(Atlantic) The Atlantic City Council approved the first and final readings of three ordinances amending city code provisions related to property mowing, solid waste removal, and the removal of snow, ice, and other accumulations. Council members also approved adopting the Courtesy Notice Program as the standard operating procedure for code enforcement.
The changes actually include a reduction in penalty cost. City Councilman Jeremy Butler, a member of the Planning and Zoning Commission, recommended reducing fines for ordinance violations.
First, the Atlantic City Council approved the first and final reading of Ordinance No. 1065, which would amend the city’s mowing ordinance as part of a series of proposed code enforcement updates.
The proposed changes, recommended by Code Enforcement and Animal Control Manager Kris Erickson, are intended to simplify administration, create consistency among nuisance abatement programs, and better reflect the city’s labor, equipment, and administrative costs.
The ordinance would revise the city’s mowing nuisance abatement fee schedule. According to the proposal, nuisance abatement fees are intended to recover the city’s actual costs of addressing violations, not to generate revenue or serve as a penalty. Under Iowa law, nuisance abatement assessments are limited to cost recovery.
The proposed ordinance would update the city’s mowing nuisance abatement fee schedule by increasing the administrative fee from $100 to $125 while reducing the hourly rates charged for city employees and equipment. The city employee rate would decrease from $110 to $75 per hour, and the hourly rates for vans, trucks, trailers, riding mowers, push mowers, and string trimmers would all be set at $15 per hour. Charges for certified mail, postage, and miscellaneous materials would remain at actual cost, while paper document fees would remain unchanged at 10 cents per page.
Next, the Atlantic City Council approved the first and final reading of Ordinance No. 1066, which would amend the city’s code governing garbage and solid waste removal as part of a series of code enforcement updates.
The proposed changes mirror those included in Ordinance No. 1065 and would revise the city’s nuisance abatement fee schedule for garbage and solid waste removal. The ordinance increases the administrative fee from $100 to $125, adjusts some labor and equipment rates, while leaving others unchanged, and continues to charge actual costs for landfill fees, certified mail, postage, and miscellaneous materials.
The proposed ordinance would revise the city’s garbage and solid waste nuisance abatement fee schedule by increasing the administrative fee from $100 to $125 and reducing the city employee rate from $110 to $75 per hour. The hourly rates for pickup and flatbed trucks, trailers, and chainsaws would each be reduced to $15, while rates for front-end loaders, bobcat/skid loaders, and dump trucks would remain unchanged. Landfill fees, certified mail, postage, and miscellaneous materials would continue to be charged at actual cost, and paper document fees would remain at 10 cents per page.
Next, the Atlantic City Council approved the first and final reading of Ordinance No. 1067, which would amend the city’s code governing the removal of snow, ice, and other accumulations from sidewalks. The proposal is the third in a series of ordinance changes related to code enforcement and nuisance abatement fees. Similar to Ordinances 1065 and 1066, the measure would update the city’s nuisance abatement fee schedule for snow and ice removal.
The proposed ordinance would update the city’s sidewalk snow removal nuisance abatement fee schedule by increasing the administrative fee from $100 to $125 and reducing the city employee rate from $110 to $75 per hour. The hourly rates for vans and trucks, trailers, snow blowers, motorized brooms, and shovels would each be reduced to $15. Charges for miscellaneous materials would continue to be billed at actual cost, while paper document fees would remain at 10 cents per page.
Additionally, the Atlantic City Council approved the “Courtesy Notice Program” as standard operating procedure for code enforcement.
Under the current City Code, annual publication of nuisance and mowing ordinances serves as the official notice to property owners, and the City meets this requirement through annual publication in the Atlantic News Telegraph and social media postings.
The proposed program would add temporary yard signs as a courtesy reminder when grass or weed violations are observed to improve communication, encourage voluntary compliance, reduce repeat violations, and limit the need for City-performed abatements. The signs are informational only and do not replace or change the legal notice requirements in the City Code.
Atlantic Mayor Rob Clausen says the city will place a courtesy notice-of-violation sign in a yard that is in violation of the City Code for failing to mow and bring this property into compliance within 24 hours of the date listed on the courtesy sign. Butler says that under City Code, Enforcement Officer Kris Erickson is not legally required to give notice; however, this allows the resident to respond without being fined.
Staff plans to post one courtesy sign per property each season. If the property violates the ordinance again during the same season, the City may proceed directly with abatement without posting another sign, as annual publication remains the official legal notice.
The program will not be used for snow and ice violations due to winter conditions and the immediate public safety risks posed by uncleared sidewalks.
The Personnel & Finance Committee reviewed the proposal on June 23, 2026, and unanimously endorsed its implementation.
