Showing ordinances that apply to Shelter Island Heights, NY
Shelter Island Heights is an unincorporated community (population 1,601) in Suffolk County, New York. Because Shelter Island Heights is not an incorporated city, it does not have its own municipal code. Instead, Suffolk County ordinances apply directly to properties here. The grass height limits rules below are the ones that govern your area.
Suffolk County does not set a countywide grass-height maximum; each town enforces its own property maintenance code. Most Suffolk towns (Brookhaven, Islip, Huntington, Smithtown, Babylon) cap lawn height at 10 inches, with Southampton and East Hampton using 12 inches. Unmaintained lots are abated by town crews at owner expense.
Brookhaven Town Code Chapter 30, Islip Chapter 47, and Huntington Chapter 156 each define overgrown vegetation as a public nuisance. After a notice-and-cure period (usually 10-14 days), town highway or code enforcement crews mow the property and bill the owner plus administrative fees. Repeat-offense properties are placed on an annual abatement list. Natural landscaping and pollinator gardens that are intentionally maintained are generally exempt when owner submits a management plan.
First overgrowth notice: 10-14 days to cure. Failure to cure: town mows, bills $150-$500 plus lien. Repeat violations: administrative citations up to $1,000. Chronic nuisance properties: court-ordered receivership possible.
See how Shelter Island Heights's grass height limits rules stack up against other locations.
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