Lafayette, LA Property Maintenance: Vacant Lot Maintenance (2026)
Key Facts
- Height limit
- 24 inches outside occupied subdivisions
- Comparison
- Double the 12-in in-subdivision limit
- Enforcing agency
- Public Works Department
- Notice
- 5 calendar days before city cuts
- Admin fee
- $250.00 flat, Sec. 97-34
- Forest/woodland buffer
- 50 ft at 12 in near subdivisions
Summary
Vacant and unimproved land outside an occupied subdivision or neighborhood in Lafayette Parish gets a looser 24-inch cap on weeds and grass under Sec. 97-28(b), double the 12-inch limit inside occupied areas. Owners still can't let the lot become a rodent haven, and LCPG public works abates and bills non-compliant parcels the same way it does inside the city.
No tenant, owner, or occupant of any leased, owned, or occupied lot, place, property, or area within the jurisdiction of the Lafayette City-Parish Consolidated Government, and located outside an occupied subdivision or neighborhood, defined herein, shall permit any weeds, grass, or deleterious, unpleasant, unhealthy or noxious foliage more than 24 inches in height to grow or accumulate on any portion of any lot, place or area leased, owned or occupied by the person, or any abutting sidewalk or neutral ground nor shall such person allow such lot or area or any abutting sidewalk or neutral ground to become a haven for rodents or other dangerous animals.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 65).
Full Breakdown
Sec. 97-28(b) of the Lafayette City-Parish Code covers land 'located outside an occupied subdivision or neighborhood': vacant, undeveloped, or unimproved parcels scattered through unincorporated Lafayette Parish and the city's outer edges. There, weeds, grass, or noxious foliage may grow up to 24 inches, twice the 12-inch cap that applies inside an occupied subdivision, but the lot still cannot become a haven for rodents or other dangerous animals. Sec. 97-26 defines 'neighborhood' as a subdivision or area with residences or businesses in close proximity, a call made by the director of public works when a parcel's status is disputed.
Forest and woodland tracts get a further carve-out under Sec. 97-29(b): they may stand undisturbed unless they abut an occupied subdivision, in which case only a 50-foot buffer strip along the boundary must be kept clear of thick underbrush and cut to the tighter 12-inch limit. Enforcement mirrors the improved-lot rule: the director of public works may enter after giving the owner at least five calendar days' notice under Sec. 00 administrative charge under Sec. 97-34, recorded as a lien in the parish mortgage office if unpaid.
Owners who already received one notice in the past 12 months and did not act lose that notice requirement, and the parish may abate the vacant lot monthly under Sec. 97-36.
Violations & Fines
A vacant lot over 24 inches faces the same civil abatement track as an improved one: five days' notice, then LCPG cutting, followed by a bill for the contractor's fee plus the $250.00 Sec. 97-34 administrative charge. Unpaid charges convert into a tax-roll lien recorded in the parish mortgage office and draw legal interest, and LCPG can sue to collect along with its attorney's fees.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the grass height limit on a vacant lot in Lafayette Parish?
Who decides if my property counts as inside an occupied subdivision?
Does a wooded vacant lot have to be cleared?
What does the parish charge if it mows my vacant lot?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Lafayette
Compare Lafayette to another location·View the Louisiana property maintenance overview
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