I got a citation from the city yard police
(for lack of something more benign to call them)
for "excessive vegetation." Whatever its actual
merits, the blank for "Date of infraction" was
filled in with a date of almost a year ago!
But in the signature portion, the inspector did
sign with a more plausible recent date. I couldn't
believe my eyes. I have requested a hearing before
the adjudication board. Would it be prudent to
have a substantive defense or are these things
dismissed if they're technically flawed?

Also in the things-that-don't-add-up department,
in the envelope in which the citation arrived,
somebody had mistakenly included a multi-page
document pertaining to a complicated housing
violation by somebody else in a different part
of the city!

--
(Charles Packer)
ungoogled: mailboxATSIGNcpacker.org
http://cpacker.org/whatnews

Mail,

Such technical flaws in a citation won't affect the merit of the
citation. If you raise the issue of the date the date will be corrected. Mow
your lawn.

Dave M.

wrote:
I got a citation from the city yard police
(for lack of something more benign to call them)
for "excessive vegetation." Whatever its actual
merits, the blank for "Date of infraction" was
filled in with a date of almost a year ago!
But in the signature portion, the inspector did
sign with a more plausible recent date. I couldn't
believe my eyes. I have requested a hearing before
the adjudication board. Would it be prudent to
have a substantive defense or are these things
dismissed if they're technically flawed?

Also in the things-that-don't-add-up department,
in the envelope in which the citation arrived,
somebody had mistakenly included a multi-page
document pertaining to a complicated housing
violation by somebody else in a different part
of the city!

What city? Why do you live there? Since the infraction was from a year
ago you will probably be assessed an additional fine. Technicalities
are always in favor of the government.

--

Travis in Shoreline (just North of Seattle) Washington
USDA Zone 8
Sunset Zone 5

David Martel wrote:
Mail,

Such technical flaws in a citation won't affect the merit of the
citation. If you raise the issue of the date the date will be
corrected. Mow your lawn.

Dave M.

It could be something other than the lawn. Shrubs/trees blocking the
sidewalk or interfering with traffic.

--

Travis in Shoreline (just North of Seattle) Washington
USDA Zone 8
Sunset Zone 5

"Travis" wrote in message
news:Wxize.36335$Fn4.23442@trnddc06...
David Martel wrote:
Mail,

Such technical flaws in a citation won't affect the merit of the
citation. If you raise the issue of the date the date will be
corrected. Mow your lawn.

Dave M.

It could be something other than the lawn. Shrubs/trees blocking the
sidewalk or interfering with traffic.

That's true. I walk 4 nights a week. A few neighbors have stuff growing in
such a way that it pokes pedestrians in the face. I like wild gardens, but
that's just plain stupid.

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
"Travis" wrote in message
news:Wxize.36335$Fn4.23442@trnddc06...
David Martel wrote:
Mail,

Such technical flaws in a citation won't affect the merit of the
citation. If you raise the issue of the date the date will be
corrected. Mow your lawn.

Dave M.

It could be something other than the lawn. Shrubs/trees blocking the
sidewalk or interfering with traffic.

That's true. I walk 4 nights a week. A few neighbors have stuff growing in
such a way that it pokes pedestrians in the face. I like wild gardens, but
that's just plain stupid.

Around here, people seem to move every two or three years. People move in
and get an urge to mark their territory by planting something. Often it is
a small tree or shrub that they plop down in an inappropriate spot. They
move in a couple of years and the cycle repeats. After about 15 years, you
get stuff growing over the sidewalks and blocking your vision at the
intersection. It's too much work for people to remove or prune overgrown
pants, and most people seem to be allergic to the outdoors. They drive down
the street, push the garage door transmitter, drive into the garage, close
the door, and don't come outside again until it's time for the next work
day. They seem oblivious to the fact that their landscape needs some
attention. I suspect that most of the younger people who do this are
conditioned by their parents catering to their every need that it isn't in
their scope of thought to do anything themselves.

"Vox Humana" wrote in message
news

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
"Travis" wrote in message
news:Wxize.36335$Fn4.23442@trnddc06...
David Martel wrote:
Mail,

Such technical flaws in a citation won't affect the merit of the
citation. If you raise the issue of the date the date will be
corrected. Mow your lawn.

Dave M.

It could be something other than the lawn. Shrubs/trees blocking the
sidewalk or interfering with traffic.

That's true. I walk 4 nights a week. A few neighbors have stuff growing
in
such a way that it pokes pedestrians in the face. I like wild gardens,
but
that's just plain stupid.

Around here, people seem to move every two or three years. People move in
and get an urge to mark their territory by planting something. Often it
is
a small tree or shrub that they plop down in an inappropriate spot. They
move in a couple of years and the cycle repeats. After about 15 years,
you
get stuff growing over the sidewalks and blocking your vision at the
intersection. It's too much work for people to remove or prune overgrown
pants, and most people seem to be allergic to the outdoors. They drive
down
the street, push the garage door transmitter, drive into the garage, close
the door, and don't come outside again until it's time for the next work
day. They seem oblivious to the fact that their landscape needs some
attention. I suspect that most of the younger people who do this are
conditioned by their parents catering to their every need that it isn't in
their scope of thought to do anything themselves.

The way some people "think" about their yards is truly bizarre. My neighbor
across the street has done a pretty nice job of landscaping. It's the type
of setup you'd expect from a guy who doesn't really like plants THAT much,
so it's designed for minimal maintenance. Not sterile, but plants that need
little attention. Then, last week, he started applying that hideous,
artificially colored red mulch. :-) We got to talking and he asked if I
wanted some extra mulch. I commented that I didn't like the red stuff. His
response: "I know it's not natural looking, but when people see it, it's
obvious that someone's been landscaping".

????? scratching head If 5 sheets of paper are stapled together, it's
obvious that someone's been stapling, but so what? :-)

David Martel wrote:
Such technical flaws in a citation won't affect the merit of the
citation. If you raise the issue of the date the date will be corrected. Mow
your lawn.

Your flippancy is justified; I didn't
flesh out the context of the situation.
I've made it a point to keep the public
space in front of the house trimmed and
the alley by the side of the house free
of overhanging branches. The house is one
of a few 1920's bungalows amid 1940s and
1950s houses that are somewhat more
substantial. My elderly neighbor who lives
in a similar house across the street was
hit with a similar citation at the same
time.

The area is on the brink of gentrification;
it's not far from the Anacostia watershed of
Washington, D.C. that is the object of a recent
comprehensive development plan. And this city
has seen a post-9/11 willingness of authorities
of all kinds to use their muscle -- for example,
when the 12-year-old girl was handcuffed for
eating in a Metro station.

I've lived at that address for 19 years and
have always had cordial relations with the
neighbors. None of them has ever complained
about my preference for hands-off landscaping.
The issue, ultimately, is esthetic, and the
question is whether the city can decide when
to dictate esthetics -- in the absence of
complaint -- by using regulations that were
certainly intended to penalize owners of
neglected vacant lots.

--
(Charles Packer)
ungoogled: mailboxATSIGNcpacker.org
http://cpacker.org/whatnews

Sorry if my answer seemed flippant. You suggest that you have carefully
landscaped your property and that it is not overgrown or a public nuisance.
Oddly you seem to indicate that only the front and an alley receive routine
trimming. You suggest that the 1920s bungalows are being "picked on". Do you
know if your citation was in response to a complaint?
In the matter of esthetics a judge will consider photos that you bring
and listen to what you have to say about them. He will also listen to the
opinions of the "lawn police". It's hard to predict how the judge will
decide on esthetics. Is your yard a haven for vermin? How does it compare to
other yards in the area?
I don't know what to make of your belief that you are being picked on for
owning a small bungalow. If other, more substantial, homes in the area have
similar landscaping with similar maintenance but have not been cited then I
guess you can ask why. If your citation was due to a complaint then you
should find out who complained.

Good luck,
Dave M.

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...

The way some people "think" about their yards is truly bizarre. My
neighbor
across the street has done a pretty nice job of landscaping. It's the type
of setup you'd expect from a guy who doesn't really like plants THAT much,
so it's designed for minimal maintenance. Not sterile, but plants that
need
little attention. Then, last week, he started applying that hideous,
artificially colored red mulch. :-) We got to talking and he asked if I
wanted some extra mulch. I commented that I didn't like the red stuff. His
response: "I know it's not natural looking, but when people see it, it's
obvious that someone's been landscaping".


Yep. I have one of this type a few doors up the street. The people are
compulsively neat, which isn't a bad thing really, but their yard looks like
it came out of a box. It is so sterile and uninteresting. To make matters
worse, they use that red volcanic rock mulch. I'm waiting for the plastic
shrubs.

The people I don't understand are the ones who obviously don't like yard
care, but do things to make their life more complex. These people don't
like to mow or trim, but will dig a 18 inch bed, seemingly randomly, in the
middle of their lawn and plop down something ridiculous. One person put in
a perennial geranium in the middle of a sizable corner lot. What's that
about? Another woman planted several small trees in very strange locations,
all of which are either too close to her house or the sidewalk. Oh well,
she'll be gone in a couple of years and it will be someone else's problem.
In the meantime I sure it just reinforces her position that mowing on a
regular basis is just too damn hard. Sadly, many of these people are single
moms with teenagers. For some reason the kids are never required to help.
Maybe I grew up in an unusual household, but I was required to do all the
routine landscaping chores such as mowing, trimming, and hedge maintenance.
Since my uncle was disabled in WWII, I also had to care for his yard.

This thread reminds me of a conversation I had with an (A)lley
(I)nspector last Winter.

AI - Sir, you have to get rid of the refuse you have in the alley.

Me - Excuse me?

AI - You have a pile of dirt in the alley.

Me - dirt is refuse?

AI - Yes.

Me - But it's dirt.

AI - It is refuse.

Me - How can dirt be refuse?

AI - Weeds will start growing in it

Me - It's composting (dug up lawn) over an old weed patch.

AI - Compost goes in the back yard.

ME - what-ever.

AI - I'm only giving you a warning, please clean it up.

Here it is, January in Chicago and I'm going to move a pile of
dirt/compost/mulch etc. Luckily Ma nature cooperated and the temps
rose into the 60's and some rain help defrost it. Moved it onto the
other side of the fence, into a neighbors garden area (which I wanted
to do in Spring) that was solid weeds the year before (hence weeds all
over the alley also). A few days later we got about 10 - 12'' of
snow. I was picturing the guy coming back and digging through snow
looking for dirt LOL.

wrote in message
ups.com...
I got a citation from the city yard police
(for lack of something more benign to call them)
for "excessive vegetation." Whatever its actual
merits, the blank for "Date of infraction" was
filled in with a date of almost a year ago!
But in the signature portion, the inspector did
sign with a more plausible recent date. I couldn't
believe my eyes. I have requested a hearing before
the adjudication board. Would it be prudent to
have a substantive defense or are these things
dismissed if they're technically flawed?

Also in the things-that-don't-add-up department,
in the envelope in which the citation arrived,
somebody had mistakenly included a multi-page
document pertaining to a complicated housing
violation by somebody else in a different part
of the city!

--
(Charles Packer)
ungoogled: mailboxATSIGNcpacker.org
http://cpacker.org/whatnews


Do what a local yokel did. He planted his yard full of something and
declared his yard a protected something or other, and the city attorney
threw his (pansey-like) hands in the air in defeat!



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Doug Kanter wrote:
"Vox Humana" wrote in message
news

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
"Travis" wrote in message
news:Wxize.36335$Fn4.23442@trnddc06...
David Martel wrote:
Mail,

Such technical flaws in a citation won't affect the merit
of the citation. If you raise the issue of the date the
date will be corrected. Mow your lawn.

Dave M.

It could be something other than the lawn. Shrubs/trees
blocking the sidewalk or interfering with traffic.

That's true. I walk 4 nights a week. A few neighbors have stuff
growing in
such a way that it pokes pedestrians in the face. I like wild
gardens, but
that's just plain stupid.

Around here, people seem to move every two or three years. People
move in and get an urge to mark their territory by planting
something. Often it is
a small tree or shrub that they plop down in an inappropriate
spot. They move in a couple of years and the cycle repeats.
After about 15 years, you
get stuff growing over the sidewalks and blocking your vision at
the intersection. It's too much work for people to remove or
prune overgrown pants, and most people seem to be allergic to the
outdoors. They drive down
the street, push the garage door transmitter, drive into the
garage, close the door, and don't come outside again until it's
time for the next work day. They seem oblivious to the fact that
their landscape needs some attention. I suspect that most of the
younger people who do this are conditioned by their parents
catering to their every need that it isn't in their scope of
thought to do anything themselves.

The way some people "think" about their yards is truly bizarre. My
neighbor across the street has done a pretty nice job of
landscaping. It's the type of setup you'd expect from a guy who
doesn't really like plants THAT much, so it's designed for minimal
maintenance. Not sterile, but plants that need little attention.
Then, last week, he started applying that hideous, artificially
colored red mulch. :-) We got to talking and he asked if I wanted
some extra mulch. I commented that I didn't like the red stuff. His
response: "I know it's not natural looking, but when people see it,
it's obvious that someone's been landscaping".

????? scratching head If 5 sheets of paper are stapled
together, it's obvious that someone's been stapling, but so what?
:-)

I've never seen red mulch. Where does one get it?

--

Travis in Shoreline (just North of Seattle) Washington
USDA Zone 8
Sunset Zone 5

"Travis" wrote:

I've never seen red mulch. Where does one get it?

At the red mulch stores, like Lowes, Home Depot, etc. They found that
organically colored hard wood mulch holds their color longer than
naturally reddish mulches like cedar and other wood mulches which fade.

--
Pardon my spam deterrent; send email to
Cheers, Steve Henning in Reading, PA USA
http://home.earthlink.net/~rhodyman

Stephen Henning wrote:
"Travis" wrote:

I've never seen red mulch. Where does one get it?

At the red mulch stores, like Lowes, Home Depot, etc. They found
that organically colored hard wood mulch holds their color longer
than naturally reddish mulches like cedar and other wood mulches
which fade.

I guess we are lucky out West here, neither Home Depot or Lowes carry
red mulch.

--

Travis in Shoreline (just North of Seattle) Washington
USDA Zone 8
Sunset Zone 5