Springvale woman exposes loophole in Dandenong Council’s nature strip policy after stink over dog poo
A STINK over dog poo in Springvale has put a local law in the spotlight and sparked a debate about nature strips.
South East
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A STINK over dog poo on nature strips has uncovered a loophole in Dandenong Council’s local laws.
Frustrated by neighbours constantly leaving their dogs’ poo on her nature strip, Springvale’s Flora Gutierrez threatened to stop mowing her verge until the council dealt with the problem.
But she was astounded to discover there was no law forcing her to mow it in the first place.
Ms Gutierrez said she tried to make her Heather Grove property look nice but was fed up after finding dog mess out the front at least 10 times.
“I cut my grass and the next morning I woke up to go to the gym and suddenly there’s poo everywhere,” she said.
She said Greater Dandenong Council told her there was nothing it could do because there was no proof of whose dog it was.
“Well that’s it, I’m not cutting my grass,” she told the officer.
“The guy said, ‘Well you don’t have to’.
“I was just shocked that you could actually leave it and someone else will cut it for you.
“I’ve never heard of that before. If everybody doesn’t cut their grass, are we all going to be paying for these extra people that have to come around cutting the grass?”
Ms Gutierrez took the issue to her councillor Sean O’Reilly who raised it at a recent council meeting.
“Nature strips are always a grey area,” Cr O’Reilly told the Leader.
“I want it to be clarified so everybody knows what their responsibilities are.
“I think they should receive two warnings and then, on the third time, they should receive a fine or they pay for it to get cut.
“As a local councillor, I know that people want to have pride in where they live.”
Ms Gutierrez said she had decided to do the right thing and continue to mow her nature strip.
“(But) I’m going to cut it, of course. Everybody else cuts their grass. I think you should be able to cut your own grass and you should be able to pick up your s--- and put it in the rubbish bin,” she said.
Neighbouring Monash Council requires residents to maintain a tidy nature strip where grass, stubble, scrub or undergrowth does not exceed 30cm in height. If they fail to do so, a notice is issued.
A fine for failing to comply with a notice is $500.
