Good Neighbor Ordinances

Just for Students

Check out the University of Kansas Good Neighbor Program.

PETS

    • Animals should not disturb the peace. Long-term barking, howling or other sounds are distracting and can annoy your neighbors.

Please be a good neighbor

  • Animals should be under owner’s supervision and on a leash when off their owner’s property to prevent creating a hazard or disturbance to people, animals and property.
  • Lawrence has two off-leash dog parks: Mutt Run is located at 1330 East 902, below the Clinton Lake dam. The facility includes drinking fountains, water for dogs, and rest rooms. Paths are mowed through fields and along wooded areas. The other dog park is located at Riverfront Park, at the intersection of North Second St. and Highways 24 and 40.
  • You are responsible for removing your pet’s excrement.
  • Control your pets: it is illegal for them to damage any private property.
  • All pet dogs, cats and ferrets 4 months or older must be vaccinated against rabies.
  • Some animals are too exotic and dangerous to be owned in the City limits.
  • Generally, you may own domesticated dogs, cats, ferrets, rabbits, rodents, birds, nonvenomous snakes and lizards, amphibians and fish.

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BIKES

Parking

  • Never park your bike where it can get in another person’s way. If you park in an alley, make sure it doesn’t block stairs or doors.
  • It is illegal to lock your bike to a tree, fire hydrant, street sign, stop sign, or streetlight. A parking meter is acceptable unless it is in front of a handicapped parking spot.
  • Some parking meters downtown have bike-locking adaptors attached. Free-standing U-shaped bike racks are also downtown.

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PARKING

Yards

  • Parking on an unimproved surface in your front or side yard is unlawful. Parking is only permitted on an improved surface, such concrete or asphalt. Dirt, grass and gravel are not improved surfaces, so they can‰Ûªt be used for parking. This ordinance provides attractive neighborhood landscaping, and keeps mud off of the street.

Streets

  • Vehicles parked on the street must be moved some visible distance every 48 hours. The street is primarily for transportation, not for long-term parking. This ordinance is complaint-driven, so keep your neighbors in mind as you park.
  • Recreational vehicles parked on the street such as campers, trailers and boats must be at least 100 feet from any intersection and drivers need to be able to see around them. They shouldn’t impede traffic or visibility.
  • You may not park on any sidewalk. It looks disorderly and gets in the way of pedestrians.

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TRASH

  • Use city-provided containers to place trash at the curb.
  • Carts that exceed the weight limits indicated on the lid cannot be picked up. Loading carts with sod, rocks, or bricks can overload the cart and cause damage.
  • If you live in the Oread Neighborhood or an apartment complex, please use the large metal trash dumpsters that are provided in the alley, parking lots or enclosures. Contact your property manger, landlord or the Solid Waste Division at (785) 832-3032 for questions regarding use of these dumpsters.

Time

  • Your trash may be set out up to 24 hours before 6 a.m. of your collection day. Remove trash containers from the curb promptly after they’ve been emptied.
  • If your trash is refused; read the tag that the crews leave and fix the problem before the next collection day. Remember to remove the containers or items until the next collection day.

Porches / Yards

  • You may not store loose items of trash in your yard or on your front porch ‰ÛÒ this includes abandoned cars and miscellaneous items.
  • It is illegal to keep your refrigerator, bike or TV on your front porch or lawn. While these things may not be trash, they still affect your neighborhood‰Ûªs appearance. Furniture may not be kept on your lawn. Small animals will quickly take up residence inside any furniture you leave outside.

“Dumpster Diving”

  • It is unlawful and dangerous to remove any item from the trash that someone has set out for pickup.

Recycle

  • Please recycle! For complete recycling and solid waste information, visit www.lawrenceks.org/swm online.

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NOISE

  • Don’t play music so loud that it could disturb others outside your house. Excessive noise can disturb the peace.
  • It is illegal to play music from a vehicle that can be heard from 50 feet away, including bass reverberation.
  • Brawling and offensive language are a disturbance of the peace and aren’t allowed in public.
  • Fireworks are not permitted within the City limits.

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ROOMMATES

  • City Code allows no more than three unrelated persons to reside in one housing unit in single-family zoning districts and in Detached Dwelling structures in non-single-family districts. No more than four unrelated persons are allowed in multi-family zoning districts.
  • The Code states: ‰ÛωÛ_the general public health, safety and welfare of the community is fostered and sustained with reasonable regulations related to the preservation of single-family uses in areas‰Û_planned for single families.‰Û – City Ordinance No. 7323

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