Overgrown lawn and weed complaints a summer problem in Calgary

City of Calgary bylaw officers are once again dealing with complaints about unkept and unsightly lawns and yards.

Beverly Hopps is fed up with the house across the street from her home on Maddock Way NE.

The home is vacant and the grass and weeds growing in the yard are over 40 centimetres high.

“It’s an eyesore,” Hopps said. “It’s maddening that we maintain our yards and we’re proud of our street and then we have this.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "It's an eyesore," Hopps said. "It's maddening that we maintain our yards and we're proud of our street and then we have this."

Hopps says it’s been an ongoing problem, leading her and her neighbours to complain to the city.

“Here we are, the end of June,” said Ed Nycholat, another neighbour who lives next door. “I cut my grass 2 months ago and we’ve complained and called 911 numerous times.”

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The city has a bylaw concerning unsightly and overgrown yards — if grass or weeds grow over 15 centimetres and there’s a complaint, the city will issue an order for the homeowner to clean it up.

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If the homeowner fails to do so, the city will do it and bill the homeowner, according to Susan Wall, an inspector with the city’s community standards department.

“They’ll be invoiced for the work that was completed by our contractors and they will be responsible for paying that invoice,” Wall said.

“So whether it’s a rental or it’s owner-occupied, it’s the property owner’s responsibility to maintain the property.”

In 2016 there were 5,000 long grass and weeds complaints or violations in Calgary.

Of those, 179 were referred to a contractor for cleanup.

After Beverly and her neighbours complained, a city crew showed up on their street Wednesday and cut down the grass and weeds at the problem house.

Global News has identified the owner of the house, but were unable to locate them for a comment.