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Home My WebLink About124 - 10/04/2011 - AMENDING ARTICLE IV OF CHAPTER 20 OF THE CITY CODE REGARDING WEEDS, GRASS AND RUBBISH ORDINANCE NO. 124, 2011 OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS AMENDING ARTICLE IV OF CHAPTER 20 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS REGARDING WEEDS, GRASS AND RUBBISH WHEREAS, Section 20-42 of the City Code requires that all weeds and grasses, with the exception of ornamental grasses consuming not more than twenty percent of the landscape,be kept to a maximum of six inches in height; and WHEREAS,in recent years,City staffhas heard from citizens who would like to grow water- wise turfgrass, which requires a growth height of more than six inches to thrive; and WHEREAS, staff has researched water-wise turfgrass in collaboration with colleagues at both Colorado State University and the Latimer County Extension Offices and has concluded that Section 20-42 should be amended to provide an exception for water-wise turfgrass, including Blue Grama and Buffalograss, so as to allow such grasses to exceed six inches in height; and WHEREAS, staff has also concluded that Blue Grama and Buffalograss should be excluded from the definition of"ornamental grasses" under Section 20-42 so as to allow them to exceed twenty percent of the landscape; and WHEREAS, allowing Blue Grama and Buffalograss to exceed a height of more than six inches and to exceed more than twenty percent of the landscape would be consistent with the City's message of encouraging water conservation and requiring quality and ecologically sound landscape design; and WHEREAS,staff has also proposed that the mowing of grasses in areas established as natural habitat or other such features pursuant to the Land Use Code be regulated according to the applicable provisions of the Land Use Code; and WHEREAS,staff has identified other minor amendments that should be made to City Code Sections 20-41 and 20-42 relating to weeds, grass and rubbish, including clarification of the scope of the prohibition against depositing or storing materials on adjacent open areas and public properties. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS as follows: Section 1. That Section 20-41 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended by the addition of a new definition entitled "Grass" which shall read in its entirety as follows: Grass shall mean any monocot plants of the family Poaceae,excluding any plants that are weeds, as that term is defined hereinafter. Section 2. That the definition"Ornamental grasses"contained in Section 20-41 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended to read as follows: Ornamental grasses shall mean any of the following grasses: yellow foxtail (Alopecurus pratensis), blue or western wheatgrass (Agropyron smithii or Pascopyrum smithii), big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii), bulbous oatgrass (Arrhenatherum elatius), sideoats grama (Bouteloua curtipendula), rattlesnake or quaking grass (Briza media), feather reed grass (Calamagrostis acutijlora or C. arundinacea),Korean feather reed grass(Calamagrostis brachytricha),golden sedge (Carex elata 'Bowles Golden), blue sedge (Carex glauca), Gray's or morning star sedge (Carex grayi), Japanese sedge (Carex hachijoensis 'Evergold'), variegated Japanese sedge(Carex morrowii),palm sedge(Carex muskingumensis),northern sea oats(Chasmanthium latifolium),pampas grass(Cortaderia selloama),dwarfpampas grass (Cortaderia sellonana), lemon grass (Cymbopogon citratus),tufted hair grass (Deschampsia caespitosa), blue lyme grass (Elymus arenarius), Canada wild rye (Elymus canadensis), bottlebrush squirreltail (Elymus elymoides), sand love grass (Eragrotis trichodes),.ravenna or plume grass (Erianthus ravennae or Saccharum ravennae), Arizona fescue (Festuca arizonica), blue fescue (Festuca cinerea, F. ovina or F. glauca), Idaho fescue (Festuca idahoensis), variegated mannagrass (Glyceria maxima variegata),blue oatgrass(Helictotrichon sempervirens),needle-n- thread (Hesperostipa comata), New Mexico feathergrass (Hesperostipa neomexicana), velvet grass (Holcus lanatus), foxtail barley (Hordeum jubatum), Japanese blood grass(Imperata cylindrica),junegrass(Koeleria cristata, K. gracilis or K. macrantha), woodrush (Leymus spp. or Luzula spp.), Great Basin wild rye (Leymus cinereus), hairy melic grass (Melica ciliata), ruby grass (Melinus nerviglumis), giant Chinese silvergrass (Miscanthus f oridulus or M. giganeus), Japanese silvergrass (Miscanthus oligostachys), flame grass (Miscanthus purpurascens), silver banner grass (Miscanthus saccharii torus), maiden grass or silvergrass (Miscanthus sinensis), moor grass (Molina caerulea), muhly grass (Muhlenbergia spp.), green needlegrass (Nassella viridula), Indian ricegrass (Oryzopis hymenoides or Achnatherum hymenoides), switchgrass (Panicum virgatum), feathergrass (Pennisetum alopecuroides), purple majesty millet (Pennisetum glaucum), tender fountain grass (Pennisetum setaceum), feather top (Pennisetum villosum),ribbon grass(Phalaris arundinacea),ruby grass(Rychelytrum neriglume), plume grass (Saccharum ravennae), little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium or Andropogon scoparius), autumn moorgrass (Sesleria autumnalis), Indian grass(Sorghastrum nutans or S. avenaceum),cord grass(Spartina spp.),frost or graybeard grass (Spodiopogon spp.), prairie dropseed (Sporobolus heterolepis), giant sacaton (Sporobolus wrightii) and any other species of grass approved by the City Manager that is customarily used for ornamental purposes and not as a turf grass. Section 3. That Section 20-41 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended by the addition of a new definition entitled"Water-wise"which shall read in its entirety as follows: -2- Water-wise turfgrass shall mean blue grama(Bo utelouagracilis or Chrondrosum gracile) or buffalo grass (Buchloe dactyloides). Section 4. That Section 20-42 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended to read as follows: Sec. 20-42. Weeds, unmowed grasses, refuse and rubbish nuisances prohibited. (a) All weeds, or unmowed grasses required to be mowed under Subsection (c) of this Section, refuse and rubbish on a property within the City are hereby declared to be a nuisance and a menace to the health and safety of the inhabitants of the City. (b) It shall be unlawful for the owner or occupant of any property to permit refuse, or rubbish to accumulate on any part of the property. All refuse shall be stored for prompt disposal on the premises in refuse containers,and the storage area shall be kept free of loose refuse. Any refuse or rubbish which by its nature is incapable of being stored in refuse containers may be neatly stacked or stored for prompt disposal. The number and size of refuse containers shall be sufficient to accommodate the accumulation of refuse from the property. Containers shall be secured and placed where they are screened from view of the street and are not susceptible to being spilled by animals or wind or other elements. (c) It shall be unlawful for the owner or occupant of any property to permit weeds to grow upon such property to a height of more than six (6) inches. (d) Except as is provided in Subsection (e), (f) or (g) of this Section, it is unlawful for the owner or occupant of any property to permit grasses to grow upon such property to a height of more than six (6) inches; provided, however, that this Subsection (c) shall not be applicable to any ornamental grass so long as it is used solely,or in combination with any other ornamental grass or grasses,as a supplement to the property's overall landscaped area and does not constitute in square footage more than twenty (20) percent of the property's overall landscaped area. (e) It shall be unlawful for the owner of any open area,ditch,ditch right-of-way or railroad right-of--way to allow weeds or grasses other than those grown for agricultural purposes upon such open area,ditch or right-of-way to grow to a height of more than twelve (12) inches. (f) It shall be unlawful for the owner or occupant of any property to allow grasses in any area planted predominantly in water-wise turfgrass to grow to a height of more than twelve (12) inches. -3- (g) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Section which may be construed to the contrary,the owner or occupant of any property that includes an area that has been established as a natural habitat or feature pursuant to Section 3.4.1•(D) of the Land Use Code, or a buffer zone for natural habitat or feature pursuant to Section 3.4.1 (E) of the Land Use Code, which area is managed and maintained in accordance with specific conditions established in a site-specific development plan or development agreement, shall not be required to mow said areas other than as required in such development plan or agreement. (h) It shall be unlawful for the owner or occupant of any property to permit the growth of noxious weeds as designated by the Colorado Weed Law or Larimer County Weed District, regardless of height. (i) No person shall cause or allow the disposal of refuse or rubbish by burning except in an incinerator that is designed for such purpose and pursuant to an operating permit from the State Department of Public Health and Environment. In no event may rubbish or refuse be burned in a stove or fireplace except for clean,dry, untreated wood. (j) No person shall,for a period longer than twenty-four(24)hours at any one (1) time, store or permit to remain on any business, commercial or industrial premises owned or occupied by such person,any manure,refuse,animal or vegetable matter or any foul or noxious liquid waste which is likely to become putrid,offensive or injurious to the public health, safety or welfare. (k) No owner or occupant of any premises which are adjacent to any portion of any open area,vacant lot,ditch,detention pond, storm drain, watercourse,or public right-of-way or other public property, nor any other person, shall cause the deposit or accumulation of refuse or rubbish, or the deposit, accumulation or storage of materials, chattels, or fixtures other than those ordinarily attendant upon the use for which the premises are legally intended, within or upon such adjacent areas. (1) The property owners and the prime contractors in charge of any construction site shall maintain the construction site in such a manner that refuse and rubbish will be prevented from being carried by the elements to adjoining premises. All refuse and rubbish from construction or related activities shall be picked up at the end of each workday and placed in containers which will prevent refuse and rubbish from being carried by the elements to adjoining premises. (m) The accumulation of refuse and rubbish which constitutes or may create a fire, health or safety hazard or harborage for rodents is unlawful and is hereby declared to be a nuisance. -4- (n) The owner or occupant of any premises within the City, whether business, commercial, industrial or residential premises, shall maintain the property in a neat, tidy, methodical, systematic, clean and orderly condition, permitting no deposit or accumulation of materials other than those ordinarily attendant upon the use for which the premises are legally intended. If a property is used for a purpose (including,without limitation, a junkyard)which,by its fundamental nature,cannot be maintained as required above,then,in lieu thereof,such property,or any affected portion thereof, shall be completely screened from public view and from the view of any abutting property that is used for residential purposes. Introduced, considered favorably on first reading, and ordered published this 20th day of September, A.D. 2011, and to be presented for final passage on the 4th day of October, A.D. 2011. i oF•F rOR Co` - A. ' °•��2 M or ATTEST: SEAL .N Chief Deputy City Clerk COLORPID Passed and adopted on final reading on the 4th day of October, A.D. 2011. OF FORT yor ATTEST: V•''•••• ••C'o •z CO Chief Deputy City Clerk O*•. 0RADO -5-