Casper, WY Property Maintenance: Vacant Lot Maintenance (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- Casper Municipal Code § 8.44.010
- Applies to
- Every lot or parcel, improved or unimproved
- Notice period
- 10 days (may be shortened)
- Enforcing office
- City manager or authorized agent
- Max fine
- $750 plus up to $10 court costs
Summary
Every lot owner in the City of Casper, improved or unimproved, must keep the lot, parkways, alleyways and abutting sidewalk free from weeds. The city manager or an authorized agent can order removal within ten days, and noncompliance stays a violation for the rest of the calendar year without a new notice.
It is the duty of every owner of any lot or parcel of ground in the city, to keep the lot and the parcel of ground, parkways, alleyways and the sidewalk areas abutting thereon, free from weeds. Every owner failing to comply with the provisions of this chapter may be notified by the city manager, or his authorized agent, to remove such weeds within ten days from the receipt of such notice, or within a lesser period of time specified in the notice, if the interests of public safety and health so necessitate. ... Such notice shall be in effect for the duration of the calendar year and the owner of the lot or parcel shall be responsible for controlling the vegetation as prescribed above for the duration of the calendar year, without the need for renotification. After the initial notice, any subsequent period of noncompliance shall also be a violation of this section.
Full Breakdown
Casper Municipal Code § 8.44.010 places the weed-removal duty on "every owner of any lot or parcel of ground in the city," language that on its face reaches vacant and unimproved parcels along with occupied ones, and it extends to the parkways, alleyways and sidewalk areas that abut the lot. The city manager or an authorized agent notifies a noncompliant owner and gives ten days to remove the weeds, though the notice can set a shorter deadline when public safety or health requires it, and the notice must then state why.
Once served, that notice covers the whole calendar year: the owner stays responsible for controlling vegetation for the balance of the year without a fresh notice, and any later lapse is treated as a new violation under the same notice. Section 8.44.020 lets the city manager or agent go onto the lot, alleyway or sidewalk area and remove the weeds directly, billing the cost to the owner and certifying unpaid amounts to the taxing authorities for collection. Section 8.44.040 makes any violation of Chapter 8.44 a public nuisance and a misdemeanor, punishable under the general penalty in Chapter 1.28 (up to a $750 fine plus up to $10 in court costs, since Chapter 8.44 is not among the specific offenses in § 1.28.010(C) that carry jail time).
An owner can appeal a nuisance finding and cost assessment under § 8.44.080 by filing a written request with the city clerk within ten days of the abatement notice, triggering a hearing before the city council or a hearing examiner before abatement proceeds.
Violations & Fines
Violating the weed-removal duty in § 8.44.010 is a misdemeanor under Chapter 1.28's general penalty: a fine of up to $750 plus court costs of no more than $10, since weed violations are not on the list of offenses in § 1.28.010(C) that add jail time. The city may instead or additionally abate the nuisance itself under § 8.44.020, charging the removal cost and any administrative fee to the owner, with unpaid amounts collectible through legal proceedings or certified as a special property assessment under § 8.44.070.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the Casper weed ordinance apply to vacant, unimproved lots?
How long does an owner have to remove weeds after notice?
What happens if the owner never complies?
Can a Casper property owner appeal a weed nuisance notice?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Casper
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