As the weather starts to warm up, Calgarians move outside to enjoy our yards including our lawns, shrubs and trees. While plant life provides many benefits, there are some practical things to think about.
The Streets Bylaw outlines rules to ensure City service and emergency vehicles and pedestrians have unobstructed access to streets, sidewalk and alleyways. Ensure trees, shrubs and hedges are pruned back to the property line and have a height clearance of 15 feet in alleys and streets and eight feet over sidewalks.
When it comes to your lawn, there are also some practical things to think about. Long grass and uncontrolled weeds can lead to mosquitos, mouse problems and other safety hazards. When weeds get out of control, pesticide use increases, and they can spread on to neighbouring properties interfering with appearance and reducing property value.
The Community Standards Bylaw regulates grass, weeds and untidy properties:
- Grass must be less than six inches (15 centimeters) tall.
- Owners must maintain their lawns and boulevards.
- Owners must keep weeds under control and ensure they don’t spread from the property including tall weeds and grass from their property line to the midpoint of the alley.
We all have a part to play to help ensure streets, alleys and sidewalks are not obstructed and that we create good neighbour relations through minimum standards for yard maintenance. A local community cleanup event may also be a great option for getting rid of yard waste. For more information, visit calgary.ca/goodneighbour and calgary.ca/cleanup.
