EDMONDS — In a city where views of Puget Sound increase property values, a neighbor’s hedge that’s too high can cause conflict.
Such disputes pit neighbor against neighbor, and often wedge the city in the middle.
That’s why the city wants out of the business of regulating hedges.
The City Council voted 5-2 Tuesday night to leave hedge heights up to property owners — except for when hedges cover street signs or driveways.
The council held a public hearing before the vote.
City code previously defined a row of shrubbery or low-growing trees as a hedge that must be kept trimmed to a height of 6 feet. But the code didn’t specify which trees should be classified as low-growing, and did not clearly define a hedge.
The city has been wrestling with the issue since 1989, when its hearing examiner issued a ruling that anything that can grow taller than 25 feet cannot be considered a hedge.
Two appeals were heard by the City Council in 2002, and in both cases the hearing examiner’s decision was upheld.
The result was that city staff were often caught between neighbors arguing over height and the composition of vegetation planted between properties, a potential for lawsuits and increased city attorney costs, said Duane Bowman, the city’s development services director.
"It exposes us to the expense of trying to defend the ordinance and being caught between neighbors that have a problem with each other," Bowman said before Tuesday’s meeting.
Other Snohomish County cities with views, including Mukilteo and Everett, don’t regulate hedges.
There’s also the question of whether it’s a good use of public resources for a city to work out disputes between private property owners. In addition, the city has only one code enforcement officer, who must handle hundreds of cases.
"We don’t have the manpower to adequately regulate the height of hedges in town," Mayor Gary Haakenson said before the meeting. "I don’t think we should be regulating what people do on their private property."
But some residents say the city should take a stand.
Joan and Wayne Swift share a property line with a neighbor’s row of Douglas fir trees that are close to 50 feet tall. They block daylight on that side of the house and also the view, the Swifts said.
"The city doesn’t want to do a thing about it. They want to get out of the business altogether," Wayne Swift said before the meeting.
Roger Hertrich, another Edmonds resident, said it is the city’s business to regulate hedges.
"We require a height restriction on fences; the same purpose should apply to hedges. When they get too high, they block out light and air and become a problem," Hertrich said .
Reporter Pam Brice: 425-339-3439 or pbrice@heraldnet.com.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
