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Supervisors approve tall grass ordinance
Loudoun County is now in the lawn-care business.On Sept. 8, the Board of Supervisors gave the go-ahead for the creation of an ordinance giving the county greater authority to cut tall grass at homes in eastern Loudoun. Many of these are vacant homes that have been foreclosed upon.
The ordinance applies to homes on lots of a half-acre or less and grass that exceeds 12 inches in height. Commercial buildings also are subject to the new law. The county will issue a warning to the property owner before sending out crews to mow the offending lawn.
Under a temporary emergency ordinance adopted by supervisors in July, a contractor already has been working for the county to cut unkempt lawns at a cost of about $400 per property. The total bill for tending to 20 lawns so far this summer is $9,360.
A county report explained that the contractor's work comprises more than mowing lawns. Duties include "site mobilization, inspection of site conditions, reduction of conditions to a state where the yard can be mowed, mowing the lawn, and clean up."
The average length of time for the contractor to tend to a property, according to the same report, is three hours and 15 minutes.
To date, none of the owners of the affected properties has yet to reimburse the county for the work. Officials are now pursuing legal means to recoup the money. One idea being considered is to include the cost of the mowing on the homeowner's county tax bill.
Tall grass started becoming a problem as the number of foreclosures in Loudoun – particularly in Sterling Park – skyrocketed, leaving many homes vacant. Earlier this summer, county officials reported that complaints of tall grass were up 800 percent from 2007. However, according to Monday's meeting, complaints have recently declined.
"They've seen that we will go out and cut their grass," said county staff member Danny David, "and then send them the bill."
The temporary ordinance expires Sept. 13, which is why the board went ahead and made the ordinance permanent.
Contact the reporter at jjacks@timespapers.com
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