Melbourne, FL Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)
Key Facts
- Vegetation height trigger
- Over 12 inches
- Notice period to remedy
- 10 days from mailed/posted notice
- Hearing request window
- 10 days, before city manager
- Lien interest rate
- 8% per annum
- Payment deadline before lien
- 30 days after billing
Summary
Melbourne declares overgrown vegetation past 12 inches, accumulated junk or trash, and unprotected open pits public nuisances. The city notifies the owner by mail, allows a hearing, and can clear the property itself and place a lien if the condition isn't fixed.
The excessive accumulation or untended growth of weeds, undergrowth or other dead or living plant life over 12 inches in height, or an open and/or unprotected pit, upon any parcel of land, improved or unimproved, within 100 feet of the boundary line or any improved property within the incorporated areas of this city, is hereby prohibited and declared to be a public nuisance. Further the accumulation of garbage and trash in violation of chapter 48, and the accumulation, storage or maintenance of junk, abandoned vehicles, or trash, except for compost piles, in violation of sections 48-29 and 48-30, is hereby prohibited and declared to be a public nuisance.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 32).
Full Breakdown
Sec. 32-56, under the city's "Lot, Junk, Garbage and Trash Clearing Ordinance," declares a public nuisance where there is "excessive accumulation or untended growth of weeds, undergrowth or other dead or living plant life over 12 inches in height, or an open and/or unprotected pit," and separately declares accumulated garbage, trash, junk or abandoned vehicles a nuisance, along with any "attractive nuisance" condition under Sec. 32-104. When a code enforcement official finds such a nuisance, Sec. 32-57 requires written notice by certified mail to the owner of record plus posting a notice on the property, giving 10 days to remedy the condition before the city can act and 30 days to pay before a lien attaches.
Sec. 32-58 lets the owner request a hearing before the city manager within that 10-day window to contest the finding. If no hearing is requested, or the owner loses the hearing and still hasn't fixed the condition within three days, Sec. 32-59 authorizes the city to remedy it directly at the owner's expense; unpaid costs become a special assessment lien bearing 8 percent annual interest, enforceable like a tax lien and recorded in the county public records.
Violations & Fines
Failure to remedy a declared nuisance after notice exposes the owner to the city clearing the property and billing the cost, plus an 8 percent-interest lien under Sec. 32-59 recorded against the property; the underlying nuisance declaration in Sec. 32-56 is also independently enforceable as a Code violation under the general Sec. 1-14 penalty of up to $500.00, up to 60 days imprisonment, or both, per day.
Frequently Asked Questions
How tall can grass or weeds get before Melbourne cites the property?
What notice does Melbourne give before clearing an overgrown lot?
Can I challenge a nuisance notice before the city clears my property?
What happens if I don't pay after the city clears my lot?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Melbourne
Florida rules heatmap·Compare Melbourne to another location·View the Florida property maintenance overview
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Property Blight in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Brevard County handle property blight.