TO: Honorable Mayor & Members of the North Port Commission
FROM: Peter D. Lear, CPA, CGMA, City Manager
TITLE: An Ordinance of the City of North Port, Florida, Amending the Code of the City of North Port, Florida, Section 42-24 - Maintenance of Stormwater Drainage Area; Providing for Conflicts; Providing for Severability; Providing for Codification; and Providing an Effective Date
Recommended Action
Continue Ordinance No. 2020-21 to second reading on May 12, 2020.
Recommended Action on Second Reading:
Approve and Adopt Ordinance No. 2020-21 on second reading.
Background Information
The following provides a chronological order of events pertinent to the Maintenance of the Stormwater Drainage Area:
> May 17, 2017: The City Commission adopted Ordinance No. 2017-09, Chapter 42, Nuisances, Article II, Lot Clearing, Section 42-24 - Maintenance of Stormwater Drainage Area, (a), (1), b and (2), b, (3) and (4). Property owners are required to maintain, at their own expense, the swale area from the edge of the pavement to the owner's property line. This maintenance includes mowing and edging grass and weeds and keeping these areas free of litter and debris. Properly mowing the center of the swale often requires heavy-duty equipment beyond what residential homeowners typically handle.
> August 29, 2019: During the Governing Body of the Road and Drainage District Meeting, there was a unanimous consensus to have staff bring back a revised Ordinance for Code Enforcement to stop enforcing the 12-inch rule during the rainy season. Until the amendments are adopted, the Commission directed that staff compose a Resolution to temporarily suspend enforcement of Section 42-24, subsections (a), (1), b, (a), (2), b, (a), (3), and (a), (4), solely as it pertains to the requirement to mow the center of the swale.
> October 1, 2019: The Department of Public Works initiated their new Maintenance Program for the Roadside Swales throughout the City. Pursuant to the prov...
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