On 6/15/2012 2:07 PM, HeyBub wrote:
"Home and business owners in Massapequa Park, Long Island, face
the five-figure fines and even up to 15 days in jail for such
maintenance issues as overgrown lawns, broken windows and
graffiti."

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/06/14...#ixzz1xtGutp5H

You neglected to note that this is specifically targeting the banks
holding all the abandoned properties that they're not keeping up. It
is creating a financial burden on local governments not only to mow
the lawns, but to board up the broken windows and roust the squatters
and partiers taking residence in the buildings. The cities are simply
requiring banks to perform proper maintenance just like any other
homeowner.

The city of St. Paul passed a law permitting the city to tear down
neglected bank-owned properties after a certain number of notices to
the bank get no response. If they won't sell the property or maintain
it, and it becomes a public nuisance or actual hazard, the city will
knock it down and charge the expense to the bank. It's working quite
nicely...after they tore down a bunch of houses, the banks began
taking upkeep seriously.