After much debate, the District of Port Hardy has approved the addition of “out of control grass and weeds” to its unsightly premises bylaw.
The issue was first raised at a council meeting Aug. 9, when a recommendation that the district’s unsightly premises bylaw include standards for yard maintenance was approved.
At that time, the bylaw stated that grass and weeds must be under 20 centimetres, about eight inches, in height.
At a Sept. 13 meeting, Mayor Hank Bood asked for the bylaw to be revisited after receiving negative feedback from some residents. The matter was referred back to the Operations Services Committee, who made the decision to remove a specific height from the wording.
Councillor Fred Robertson, who has spoken out against the bylaw before, along with former Councillor Jessie Hemphill and Mayor Hank Bood, was still skeptical. “How does one define ‘out of control grass and weeds’,” Robertson asked.
Councillor Rick Marcotte said the District would receive complaints which would result in staff taking a look at the property to see if the complaint was justified.
“So it’s complaint-driven,” said Robertson, adding that “you don’t want to be the grass police out there measuring blades of grass.”
The bylaw was approved without the height stipulation.