CONNEAUT —
The city of Conneaut, weary of devoting manpower and money to the town’s grass/weed ordinance, is studying new ways to enforce the ordinance in 2013.
City Manager Tim Eggleston said ideas range from paying neighbors to mow the lawns of deadbeat property-owners to turning the entire grass-cutting operation over to a contractor. “We’re looking at options,” Eggleston said at Monday night’s public work committee meeting.
Administrators are tired of losing Public Works Department employees to mowing work on private property. Local law does not allow weeds and grass to exceed six inches in height. If notices are ignored, city workers will mow the property — and charge the owner a minimum of $150 an hour.
Recouping the money from scofflaws has been difficult, Eggleston said. The city usually places the fee on their property tax bills, he said.
“Most have gone to assessments,” Eggleston said.
In late August, 40 parcels were scheduled to be assessed more than $27,000 for unpaid mowing fees, administrators said at the time.
Recently, the city has been contacted by an individual interested in taking on the mowing duty in return for the $150-hourly fee, Eggleston said. The city is interested, but only if the individual is willing to collect the money on his own and without city assistance.
“It would be up to him to collect the money,” Eggleston said.
Another plan would recruit neighbors willing to manicure nearby parcels, then reimburse them for their time and expense. The city would pay the neighbors from a fund created from the $150 fee it eventually will collect, council was told.
There’s a lot of legal ramifications that need to be checked before the city can consider any new mowing maneuvers, Eggleston said. “The law department will need to do some research,” he said.
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