Elizabeth, NJ Property Maintenance: Vacant Lot Maintenance (2026)

120 of Elizabeth's housing code sits in Article III, Exterior Property Areas, and applies to both occupied lots and vacant, unimproved parcels alike: exterior property areas and vacant lots must be free of all weeds, and a growth higher than six inches above the ground is deemed a weed. The six-inch line is the only test the code uses, so it does not matter whether the growth is ragweed or ordinary grass gone unmown; once it passes six inches it is a violation. The same Article III portion of the chapter separately bars litter, holes, tripping hazards and insect or rodent harborage on exterior property, and makes the owner, operator, agent or occupant of the property responsible for compliance.

720. 200, separately bars dumping litter on any open or vacant lot and lets the director of public works or the director of health, welfare and housing issue a ten-day removal notice before the city clears the property and bills the owner, so a vacant lot with both overgrown weeds and dumped debris can draw enforcement under two chapters at once. There is no seasonal exemption in the ordinance text; the six-inch cap applies year-round to any exterior property area, improved or vacant.