Intent is to control overgrown vegetation that is a fire hazard
The Town of Winthrop may tweak its existing ordinances on “public nuisances” to more closely control overgrown vegetation that could be a fire hazard.
At the Sept. 16 Town Council meeting, council member Marisa Monteverde reviewed a “vegetation assessment” of the areas behind several downtown buildings that she recently conducted with Fire Adapted Methow staffer Sam Israel and Casey Bouchard, a Methow Recycles board member and a managing partner of WasteWise Methow.
They found plenty of vegetation that could be hazardous should a fire break out in town, Monteverde said. She suggested that the town consider a “vegetation management plan” that would require property owners to reduce the potential fire hazards near their buildings. Alternately, the town could hire a contractor and bill the property owner.
Monteverde said she’s also concerned that many trees along the existing open-air irrigation ditch that runs through town is piped and covered over, which is planned in the next few years. “We need to get ahead of that,” she said.
Mayor Robert Grim referred council members to the town’s existing code regulations that are intended to “prevent and prohibit safety and health hazards that create a menace to the health and welfare of the public and the residents of the town …”
That includes, the ordinance continues, “Grass, weeds, shrubs, bushes, refuse, trees or other types of plants or vegetation that is left growing in an unmaintained or uncontrolled manner or which left in a pile or piles or scattered about on any property becomes a fire hazard … .”
Monteverde suggested that the council consider adding more specificity to the ordinance, “then we need to enforce it.”
Town Marshal Ty Sheehan said that violators can currently be fined $250 a day, and there is a provision for emergency enforcement. He said he has not written any citations in recent years, and that “voluntary compliance is very high.” Sheehan said any changes should include “objective standards” so it is clear what’s prohibited.
Monteverde said she would work on potential additions to the ordinance and report back to the council
In other business:
• The council appointed Jenna Goodrich to fill a vacancy on the Winthrop Planning Commission. Grim said an opening remains on the Town’s Civil Service Commission. The commission is comprised of three town residents who are appointed for six-year terms by the mayor. The commission reviews applicants for civil service openings, including for the Marshal’s Office, and typically meets only as required. Applicants should be registered voters and have lived in Winthrop for at least three years. Contact town hall at winthropclerk@townofwinthrop.com or call (509) 996-2320 if interested.
• The council set Nov. 12 at 5 p.m. as the meeting time for their review of the preliminary 2027 town budget. The meeting will include a public hearing. Other dates in the budget process include Nov. 18 for more review of the draft budget and 2027 revenue projections; Dec. 2 for a public hearing on the final draft budget; and Dec. 16 for adopting the 2027 budget.
