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MEMORANDUM To:St. Anthony Village Parks & Environmental Commission From:Richard Sonterre, Code Official Date:December 20, 2021 Parks & Environmental Commission Meeting Request:Discussion regarding aesthetics for St. Anthony yards (turf grass vs. pollinator friendly) BACKGROUND The City’s code official regularly receives complaints regarding pollinator friendly gardens (natural grasses and pollinator plants) concerning aesthetics of gardens, creeping weeds, violation of existing code language regarding weeds, and long grass and non-turf grasses. Staff has also noticed an increasing level of acceptance for non-traditional yard aesthetics to support environmental sustainability, and support pollinators in particular. To fit the City’s efforts to support pollinators, our maintenance practices on City property the last couple of years has been to minimize the use of herbicides to control weeds on public property. We are currently studying the use and application of herbicides including organic and natural products to reduce (but not necessarily eliminate) weeds but maintain a pollinator friendly environment. The city has also planted pollinator friendly plants in gardens on public property. At a joint work session on August 30, 2021 the City Council and Parks & Environmental Commission discussed the various aspects of pollinator friendly yards and the need to respect desires for traditional lawns as well. General direction to staff was to continue to educate homeowners on pollinator practices and continue the discussions with the commission for any future recommendations on adjusted code language. Staff would like some input on balancing the aesthetics expectation of a traditional suburban lawn vs. pollinator friendly lawn that will be used in possibly adjusting related code language. CURRENT CODE § 94.32 WEED CONTROL. Any weeds or grasses, whether noxious as defined by law or not, growing outside the traveled portion of any city street or alley, or growing on private property, to a greater height than 6 inches or which have gone or are about to go to seed must be cut or removed by the owner of the abutting property if within the city right-of- way, and by the owner of the property upon which they are growing if they are outside the right-of-way. § 150.094 GENERAL REQUIREMENTS (E) Yard cover. Every yard of premises on which a dwelling stands must be covered by lawns and/or ground cover of vegetation, gardens, hedges, shrubbery or related decorative materials and must be maintained. No land owner may permit or maintain on the land any growth of weeds, grass, brush or other rank vegetation to an average height greater than 6 inches, any accumulation of dead weeds, grass or brush, or any noxious weeds or plants as defined by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture.