While Kingston aldermen go round and round in their attempts to pass what is being referred to as a “weed law” to get property owners to keep their yards from getting overgrown with weeds and tall grass, Eyal Saad, code officer from the village of Saugerties, wonders about all the fuss.
“It works here, and it has worked here for many years,” Saad said. “Ours has the teeth necessary to make it work.”
In the village, property owners are required to keep their grass well maintained and not more than ten inches high. Should yards become over grown, the village’s building department sends the propertyowner a notice saying they are in violation of village law.
They’re told to cut the grass. If they fail to do so, Saad sends in village workers to do it and bills the owner.
“We really don’t have a lot of problems in the village,” Saad added. Last year, the building department sent out 22 notices of violation, while this year only one has been sent.
Saad concedes there are three or four owners who are a constant problem. The village cuts their grass, and they are billed for the work. Should a property owner have the village cut their grass and not pay the bill, the tab becomes part of their property tax bill.
“But cutting grass and such isn’t our real problem,” Saad said. “The biggest problem is with shoveling snow off of sidewalks within 24 hours of a snowfall.”
As with mowing overgrown yards, village workers go in and shovel sidewalks if they are not cleared of snow in a timely manner, and the propertyowner is billed.
“The law works well for us,” said Saad.
Join the family! 
