Board Votes to Send Crews to Fix Lawns
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Aggressive Policy Aims to Weed Out Blight
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
The Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to enact emergency legislation to allow the county to step in and mow the overgrown lawns that have proliferated around eastern Loudoun and that some say are a black mark on their neighborhoods.
The county previously could penalize a homeowner or send crews to cut the lawn only if it is deemed to be a health threat — for example, if it harbors rodents. The proposal endorsed this week would allow the county to step in if the grass and weeds grow taller than one foot.
The new standard relies more on aesthetics than health, said Supervisor Lori L. Waters (R-Broad Run).
"Under the previous ordinance, the county was more limited in what it could do," she said. "This gives the county the ability to be more aggressive in responding to the complaints."
The policy is part of a broader effort by the board to address quality-of-life complaints in the Sterling area, where foreclosures, an aging housing stock and, some say, illegal immigration have tarnished the community's appearance. Although the community is largely tidy, residents say, its appeal has been undermined by the occasional garbage-strewn lawn, a number of crowded homes and a proliferation of commercial vehicles where family cars used to be.
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Also Tuesday, the board voted to accept online complaints about crowded houses and other zoning violations. Previously, anyone who wanted to file a zoning complaint with the county had to do so by mail or in person.
Complaints about tall grass and other issues have soared this year in Loudoun, particularly in Sterling, where a rash of foreclosures has left some houses abandoned and neglected. From Jan. 1 through June 2, the county received 244 complaints of overgrown lawns, compared with 27 for all of last year.
In most instances, homeowners cleaned up their lawns immediately after being contacted by the county. (In some instances, the owners were banks.) A few times, however, landscapers on contract with the county had to be dispatched to fix up the worst yards, at a cost of about $634 per yard.
Supervisors did not devote more money to the effort Tuesday, but Waters said that might be necessary if the county encounters a flurry of violations. Supervisor Eugene A. Delgaudio (R-Sterling) has advocated the use of community volunteers instead of paid staff or contractors.
Under the new rules, offending homeowners who have let their lawns grow wild will be given several weeks to fix their properties. If they fail to do so, county contractors will mow the lawns, and the homeowners will be billed. Repeat offenders could be subject to fines.
Fairfax and Prince William counties have similar ordinances. Loudoun's policy takes effect immediately but lasts 60 days, during which officials plan to hold a public hearing and vote on whether to reaffirm the policy to make it permanent.
Supervisors also voted to raise some commuter bus fares, expand bus service and lease two additional buses to accommodate an increase in ridership and higher fuel costs. According to a county analysis, ridership has increased 19 percent since January, with larger increases on peak commuting days.
Beginning Sept. 1, fares on county-run buses that travel the longest routes will increase by $1 to $7 per trip for SmarTrip card users and $8 for cash fares. Metro connection fares would go up by a quarter to $1.75 for SmarTrip card users and $2.25 for cash fares.
Tagged: Board of Supervisors, foreclosure, immigration, Sterling, Sterling Park
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This is very much appreciated BOS. The online filing of zoning complaints was needed. Now I'm anxious to see an ordinance enforced on the commercial vehicles parked in neighborhoods county wide. They're more than just an eyesore. They come with increased traffic to/from the home where the vehicles are parked. These billboards belong somewhere other than viewable from my living room window. Thank You, Thank You, Thank You!
Posted by BlindMan1 (anonymous) on July 16, 2008 at 7:44 a.m. (Suggest removal)
How much of my tax dollars are being spent in salaries and gas and equipment and equipemnt up keep? Please tell me how you are going to pay for this? What about the trash left inside of the houses? Are we going to clean the inside also? For godsakes.
Posted by Funnyguyva (anonymous) on July 16, 2008 at 4:44 p.m. (Suggest removal)
BlindMan1 is right. It's wonderful to see the BOS take action on this, and it will be even better if they find a way to get the Sheriff's department to pro-actively enforce the ordinances against commercial vehicles parked in residential neighborhoods. It's not just a matter of esthetics. Two weeks ago, I was shocked to see a fire truck stop behind my home...the fire fighters jumped out and began putting down sand or some other material to absorb fluid leaking from a commercial vehicle parked behind my home. Apparently, this fluid (oil or antifreeze, not sure which) had been leaking and draining directly into the storm drain. Someone had called the fire department. Who paid for that visit from the fire department? I doubt the owner of the truck paid. These vehicles are a hazard in more ways than one and I'm hoping against hope that the county will begin taking real action on this issue.
Posted by rachelfriend (anonymous) on July 19, 2008 at 3:40 a.m. (Suggest removal)
What I find interesting in the commercial vehicle parking laws is the fact that I cannot keep my vehicle on my street, but many others, who have some 'connection' to the Sheriffs office are able to park their commercial vehicles on the street day after day with no equal consequences (such as parking tickets). We paid our ticket, removed our vehicle from the area (can't park on our own property either due to zoning laws) and are paying to park it elsewhere, while there are other trucks we pass each and every day that are getting away with the exact same thing that we were cited for months ago. Let's enforce these laws equally or not at all. Just because you tow a vehicle for the Sheriffs office doesn't give you the right to break the laws I'm forced to abide by (or does it?).
Posted by tooger (anonymous) on July 19, 2008 at 11:43 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Tooger...you're absolutely right. I see Sheriff's deputies pass by illegally parked commercial vehicles on a regular basis without even a glance. There were two parked near my house today and Sheriff's deputies passed by without stopping. I know that Monday morning, 5:00am I'll be awakened as the truck closest to my home starts up and idles before taking off. I'm totally over trying to call the Sheriff's department to get any relief. It does appear that if the deputies happen to know the owners they don't take action. I actually once explained to a deputy that the owner of a large tractor trailer cab that parked behind my home frequently woke me up at 4:00am playing loud music and idling for what seemed to be 30 minutes after they arrived home from work. Suddenly, the next week the loud music and idling stopped...but the driver kept parking there and was never ticketed. I always suspected that the deputy knew the driver and told him to quiet down. They should either enforce the zoning restrictions equally, or take them off the books. Otherwise, it's very frustrating for the drivers who are trying to do things legally, and it's very frustrating for the residents as well. It also doesn't make the Sheriff's department look too good when there's an appearance of favoritism regarding how laws are enforced.
Posted by rachelfriend (anonymous) on July 20, 2008 at 3:42 a.m. (Suggest removal)
rachelfriend, most likely the cops were on their way to participate in that "license check" thing. They didn't have time to stop for the violations you note.
Posted by maravetz (anonymous) on July 20, 2008 at 4:47 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Maravetz, you may be correct. If that's the case, then of course the "license check thing" takes precedence. Since it wasn't the same day though, I really doubt it. Either way, it doesn't matter...zoning laws should be enforced, and enforced EQUALLY, or be removed from the books. Actually, between 11pm and 2am is when Sheriff's deputies should be enforcing the zoning ordinances against commercial vehicles as they patrol the area, leaving them free to set up checkpoints during the day. We should have a highly functioning, pro-active, Sheriff's department and if the Sheriff's department does not have the manpower or the time to enforce zoning ordinances they should hand that duty over to another entity that does. The Board of Supervisors needs to think about that before adding any new ordinances to the books and before claiming we have ordinances that are being enforced, when we don't.
Posted by rachelfriend (anonymous) on July 21, 2008 at 6:16 p.m. (Suggest removal)
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