Cape Coral, FL Landscaping Rules: Weed Ordinances (2026)

Section 9-16 of the Cape Coral Code of Ordinances makes it unlawful for any owner or person controlling private property, by rental, lease, or otherwise, to allow weeds, grass, vines, palmetto scrub, or other noxious vegetable growths to grow or accumulate past a height of 12 inches. The same subsection also bars accumulated litter such as debris, bottles, cans, or building materials, and the height rule applies whether the parcel is occupied or vacant. Enforcement is split between the Cape Coral Police Department and the Code Compliance Division, either of which can issue a notice of violation once an officer observes overgrown vegetation.

The notice states the fine amount, a due date, and the right to challenge the citation through an administrative hearing before the special magistrate within ten days; missing that ten-day window is treated as an admission of the violation. Fines escalate for repeat offenders within a rolling 12-month period: $150 for a first offense, $500 for a second, $1,000 for a third, and $2,000 for a fourth or later violation, and the special magistrate has no discretion to reduce these set amounts. If a property owner never pays and never appeals, the city can enter the property to cut the vegetation and bill the owner for the remediation cost on top of the civil fine; unpaid amounts become a recorded lien enforceable like a court judgment, and the city can foreclose on the lien after 61 days.

Appeals of a special magistrate's ruling go to a court of competent jurisdiction. The rule sits alongside companion nuisance bans on litter accumulation, junk storage, dangerous buildings and stagnant water, all enforced under the same notice-and-hearing process created by Ordinance 28-99 and last amended by Ordinance 19-24 in 2024.