Owner forced to rip out $800 lawn by council

An Australian homeowner who spent money and effort to landscape the boring grass nature strip outside their home has been ordered by their local council to rip it up.

The Western Australia resident said they spent $800 to transform the grass strip into something more appealing and environmentally friendly.

But the local council reacted quickly to the change, ordering the resident to return the nature strip to its previous state.

The resident said they wanted to save the new garden but the whole issue had left them questioning whether they even had a right to.

Debate has erupted around whether it is ok to beautify your nature strip. Picture: Supplied

“I spent about $800 turning the ugly grass verge outside my house into a native garden because it looked much nicer and needed less water,” they told Yahoo News.

“A few months later, my local council sent me a letter telling me I have to remove it because I didn’t get approval first.

“I mow it and maintain it, so I thought I was allowed to landscape it. Can the council really make me rip it all out?”

Maurice Blackburn legal expert Jillian Barrett said rules around nature strips vary from state to state and council to council but one thing was always certain: Residents don’t own the land at the front of the their home.

A local council has ordered an Aussie homeowner to reverse changes they made at the front of their home. Picture: Supplied

“The verge outside your house is not actually your land. This is the part many homeowners do not realise,” Ms Barrett told Yahoo News.

“Although you may mow, water and look after the verge, it is generally part of the public road reserve rather than your property.”

WA legislation states land under the management of the local government is considered public property and regulations stipulate the public is prohibited from interfering with the soil without permission.

While mowing and watering a nature strip is simply maintenance, planting an entire garden could be considered a violation of those rules, Ms Barrett said.

“Mowing existing grass is routine upkeep, but digging up turf, altering the soil or installing garden beds may amount to altering local government land, which can require lawful authority or council permission,” she said.

Ms Barrett urged the WA resident to contact their council to try and reach a resolution before ripping anything out.