Town regulates property and imprudent driving
Posted on Wednesday, June 25, 2008
URL: http://www.nwanews.com/gentry/News/2614/
HIGHFILL ó The town council passed ordinances regulating unsightly and unsanitary conditions on property and improper and imprudent driving within the city at its June 17 meeting.
The ordinances ó passed with rules suspended and on three readings with a single vote and with an emergency clause ó become effective after publication.
The first ordinance requires property owners to do the following:
ï Keep grass, weeds and brush cut so that it is not unsightly or a health or fire hazard;
ï Keep property clear of any unsanitary or unsightly conditions and offensive odors, such as the accumulation of trash or garbage, waste products from commercial operations, animal refuse, fruit or vegetable matter, rubbish, leaves, limbs, logs, metal, plastic, paper or other items which may increase the risk of fire or become a health hazard or a public nuisance;
ï Eliminate stagnant pools of water or other liquids, including open wells, basements, cellars or excavations; and
ï Remove or eliminate any other unsanitary thing, place or condition which might become a breeding ground for mosquitoes, flies, other insects or rodents, or which may create a condition which is offensive, harmful or dangerous to the health, safety, aesthetics or public welfare of the community.
The ordinance spells out the procedures for inspections, notices, and property liens should a property owner not take appropriate corrective action within a timely manner and the city clean up the property.
More information on the ordinance and what it requires of landowners is available by contacting the Highfill town hall, the mayor, code enforcement officer or the police department. Driving regulations
In a second ordinance the town established standards for operating a motor vehicle within the townís limits and set basic fines for violations of the ordinance.
The adoption of the ordinance, according to Highfill Police Chief Jack Sanders, would allow the city to keep 80 percent of fines collected rather than the 10 percent it currently receives when police write all traffic citations under state code. It would also be of benefit to drivers in that some of the violations would not go on their driving record, he said.
The ordinance prohibits driving a motor vehicle in an improper or imprudent manner. Included in the ordinance are such things as improper or dangerous lane changes, driving across private property to avoid traffic control devices, driving in such a manner or speed which causes a vehicle to slide or skid, failing to keep a vehicle under control, failing to properly signal turns, stops and lane changes, driving across freshly painted street markings or through barricades, allowing a person or animal to ride in the driverís seating area and thus impede the driverís vision or ability to safely operate the vehicle, failing to watch for other vehicles or pedestrians, failing to properly restrain children in safety devices required under state law, and failing to comply with the legal requirements of the state of Arkansas.
First-time offenders would be fined between $ 50 and $ 100 dollars in addition to state penalties for the offense.