Grand Junction Colorado's Gestapo Weed Control Policy
Buying a brand new home can be very stressful. New neighbors, HOA, property tax, the burden of maintaining homes appearance so as not to become an eyesore that will diminish the neighborhood's property value, nosy neighbors who do not have the guts to tell you face to face that your weeds exceed the 6 inch height limit imposed by the city of Grand Junction in this case!!, etc.
We still do not know who ratted us out to the city back in 2008 when we lived near what was then Mesa State College. My wife had not adapted to the move from Amarillo, TX and missed her old friends. She was supposed to have been the "weed eater" of the family as I was stressed at work with a control freak, micromanaging boss.
Our lot was certainly under an acre and did not comply with the 40 year old law that said a property of this size was required to have all weeds cut. We received a violation notice giving us 10 days to be compliant. My wife ignored, due to depression and fear of being out in public, the citation and called me crying one day saying the city had sent out a crew. She begged them to leave promising she would start that day cutting down the weeds. Did that help? NO, they politely but assertively told her to quit protesting and they would give us a break on the cost which was $75 per hour I think.
I called the city and they told me they had logged 350 weed violation complaints during a 3 month period that summer making it the the number one anonymous bitch in Grand Junction! What I did NOT like especially was how Ivy Williams, the city’s code enforcement supervisor, told us to buy drought resistant plants because the less one watered their lawn, the less weeds. That sucks when you are effectively ordered to plant only certain types of vegetation on your own property. What sucks worse, is the city used some of your tax payer dollars to pay the crews who cut the weeds on your property!
All I really wanted from Ivy Williams was a little bit of an extension given my wife's tenuous mental state and our unfamiliarity with the city code pertaining to weeds.
We still do not know who ratted us out to the city back in 2008 when we lived near what was then Mesa State College. My wife had not adapted to the move from Amarillo, TX and missed her old friends. She was supposed to have been the "weed eater" of the family as I was stressed at work with a control freak, micromanaging boss.
Our lot was certainly under an acre and did not comply with the 40 year old law that said a property of this size was required to have all weeds cut. We received a violation notice giving us 10 days to be compliant. My wife ignored, due to depression and fear of being out in public, the citation and called me crying one day saying the city had sent out a crew. She begged them to leave promising she would start that day cutting down the weeds. Did that help? NO, they politely but assertively told her to quit protesting and they would give us a break on the cost which was $75 per hour I think.
I called the city and they told me they had logged 350 weed violation complaints during a 3 month period that summer making it the the number one anonymous bitch in Grand Junction! What I did NOT like especially was how Ivy Williams, the city’s code enforcement supervisor, told us to buy drought resistant plants because the less one watered their lawn, the less weeds. That sucks when you are effectively ordered to plant only certain types of vegetation on your own property. What sucks worse, is the city used some of your tax payer dollars to pay the crews who cut the weeds on your property!
All I really wanted from Ivy Williams was a little bit of an extension given my wife's tenuous mental state and our unfamiliarity with the city code pertaining to weeds.
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