News Photo by Steve Schulwitz Dan Schultz takes some time on Wednesday for lawn maintenance outside his home in Alpena. City officials are urging residents to use the extra time at home during Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s stay-at-home order to groom their yards so they are in compliance with local ordinances.

ALPENA — As the weather warms, people are itching for reasons to spend time in their yards to escape the boredom that may come with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s stay-at-home order meant to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

The City of Alpena is encouraging residents to use that spare time to clean up their yards to comply with city ordinances. For those who lack the resources and ability to do so, the city will work with them and grant them time to get the work done.

City Building Official Don Gilmet said many yards need to be raked and cleaned of trash and debris. Soon, people will need to cut their lawn — the length should never exceed eight inches.

“I would expect that people who are spending a great deal of their time at home right now would take advantage of it and bag the leaves, pick up debris and trash, and clean things up,” Gilmet said. “You can go outside and do this work, so there is no excuse to not comply with the ordinances.”

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, people are expected to practice social distancing — maintaining at least six feet of distance between them and others — to the best of their ability while doing the work, Gilmet said. He said he knows some members of the community, mainly seniors, aren’t able to do the work or hire someone to do it for them.

Because of that, the city will cut folks some slack, as long as the property doesn’t become a health or safety matter.

“We are beginning to get complaints about people’s yards, but we aren’t doing investigations, except if there is trash in the right-of-way or there is a threat to the neighborhood,” he said.

There are also ways to dispose of leaves, grass, weeds, and debris, Gilmet said. The city Department of Public Works facility is open for drop-off, or residents can store the filled bags in a safe and out-of-sight place until the city conducts one of its citywide brush pick-up events.

“We are still going to have them, but I can’t tell you when,” Gilmet said. “That is up in the air right now because of what is going on around us.”

As the spring progresses, Gilmet anticipates the city will get a high volume of complaints about unsightly yards and potential violations of yard ordinances. Normally, people will get a warning to clean up their mess, but that may not be the case when business returns to normal.

“I suspect we will have a flood of properties that will require inspections, and we just might begin to write citations right away,” Gilmet said. “That is why many of these things should be taken care of now, while people have the time to do it.”

Steve Schulwitz can be reached at 989-358-5689 at sschulwitz@thealpenanews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ss_alpenanews.com.