Ogden, UT Property Maintenance: Vacant Lot Maintenance (2026)

Section 12-4-3 of the Ogden City Code, Weed Control, sets the baseline height limit for weeds and grasses at six inches for most real property in the city, with cuttings required to be promptly cleared and removed. Subsection D2 doubles that allowance to twelve inches for three categories of land: property zoned open space (O-1) under Title 15, ditches and railroad rights of way, and undeveloped property or vacant lots with no buildings or structures. Weeds killed with herbicide must be treated before they exceed the applicable height limit, and weeds pulled by the root must be buried or hauled off the property.

When a lot's size or terrain makes cutting the whole parcel impractical, the fire marshal or an assistant fire marshal can authorize a narrower firebreak of at least fifteen feet around the property's perimeter and around any structures instead of full compliance, and can exempt land kept as a nature park or wetland mitigation area if doing so will not create a fire hazard for neighbors. Enforcement runs through inspectors the mayor appoints under section 12-4-7, who coordinate weed and fire-hazard cases with the fire department; matters involving health conditions instead go through the county health department.

If the city itself must abate an unresolved weed violation, it recovers its cleaning costs from the responsible owner under Chapter 8 of Title 12.