St. Cloud Changes The Game For Reporting Overgrown Lawns

The City of St. Cloud is making it easy to report long lawn violations.  St. Cloud Mayor Jake Anderson joined me on WJON.  He says the city isn't driving around town looking for long grass in neighborhoods but they will address the issue when residents report violations.  Anderson says residents can contact the city or go online to report a complaint anonymously on the city's website.

Current Process

Anderson says the way the process currently works is after a complaint is submitted, city staff will go and check to see if the grass is longer than 10 inches.  Anderson says if the grass is longer than 10 inches, city staff will issue a citation giving the resident 7-10 days to cut the lawn.  If they fail to do so, the city will cut it, abate it and charge the resident $38.

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Policy Change?

The city is entertaining changing this policy.  There will be a public hearing on July 7 that would propose adjusting the length limit down to 8 inches.  Anderson says there would be an administrative process where the resident would be fined $75 and if this resident is a repeat offender, those fines could be doubled.  He says there are some people who've taken advantage of the city mowing their lawn for $38.  Anderson indicates they are trying to get people to mow their lawns and take care of noxious weeds.

Yard Sign Ordinance

The city of St. Cloud is working on addressing their yard sign ordinance.  Anderson says any yard sign is in violation of the city's ordinance regardless of what is says.  This is aside from during election cycles.  Commercial signs for roofing, siding or real estate are currently accepted. Anderson says the city is making an effort to clarify the ordinance that could allow a single sign in a yard. He says the city has received objections from residents not happy with signs placed in yards.

Listen to Town Hall

If you'd like to listen to my 2-day Radio Town Hall conversation with Jake Anderson, click below.