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Herald Reporter
Homeowners and business operators are now required to keep the frontage of their properties free of litter, well decorated and in good appearance, failing which they risk penalties.

According to the newly gazetted Harare (Road Verges Maintenance) By-Law, 2016 residents are prohibited from cutting down trees outside their home boundaries without council permission.

Road verge refers to the land adjacent or opposite a property between the property boundary and carriageway and includes storm drains.

By maintenance, the by-law means keeping and maintaining the outside of the premises in a good state of decoration and repair and in a clean and sanitary condition.

The by-law stipulates that every occupier shall maintain the road verges adjacent or opposite the property that he or she occupies and that no occupier shall deposit or abandon or cause, or permit to be deposited or abandoned, any litter in the road verges.

The responsibility to maintain shrubs on road verges rests with the property owner.

The by-law prohibits residents from cutting down trees outside their home boundaries without council permission.

“Any person who contravenes the provisions of Section 4 shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine,” reads the by-law.

Offenders can also be jailed for up to three months.

After release from prison, if a person continues to defy the by-law they will again be liable to fresh prosecution.