By BROOKE STEVENSON
Sunday Times Newspapers
WYANDOTTE — Residents can expect to see more city employees out looking for ordinance violations.
Since Monday, and until Aug. 9, ordinance officers and Department of Public Safety employees will be on the lookout for violations such as debris in yards, abandoned vehicles and high grass and weeds.
“They have stepped up enforcement for the next two weeks,” said Mayor Joseph Peterson on Monday. “They are trying to catch up on some of the complaints.”
He advised residents to take care of abandoned cars, high grasses, weeds and debris in yards before they are ticketed. Under the city’s code of ordinances, grass, weeds, and wild growing brush cannot exceed 12 inches in height.
Employees also will be looking for solid waste, debris, yard waste, hazardous materials, scrap metal, old appliances, used tires and recyclable items in residential areas. It is an ordinance violation to have any of those items in a residential yard, driveway or street.
Employees will be assigned to cut grass and pick up trash, and the expenses involved will be placed on the tax roll and levied against the property. Fines and court costs also will have to be paid by the resident.
A vehicle is considered abandoned under city ordinance when it has remained on public or private property for 48 hours after a written notice has been affixed to the vehicle by police or another governmental agency. Vehicles not removed within 48 hours of the notice will be taken into police custody.
A more detailed description of each ordinance can be found on the city’s Web site, www.wyandotte.net.
“I ask that residents work with us and the rest of our employees to make this a nice, clean place to live,” Peterson said.