Ann Arbor city officials to begin enforcing ban on porch couches today
The amnesty period is over. Starting today, if you're caught with a couch on your porch in Ann Arbor, prepare to be notified that you need to get rid of it — or face a $1,000 fine.
The Ann Arbor City Council enacted the ban on upholstered furniture on porches on Oct. 2, but gave residents more than a month to comply with the new ordinance. City officials say more than 500 pieces of upholstered furniture were tossed last month during a free collection for residents and property managers.
If residents didn't get rid of the furniture in that free event, they can pay to dispose of it at the Drop-Off Station at 2950 E. Ellsworth Road or visit the city's website for other suggestions. The city said residents can expect to be charged if they leave those items on the curb.
The city's new ordinance, which had been debated for years but never approved, was reintroduced earlier this year after a house fire caused the death of a 22-year-old Eastern Michigan University student. Fire officials said the April blaze started on the porch and was exacerbated by a porch couch.
Starting today, if city officials spot upholstered furniture on porches, they'll post a notice on the property and mail a copy of the notice to the property owner specifying a date by which the furniture must be removed.
Porch couches are now a thing of the past in Ann Arbor.
Ryan J. Stanton | AnnArbor.com
If the residents still don't get rid of the furniture, the city can remove it and charge them the cost. In addition, the residents could be issued a civil infraction ticket that carries a fine of up to $1,000.
The ordinance specifically states, "No responsible person shall place, or permit to remain, furniture which is not intended or designed for outdoor use on exterior balconies, porches, decks, landings, or other areas exposed to the weather."
Ann Arbor joins several other campus communities that don't allow upholstered furniture outdoors, including East Lansing, Kalamazoo, Mount Pleasant, Ypsilanti, and Marquette, as well as Columbus, Ohio, and Madison, Wisconsin.
Comments
CincoDeMayo
Sun, Nov 21, 2010 : 1:56 a.m.
Thanks for the common sense justcary - I like this sentiment: "Much bellyaching here, young people! Just go to Cornwell and get an outdoor sofa, for crissakes. It won't smell like pee or invite pestilence. When you buy a house in a neighborhood, make it beautiful, set your kids up in the nearby school, actually use the sidewalks for walking, long for your neighborhood to be warm and inviting to guests..." Since so many of us can't just go to Cornwell and buy new furniture I would add that you can pick up some plastic lawn chairs cheaply - or get them for free as I do when so many Ann Arborites put them out as trash in the fall. Much easier to clean up Malorie. Also, Howell was one of the closest big towns to Cohoctah, and the KKK filled their membership with people from the surrounding area. It is natural that Howell carries the stigma of being racist. And, I can tell you that racism is alive and well in Howell today. (Of course, unfortunately, racism's evil reach extends into every community.)
M.
Tue, Nov 9, 2010 : 2:12 p.m.
Brad, it's not a good thing to perpetuate stereotypes. Cohoctah is the actual town where the KKK leader lived, and the reputation spread next door to Howell. Things have changed by leaps and bounds there since this decades-old stereotype came about. You can bet if you walk around Howell in KKK garb you WILL get what is coming to you.
M.
Tue, Nov 9, 2010 : 2:01 p.m.
Jennifer Scroggins - If they're good enough to be used by UM students, they're good enough for me. I am low income and I have to settle for used furniture that is often stained or ripped, which is fine by me because I would have to go without furniture if I wasn't able to use what others throw out. I find it hard to believe that out of 500 pieces of furniture, all of them were so nasty they could not be re-used. I fail to see where the insult would lie in donating them to charity; it is our choice to get one if we are desperate enough. Greek God - Yes, I do mean one that I am aware of, but I'm under the assumption that any others in Ann Arbor would have been put in the spotlight to make this ban easier to swallow, and hopefully would have made a2.com news. From what I've read, it is only the one death that lead to the ban. My point was I think it needs to be a consistent problem to warrant legal action that takes away a homeowner's or renter's right. If we were to ban everything that caused a rare death then we would not have cars, power lawnmowers and tools, and a number of other things that we take for granted.
InsideTheHall
Tue, Nov 9, 2010 : 6:39 a.m.
This is why young people will convert to the conservative movement. Government on the front porch! Just a matter of time until they come crashing thru the front door!
lugemachine
Tue, Nov 9, 2010 : 6:10 a.m.
The ordinance essentially says you can't have furniture designed for indoors outdoors on your porch (exposed area, etc.). My question is: How will code-enforcment personnel absolutely PROVE that the furniture was designed and intended for indoor use? Do manufacturers label furniture that way? This isn't a "Well, it clearly appears to belong indoors" situation. This has to stand up in court. Either the item explicitly, per manufacturer's specifications, belongs indoors or it doesn't. Absent a label, how do you make that determination?
Brad
Tue, Nov 9, 2010 : 5:43 a.m.
"I'll bet if I wanted to put a couch on my porch in Howell I'd have no one telling me I wasn't 'allowed'." And I bet if you wanted to dress up in a pointy hat in Howell, no one would say anything about that, either. There's a reason we live in Ann Arbor and not Howell.
racerx
Tue, Nov 9, 2010 : 3:55 a.m.
Someone (students) should begin a movement to allow guns on campus. Talk about responsible!!
C. S. Gass
Tue, Nov 9, 2010 : 2:40 a.m.
I am so glad I don't live in the city for this reason. Fascists telling me what to do down to the furniture on my porch? I'll pass. I'll bet if I wanted to put a couch on my porch in Howell I'd have no one telling me I wasn't 'allowed'. What ever happened to freedom? Micro-managing liberals, who obviously know better how to live your life than you do, happened. They ran for office. Stupid,bleating, sheeplike, people voted for them and now they do what all true liberals do: destroy freedom wherever they find it. Good luck Ann Arbor, you'll need it. These idiots never stop at one seemingly trivial inane thing. Next it will be how you park your bikes in your own yard...
nickcarraweigh
Tue, Nov 9, 2010 : 12:36 a.m.
Now that my council-approved chickens have nowhere to sit, will they respond by laying rotten eggs?
nee
Mon, Nov 8, 2010 : 11:39 p.m.
Oh thank God they did away with that. That mess is just tacky anyhow.
justcary
Mon, Nov 8, 2010 : 10:47 p.m.
Much bellyaching here, young people! Just go to Cornwell and get an outdoor sofa, for crissakes. It won't smell like pee or invite pestilence. When you buy a house in a neighborhood, make it beautiful, set your kids up in the nearby school, actually use the sidewalks for walking, long for your neighborhood to be warm and inviting to guests, and pay the exorbitant taxes that an Ann Arbor homeowner pays to live in this fine city, you will change your tune about reasonable community standards. This wasn't about death by fire, that was just a catalyst. Indoor furniture on the porch screams 'slum'. Apartment towers forbid hanging out laundry for the same reason.
Mick52
Mon, Nov 8, 2010 : 10:43 p.m.
No couch on my porch, but if there was as a protest I would plop it right down at city hall if I could find a front door on that place.
Urban Sombrero
Mon, Nov 8, 2010 : 8:09 p.m.
Oh come on now, people! The city obviously has to raise money to pay for that German fountain monstrosity somehow.
HerrSnibbens
Mon, Nov 8, 2010 : 5:01 p.m.
What about all that indoor furniture? Doesn't it "exacerbate" fires too? Or building houses out of wood?
Are you serious?
Mon, Nov 8, 2010 : 4:23 p.m.
I didn't notice the "other areas exposed to the weather" earlier. Based on that language I'd agree with those who were saying this ordinance was about appearance and not safety were correct all along. "Other areas" would presumably include the entire yard on many houses. I wonder what the city would do if there were 20-30 ratty couches used for bleachers at the next mud bowl or frat/sorority party? Pretty difficult to see how a burning couch 30 feet away from the house could exacerbate a house fire.
treetowncartel
Mon, Nov 8, 2010 : 4:19 p.m.
So, sounds like you could have a couch in your garage, but not in your carport. What if you have one in your atrium, far enough away from an exterior wall?
A2Raven
Mon, Nov 8, 2010 : 4:05 p.m.
@Malorie Have you ever sat on one of those porch couches? They get beyond nasty sitting outside all winter year after year... they rot and they smell. Giving them to low income families would be a total insult to anyone struggling to maintain a clean and healthy home. They belong in the city dump. Period.
ChrisW
Mon, Nov 8, 2010 : 3:41 p.m.
The nanny state lives. More people have died from bicycle and ladder accidents, so I sure hope the city council looks into banning them too.
Killroy
Mon, Nov 8, 2010 : 2:57 p.m.
@ Malorie, you mean a single death that you might be aware of, right?
M.
Mon, Nov 8, 2010 : 1:50 p.m.
This is absurd. Banning everything that causes a single death would result in some really insane laws, like this one. I'm glad to see the violators receive a warning before the fine, but seriously? What if you OWN your home downtown and you are not a student renter? Do they have the right to tell you not to have a sofa on your porch? Also...where are the 500 sofas/chairs disposed of? I sure could use one and I'm sure a lot of other low income families could too. Way to be resourceful A2.
Will Hathaway
Mon, Nov 8, 2010 : 12:44 p.m.
Sofa so good.
Killroy
Mon, Nov 8, 2010 : 12:19 p.m.
Now, now EyeHeartA2, without the students this town would be just another Saline...
djm12652
Mon, Nov 8, 2010 : 11:47 a.m.
The "smart" people, especially near State and Packard, know how to find a loophole [must be pre-law]...by placing their "sofa" in the front yard. Didn't seem to make it look like rural Arkansas that much, at all....
ERIC MEYERS
Mon, Nov 8, 2010 : 11:17 a.m.
Oh for god sake this is what the city council is wasting time on.What a waste of time.What has happened to personal freedoms and choice.
Greggy_D
Mon, Nov 8, 2010 : 11:11 a.m.
I can just sense that warm and fuzzy "safe" feeling oozing out of Ann Arbor today.