By LIAD MUSSAFFI
The College Park City Council on Feb. 10 discussed a proposal to do away with a long-standing 12-inch height limit on lawns to accommodate residents wishing to replace their grass with pollinator gardens that attract bees and other insects.
Members of the Committee for a Better Environment and the local chapter of Bee City USA have raised concerns about the 12-inch rule, claiming pollinator plants are naturally taller.
“The city is inclined to have more environmentally friendly policies,” Councilmember Jacob Hernandez (District 1) said. “For the record, I am in favor of leaving the space for environmentally inclined pollinator gardens to be one in between nine perfectly manicured yards.”
Hernandez added: “If it’s on your yard, it’s on your yard. That’s your property, baby.”
While pollinator plants coincide with College Park’s sustainability efforts, the existing code was meant to restrict the height of traditional turf, according to Councilmember Dan Oates (District 3).
Mayor Pro Tem Maria Mackie (District 4) noted that waiving the 12-inch height rule could lead to chaotic growth and neglected properties.
“We also don’t want to give license to people to not care for their lawns, because it’s not fair to your neighbor if you’re not caring for your lawn,” Mackie said.
She added: “We live in a community, and we need to be mindful of our neighbors and [be] considerate of them. We don’t want to have our plants growing where they could trip over them.”
Jonathan Nagelvoort, assistant director of the city’s Department of Public Works, said he supports keeping the 12-inch rule for turf and allowing pollinators as an alternative to traditional lawns.
Nagelvoort said the city can achieve both by requiring residents who wish to plant pollinators to register with Public Works.
“We’d like to be able to have a set list map that identifies these properties that say, ‘We are a pollinator,’” Nagelvoort said. “So they will be easily identifiable to code enforcement.”
If enforcement officers know which lawns are registered as pollinators, they won’t mistake habitat for neglect, Nagelvoort said.
Still, Hernandez said he does not want to regulate which kinds of plants homeowners can grow.
He said he is, however, concerned about plants encroaching on public spaces like sidewalks.
“If your … vegetation is hanging over and blocking the sidewalk … to the point where you have to adjust yourself as a pedestrian, I think that’s where you’re crossing into the public [space],” Hernandez said. Otherwise, he said he is “hesitant as a government to touch your property.”
Councilmember Alan Hew (District 1) said he is firmly pro-pollinator gardens and supports No Mow April, a month when the city allows residents to ignore the 12-inch rule.
Still, Hew said he wants to keep the 12-inch height limit on turf during the rest of the year.
“Scaping needs to be intentful,” Hew said. “It’s intentful practices with clear borders, not impeding on line of sight for vehicles, [and] being able to see safely around these plants.”
Councilmembers typically do not vote at workshops but appeared to support keeping the 12-inch limit and creating a recognition program.