Under provisions of Section 8.20.020 of the Sunnyvale Municipal Code, the City Council shall adopt a resolution declaring weeds to be a nuisance and order the Director of Community Development to give notice to destroy weeds wherever weeds are growing on any private property.

According to the Municipal Code (SMC 8.20), weeds are defined as all weeds growing upon streets, alleys, sidewalks or private property in the City. Vegetation which is considered to be a weed includes plants which when dry may be a fire hazard to adjacent improved property, plants which are noxious or dangerous, accumulation of garden refuse, cuttings or combustible trash, as well as weeds which bear or may bear seeds of a downy or wingy nature. Property owners are responsible for removing weeds from their property and in the abutting half of any street or alley between the lots.

In order to implement the Weed Abatement Program, the City has to pass two resolutions. The first resolution declares weeds to be a nuisance and the second resolution orders the destruction of weeds. The first resolution is before Council tonight. The second resolution will be presented to Council on February 29, 2000.

The City operates a voluntary property maintenance program for owners of vacant lots. A property owner can request in writing on a yearly basis that their property be placed on the City maintenance list. Once the property is added to the program, the City contractor removes any weeds and sprays the property, as specified in the contract with the City weed contractor. The cost of the maintenance is added to the owners’ property taxes. In addition to private property, some City-owned properties managed by the Department of Public Works are included in the maintenance program. When the Neighborhood Preservation Division receives a complaint regarding weeds on a property, staff investigates the complaint. If it is determined that there are high weeds that cover a large portion of the property making the property unsightly, the property owner is contacted and requested to remove the weeds. If the owner has not removed the weeds two weeks after the verbal request, a letter is sent requesting that the weeds be removed.

After an additional two weeks if the weeds are not removed, a second letter is sent with an attached Abatement Notice. If the weeds have not been removed by the date on the Abatement Notice, the property is referred to the City weed contractor and the weeds are scheduled to be removed within ten working days. The cost of the weed removal by the City contractor is added to the property taxes for the property. Should the property owner remove the weeds prior to the contractor, the weeds are not abated and there is no cost to the property owner.

The cost of weed abatement is recovered through the property tax assessments from each property owner.

In accordance with Chapter 8, Section 8.20.20 of the Sunnyvale Municipal Code, notice of passage of resolution and of the time and place of the hearing was published once on February 2, 2000 in the Sunnyvale Sun, a newspaper of general circulation in the County of Santa Clara, more than ten days prior to the date of the hearing.

That the City Council, by resolution, declare weeds to be a public nuisance and set the 29^th of February, 2000 as the date for a public hearing.

Prepared by:

Dyane Matas
Housing and Neighborhood Preservation Officer

Reviewed by:

David S. Boesch, Jr.
Director, Community Development

Approved by:

Robert S. LaSala
City Manager

Attachment: Resolution