The City of Ann Arbor is demanding that I cut down the native wildflowers in my streetside garden. PLEASE READ if you care about declining bee populations. 9-15-14: Dear NCPOA Neighbors, Mayor Hieftje, and AAPD Community Standards Unit: I am the owner at 333 Beakes Street. The City of Ann Arbor has cited my property with a Notice of Violation for the height of my native wildflowers next to the street (Chapter 40, section 3:15) and has demanded that I cut the plants down. The wildflowers blooming right now (goldenrod, blue and white asters) in front of my house are the main sources of fall food for native bees such as bumblebees preparing for hibernation, and late-migrating Monarch butterflies. As many of you may be aware, populations of all kinds of bees and butterflies have been plunging in recent years. We may lose bees and butterflies entirely in the urban environment if we do not actively provide them with adequate food. If you walk by you will see dozens of bees foraging these flowers in my garden (see photos). If you are a NCPOA property owner and you have plants between the sidewalk and street (including bushes) that are IN EXCESS OF 36 INCHES ABOVE THE ADJACENT ROAD BED you are also in violation of this ordinance. From my walk around the neighborhood, this includes the following property addresses: 620 North Fourth Ave 632 North Fourth Ave 642 North Fourth Ave 650 North Fourth Ave 717 North Fourth Ave 718 North Fourth Ave 719 North Fourth Ave Wheeler Park gateway garden - North Fourth Avenue & Summit (City of Ann Arbor Property - City is in violation of its own Ordinance) 603 North Fifth Ave 605 North Fifth Ave 609 North Fifth Ave 613 North Fifth Ave 616 North Fifth Ave 621-663 North Fifth Ave 620 North Fifth Ave 713 North Fifth Ave 715 North Fifth Ave Not just our neighborhood: all around the City of Ann Arbor there are hundreds of streetside gardens which violate this Ordinance as currently written. This part of the City Ordinance doesnt make any sense as it literally written -- what about easements that are not completely flat? If there is any slope or grading, mounded dirt, or tiered landscape material (rocks, timbers) in the easement, the soil itself may be 36 inches above the adjacent road bed. Read literally, for sloped easements, the Ordinance would not even allow a 1 vegetation height. Over half the easements along the 600 and 700 blocks of North Fourth and North Fifth Avenues fall into the sloped/graded category. Many residents and pedestrians have commented to me that they enjoy and admire the wildflowers and more natural vegetation in the NCPOA neighborhood. The Citys enforcement of this ordinance against all affected properties will dramatically change the character of the 600 and 700 blocks of North Fourth and North Fifth Avenues. My goal is to work with the City on improving and updating this ordinance. I will be seeking to have the City Ordinance rewritten to reflect common sense (ground height vs. difference in height from road bed) and to be more native-plant- and pollinator-friendly. (At the very least the Ordinance should follow common sense -- the permitted plant height should be determined from the ground around the plant and not from the difference between the top of the plant and the asphalt in the road.) In the meantime -- I will be asking the City to immediately cease enforcement of the ordinance until the native wildflowers that the bees and butterflies depend on for food have stopped blooming, and the bees have gone into hibernation. NEIGHBORS -- HAVE YOU BEEN NOTICED AS WELL? I am interested to know which properties in the City (other than mine) have been served with a Notice of Violation -- I would appreciate you contacting me by reply email if you have received one or know of someone who was. Anyone who is interested in giving coordinated input to the City on this Ordinance and/or being involved in the process of requesting a rewrite, please contact me with your name and phone number. I welcome everyones feedback and suggestions about this issue. Carol Shepherd Owner 333 Beakes Street Copies to: City of Ann Arbor Police Department - Community Standards Unit John Hieftje, Mayor
Posted on: Mon, 15 Sep 2014 13:46:30 +0000
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