CrimeBeat: What can I do about my neighbor’s overgrown yard?

My neighbor’s yard is an overgrown jungle. Can I do anything about it?

What you can do about it depends on where the residence is, what it’s overgrown with and whether it’s an eyesore or a legitimate concern, Santa Rosa Assistant Fire Marshal Paul Lowenthal said.

It can be handled by the Santa Rosa Fire Department or city code enforcement. It could come down to a difference in taste between neighbors, where no city ordinance applies.

Santa Rosa homes and properties in areas hit hard by wildfires in October, including Fountaingrove, Skyhawk, Annadel Heights and Bennett Valley, have adhered to strict weed abatement rules ??for well over a decade, Lowenthal said.

In those areas, called wildland-urban interfaces, property owners are required to keep grass and brush areas maintained or the fire department will do it for them at a cost, Lowenthal said.

Santa Rosa Fire gives at least two notices for people to clean up their yards before a weed abatement contractor is sent in and a bill for cleanup costs is sent to the property owner, Lowenthal said. Weed abatement costs typically run a few hundred dollars per property, he said.

Undeveloped lots and parcels larger than a half-acre throughout Santa Rosa city limits also are subject to the weed abatement ordinance because of fire risk, Lowenthal said.

But the ordinance doesn’t apply to the majority of homes within Santa Rosa city limits. If a resident in Rincon Valley, Roseland or Montgomery Village has an issue with the overgrown yard of a neighbor, a complaint must be filed with code enforcement.

Over the past decade, Santa Rosa has implemented the International Property Maintenance Code, which sets standards for weed, grass and vegetation growth, senior code enforcement Officer Mike Reynolds said.

City code limits lawn and weed growth to 6 inches in height, and bushes, shrubs and trees must be maintained, Reynolds said. Code enforcement officers typically only investigate landscaping issues when there are complaints by neighbors, he said.

The city of Santa Rosa doesn’t put a high priority on front yard aesthetics, and if an issue arises, people tend to get up to code before a citation is given. Only one fine, $100 for a first offense, has been handed out in 2017, Reynolds said.

People are allowed to landscape their property as they see fit. One neighbor may like a well-kept lawn, while another might prefer a more natural drought-resistant landscape, Reynolds said.

“Each and every person’s artistic view of their property is acceptable if maintained,” he said. “We’re not a cookie-cutter city, and we don’t enforce rules as such.”