Boulevard means the space between the sidewalk, or the normal location of the sidewalk, and the curb line or curb.

City is the City of Minto, North Dakota, and shall mean all parks, airports, landfills and lagoons therein.

Person means any person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, company or organization of any kind.

Property lines are the outer boundaries of any lot or parcel of land.

Public trees are all shade and ornamental trees now or hereafter growing on any public right-of-way or in any public place or park.

Streets are the entire width of every public way or right-of-way when any part thereof is open to the use of the public, as a matter of right, for purposes of vehicular and pedestrian traffic.

Width of boulevard means the distance between the sidewalk, or the normal location of sidewalk, and the curb line or curb.

The City Forester position is hereby created to be filled by appointment by the City Council in consultation with the Tree Committee. The authority and jurisdiction of the City Forester shall be as follows:

The Tree Committee shall consist of each member of the public utilities committee together with two members appointed at large by the Mayor.

Any living or standing elm tree or part thereof infected to any degree with the Dutch elm disease fungus, Ceratocystis ulmi, and which harbor any of the elm bark beetles, Scolytus mulistriatus or Hylurgopinus refipes or other tree species infected by a disease determined a nuisance by the Tree Committee;

Any dead or diseased elm tree or part thereof, including logs, branches, stumps, firewood or other elm material from which the bark has not been removed or shipped and buried in a landfill between April 1 and October 15 of each year;

Any tree, shrub or hedge, or part thereof, growing upon public property or upon private property but overhanging or interfering with the use of any public walk, street or highway, park or public place within the City, which in the opinion of the majority of the Tree Committee endangers the life, health, safety or property of the public shall be declared a public nuisance.

It is unlawful for any person to willfully permit any public nuisance, as defined in Section Four, to remain on any premises owned or controlled by him within the City. Such nuisance may be abated in the manner prescribed by this chapter.

Abatement within the City generally.

Abatement on private property.

The Forester, under the direction of the Tree Committee, shall inspect all premises and places within the City as required, to determine whether any condition described in Section Four exists therein.

The inspection shall determine all hazards as specified in Section Four. The owner shall be notified in writing of the existence of the nuisance and given a reasonable time for its removal.

The Tree Committee or City Forester may enter upon private premises at any reasonable time for the purpose of carrying out any of the duties assigned under this ordinance.

It shall be up to the Tree Committee or City Forester to determine if a laboratory diagnosis of a suspected Dutch elm diseased tree or other diseased tree is necessary. A field evaluation will usually be adequate unless there is some question about the tree being diseased or if the landowner requests that a sample be sent into the lab.

The Tree Committee or City Forester upon finding a suspected Dutch elm diseased tree, immediately shall take and send appropriate specimens or samples to a qualified plant disease diagnostician. No action to remove suspect trees or wood shall be taken until positive diagnoses of the disease has been made.

Within five (5) days of receipt of the diagnosis, the owner of the property from which the specimen was obtained shall be notified by the City Forester of the result by mail.

Whenever the Tree Committee or the City Forester determines that any elm tree or part thereof is infected with Dutch elm disease fungus and is in a weakened condition, he may cause all elm trees within a 1000 foot radius thereof to be treated with an effective elm bark beetle destroying concentrate as recommended by the state entomologist.

Whenever the Tree Committee or City Forester determines that other diseases or insects pose a problem, it may cause all trees to be treated with control materials as recommended by the state entomologist.

In order to facilitate the work and minimize the inconvenience to the public of any treating operations conducted under this chapter, the Tree committee or City Forester shall cause to be given advance public notice of such operations by newspaper, radio, public service announcements or other effective means and shall also cause the posting of appropriate warning notices in the areas and along the streets where trees are to be treated at least twenty-four (24) hours in advance.

When appropriate warning notices have been given and posted in accordance with subsection (C) of this section, the City shall not allow any claim for damages to any vehicle or other property damaged by such treating operations.

When trees on private property are to be terated, the City Forester shall notify the owner of such property and proceed in accordance with the requirements of this ordinance.

The costs for abatement of the public nuisances as defined in Section Four shall be borne by the City.

The cost of the diagnostic test stated in Section Six shall be borne by the property owner unless tests are deemed necessary by the City Forester.

The office of the City Forester shall issue permits to plant trees on public parkways and berms, boulevards, and alleys in accordance with Section Three.

The planting on private premises within the City of those selections and species of the genus Populus producing the pistillate flowers and bearing the "cotton" filled seed capsules shall be considered a public nuisance and is hereby declared unlawful.