By Marla Rauls
City of Madison

Our exterior property maintenance inspectors enforce Madison General Ordinance 27.05(2)(c), which states that all exterior property areas shall be properly maintained in a clean and sanitary condition free from debris, rubbish, garbage, physical hazards, rodent harborage and infestation. Chapter 27 of the Madison General Ordinances also covers removal of graffiti, tall grass, noxious weeds, junk, trash and debris on the property, maintenance of fences and driveways, tree limbs, shrubs and/or vegetation that obstruct a public sidewalk and street and vision clearance at corners and driveways, just to name a few. Typically an official notice is issued to the property owner stating the violation and setting a date for compliance.

Exterior property maintenance inspectors also enforce the trash, recycling and cart storage ordinances, which require that trash and/or recycling not be placed at the curb more than 12 hours prior to collection and must be removed within 24 hours after pick up. When not at the curb, trash and recycling containers should be stored at the rear of the building.

Exterior property maintenance inspectors also handle enforcement of snow removal from the public sidewalk. There are no official notices or warnings given for this violation. When the public sidewalks are found to be in violation, the property owner is issued a fine in the form of a citation. Failure to clear a public sidewalk may also result in the city directing crews to satisfactorily clear the sidewalk, with the cost of the work assessed against the property in addition to the fine.

For more information, visit our website at cityofmadison.com/dpced/bi/ or contact us at 266-4551.