such nuisance, or cause the same to be abated, by having the weeds referred to destroyed or removed by cutting, discing, chemical spraying or any other method as may be determined by the city council; and the fire chief and his deputies, assistants, contracting agents or other representatives are expressly authorized to enter upon private property for that purpose. Any property owner shall have the right to destroy or remove such weeds himself or have the same destroyed or removed at his own expense, provided that such weeds shall have been removed prior to the arrival of the fire chief or his authorized representatives to remove them.

(Ord. 888 § 1(part), 1973).

The fire chief shall keep an account of the cost of abating such nuisance and embody such account in a report and assessment list to the city council which shall be filed with the city clerk. Such report shall refer to each separate lot or parcel of land by description sufficient to identify such lot or parcel, together with the expense proposed to be assessed against each separate lot or parcel of land.

(Ord. 888 § 1(part), 1973).

The city clerk shall post a copy of such report and assessment list on the bulletin board in the main lobby of the City Hall, and on the bulletin board of the Headquarters Station of the Campbell fire department, together with a notice of the filing thereof and of the time and place when and where it will be submitted to the city council for hearing and confirmation, notifying property owners that they may appear at such time and place and object to any matter contained therein. A like notice shall also be published twice in a newspaper of general circulation, published and circulated within the city. The posting and first publication of the notice shall be made and completed at least ten days before the time such report has been submitted to the city council. Such notice, as so posted and published, shall be substantially in the following form:

"NOTICE OF HEARING ON REPORT AND ASSESSMENT FOR WEED ABATEMENT

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that on _____, 19, the Fire Chief of the City of Campbell filed with the City Clerk of said City a report and assessment on abatement of weeds within said City, copies of which are posted on the bulletin board in the main lobby of the City Hall, and on the bulletin board of the Headquarters Station of the Campbell Fire Department.

NOTICE IS FURTHER GIVEN that on _____, 19, at the hour of seven-thirty o'clock P.M., in the Council Chambers of said City, said report and assessment list will be presented to the City Council of said

City for consideration and confirmation, and that any and all persons interested, having any objections to said report and assessment list, or to any matter or thing contained therein, may appear at said time and place and be heard.

Dated this _______ day of _____, 19.

_____ " City Clerk of the City of Campbell

(Ord. 888 § 1(part), 1973).

(a)

At the time and place fixed for receiving and considering such report, the city council shall hear the same, together with any objections which may be raised by any of the property owners liable to be assessed for the work of abating such nuisance; and the fire chief shall attend such meeting with his record thereof; and, upon such hearing, the council may make such modifications in the proposed assessments therefor as it may deem necessary, after which such report and assessment list shall be confirmed by resolution.

(b)

The amount of the cost of abating such nuisance upon, or in the front or rear of, the various lots or parcels of land respectively referred to in such report, shall constitute special assessments against such respective lots or parcels of land; and, after thus made and confirmed, shall constitute a lien on such property for the amount of such assessments until paid.

(Ord. 888 § 1 (part), 1973).