Downey, CA Landscaping Rules: Weed Ordinances (2026)

Downey Municipal Code § 5902, part of the citywide Public Nuisances chapter adopted by Ordinance 1238 in 2008, lists overgrown vegetation among the specific conditions the City Council 'finds and declares' to be a public nuisance on any real property in the City. Item 11(b)(1) of that section is explicit: 'Lawns with grass in excess of six inches (6″) in height' is a prohibited condition, grouped with vegetation that is not kept in a neat, orderly and healthy manner through regular mowing, trimming, watering and fertilizing.

The same subsection separately bars vegetation that harbors rats, vermin or insects, and vegetation that creates or promotes a fire hazard, so an overgrown lawn can trigger more than one clause at once. Enforcement follows the same Chapter 9 procedure used for every other nuisance condition in the code. A code enforcement officer serves a written Notice of Public Nuisance and Intention to Abate under § 5906, describing the condition, citing the law, spelling out the corrective action, and setting a compliance period; the notice also warns that the City may record a Notice of Substandard Property against the parcel with the Los Angeles County Recorder if the grass is not cut within 30 days and no timely appeal is filed.

A responsible person can contest the notice under § 5909 by filing a written appeal with the City Clerk's office at 11111 Brookshire Avenue within 20 calendar days of service, with no filing fee required. If the lawn is not cut and no appeal succeeds, the City can abate the nuisance itself, and § 5903 makes any violation of the chapter, including maintaining grass over six inches after notice, a misdemeanor punishable per § 1200, with each day the tall grass continues charged as a separate offense.