San Rafael, CA Landscaping Rules: Weed Ordinances (2026)

040 covers the parcel itself and the sidewalk parkway between the lot and the curb line, and it names the specific growth the city treats as a nuisance: weeds, mustard, thistles, indigenous grasses, poison oak, and other noxious trees or brush. 050. 120, the superintendent must give written notice, either served on the owner or occupant or, if neither can be found, posted conspicuously on the property. The notice has to briefly describe the work required, cite the chapter, and warn that unless the work is done within ten days of service or posting, the superintendent will do the work and charge the cost to the property.

If the ten days pass without compliance, the superintendent proceeds to clear the lot and keeps a record of every notice issued and every job performed, with its cost, on a parcel-by-parcel basis. 060 then converts that cost into a lien: once the abatement work is finished, the superintendent renders a statement of the cost to the city assessor, who enters the amount on the assessment roll against the property and collects it the same way, and at the same time, as other city taxes. The underlying prohibition traces to Ordinances 56 and 202, with the abatement procedure itself dating to Ordinance 56.