Ha Family House in Orange (Los Angeles Times) |
ORANGE -- The city of Orange is considering dropping the case against a couple cited for refusing to landscape their front yard.
Quan and Angelina Ha pleaded not guilty Tuesday to charges of failing to maintain their lawn according to city law. But, hours after the arraignmnet, city officials said they might consider dropping the charges.
In 2008, The Ha's decided to remove all the grass from their front yard to save money and water.
About four months later, Orange's code-enforcement department received a complaint about the Ha's yard from a neighbor.
The department ruled that the yard violated a city law requiring residents to have at least 40 percent of their front property landscaped.
The Ha family actually covered their lawn with wood chips after taking out the grass but local officials say that wasn't good enough.
That's when the family decided to build an ornate fence and plant some drought-tolerant plants but because they didn't file proper paperwork before an October deadline, the city still filed court papers.
Angelina Ha says she sent mailed photos of the yard with the fence and drought-resistant plants to the city's code-enforcement department in November.
The couple says they never heard back from Orange officials and thought they were in the clear.
The city now says it re-examined the Ha's yard and determined the property does meet city standards.
"We had two officials go out there and look at the property, and they did make strides complying with the ordinance," Paul Sikoff, a spokesman for the city of Orange told the Los Angeles Times.
City officials will meet with the couple later this week to make another assessment, Sitkoff said.
The Ha's faced a maximum penalty of up to six months in jail and up to a $1,000 fine.
Quan and Angelina Ha pleaded not guilty Tuesday to charges of failing to maintain their lawn according to city law. But, hours after the arraignmnet, city officials said they might consider dropping the charges.
In 2008, The Ha's decided to remove all the grass from their front yard to save money and water.
About four months later, Orange's code-enforcement department received a complaint about the Ha's yard from a neighbor.
The department ruled that the yard violated a city law requiring residents to have at least 40 percent of their front property landscaped.
The Ha family actually covered their lawn with wood chips after taking out the grass but local officials say that wasn't good enough.
That's when the family decided to build an ornate fence and plant some drought-tolerant plants but because they didn't file proper paperwork before an October deadline, the city still filed court papers.
Angelina Ha says she sent mailed photos of the yard with the fence and drought-resistant plants to the city's code-enforcement department in November.
The couple says they never heard back from Orange officials and thought they were in the clear.
The city now says it re-examined the Ha's yard and determined the property does meet city standards.
"We had two officials go out there and look at the property, and they did make strides complying with the ordinance," Paul Sikoff, a spokesman for the city of Orange told the Los Angeles Times.
City officials will meet with the couple later this week to make another assessment, Sitkoff said.
The Ha's faced a maximum penalty of up to six months in jail and up to a $1,000 fine.
