Reading has no California-style defensible-space program because Berks County is rated low overall wildfire risk. The city instead controls fire-fuel vegetation through Quality of Life Section 180-1203 (high grass, weeds, and plant growth) and the adopted International Property Maintenance Code (IPMC) at Reading Chapter 180 Part 13. All premises must be kept free of weeds or plant growth exceeding 6 inches.
Reading, Pennsylvania is in Berks County, where the USDA Forest Service rates overall wildfire risk as low even though approximately 60 percent of homes statewide sit within the wildland-urban interface boundary. Reading itself is a dense urban core with little undeveloped fuel load, so the city does not impose California-style defensible space zones. Vegetation that could feed a fire is instead regulated through two overlapping mechanisms. First, Section 180-1203 of the Codified Ordinances - the Quality of Life (QOL) violations section, code QOL.004 'High weeds, grass or plant growth' - requires that 'all premises and exterior property shall be maintained free from weeds or plant growth in excess of six (6) inches.' Weeds are defined as all grasses, annual plants and vegetation other than cultivated flowers, gardens, trees, and shrubs. Second, Reading adopts the 2018 International Property Maintenance Code through Chapter 180 Part 13. IPMC Section 302.4 (Weeds) similarly requires that premises be maintained free of weeds or plant growth in excess of the locally established height, which Reading sets at 6 inches. The Property and Codes Enforcement office (1-877-727-3234) inspects on complaint and issues a Notice of Violation requiring abatement within a stated period (usually 7 to 10 days). If the property owner fails to cut the vegetation, the city may enter, mow, and bill the cost back to the owner as a municipal lien on the parcel. Pennsylvania DCNR also enforces a statewide spring fire-season prohibition on open burning under 25 Pa. Code Chapter 129 from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. during high-risk periods, but this is not a brush-clearance requirement, only a burning restriction.
QOL.004 violations carry escalating administrative fines, typically starting at $50 and increasing to $300 or more for repeat offenders, plus cut-and-bill charges that become a municipal lien against the property. IPMC violations are enforced through the same Property and Codes Enforcement process and can also trigger refusal or revocation of the Rental Housing Permit for landlord-occupied parcels. Unpaid mowing liens bear interest and may be collected through tax sale.
Reading, PA
Every swimming pool in Reading must be enclosed by a permanent barrier or fence at least four feet in height with no opening larger than four inches, and the...
Reading, PA
Reading Zoning Code § 600-1304 bans barbed-wire fences in residential settings, electrically-charged fences (except invisible pet fences), broken glass affix...
Reading, PA
Reading's zoning code does not require neighbor consent for a boundary fence under § 600-1301, but Pennsylvania's partition-fence statute (53 P.S. § 46202) a...
Reading, PA
Reading Zoning Code § 600-1301 requires a permit from the Zoning Administrator for any fence, wall, or similar structure greater than three feet in height. F...
Reading, PA
Reading Code Section 141-220 effectively caps a household at six dogs and/or cats combined. Owning more than six requires a permit from the Reading Animal Co...
Reading, PA
Backyard composting in Reading is permitted and encouraged. The City participates in the Pennsylvania Act 101 (Municipal Waste Planning, Recycling and Waste ...
See how Reading's brush clearance rules stack up against other locations.
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