Our post from Friday, Mankato Free Press: Borchardts' North Mankato lawn war case heard in Minnesota appeals court, attracted two emails. One reader sent us the recording of the hearing in the Court of Appeals.
We also drew a response from North Mankato preservationist and conservationist Tom Hagen.
He emailed us:
Two weeks out from a hip replacement Ed Borchardt gets a letter from the city claiming there is buckthorn in his yard and that he has 5 days to remove it or the city will do it for him and bill him for the work. I went to his yard to look and found some suckers that had sprouted from a few stumps that Ed had cut down the previous year. There was no buckthorn infestation and the pieces I cut, seen pictured here, laying in the gutter, would maybe fill a paper shopping bag.
The email included the letter, dated July 15, 2021; we're not posting the PDF of the letter, as it includes the Borchardts' exact address. Here's that photo, which appears to have been taken on July 20, 2021:
Hagen continued:
Later in the day, walking in the city’s Spring Lake Park [link added], I took the other two pictures. Hundreds of full- grown buckthorn, many with the berries that birds will deposit everywhere and will result in further infestations. Maybe the city needs to send themselves a letter demanding removal in 5 days…and I’d like to see the staff that sent Ed Borchardt the removal order for his house to pay the cost of the city's removal! This is harassment!
Here are those photos. The first:
The second:
That is indeed buckthorn; we're taking Hagen at his word as to the location.
The Minneapolis Star Tribune's John Reinan reported in December 2020 in Retired professor fights to keep his North Mankato yard natural:
"Ed Borchardt, who taught physics and botany for 33 years at Minnesota State University, Mankato, has lived in his modest ranch home for nearly four decades. And from the start, he planned his yard as a natural haven.
The yard bursts with milkweed, goldenrod, peonies and hostas. With crabapple, pear, plum and elderberry trees; with high bush cranberries." . . .
Borchardt said he's been working with the city to trim back his plants and trees, and officials at last week's City Council meeting praised his efforts. But it's not enough, they said. Photos taken in early autumn show plenty of vegetation. But is it too much? That answer is in the eye of the beholder.
Several of Borchardt's friends and neighbors testified at the council meeting, saying there should be room for a yard that's not a simple stretch of lawn.
"Ed does not want a yard with three shrubs, plastic mulch and an expansive lawn," said Tom Hagen. "He has not been uncooperative. He just doesn't like your idea of what his yard should look like."
Barb Church echoed those thoughts.
Who decides if a yard is "unsightly?" she asked. "What birds are part of this infestation? Are you going to outlaw bird feeders?"
Two of Borchardt's neighbors testified against him. Jordan Johnson called the Borchardts "wonderful people," but added, "The yard does get to be a little bit of a mess."
Diane Anderson said Borchardt's yard "has been an eyesore for 30-plus years."
"We work hard to maintain our house and yard," she said. "It's not fair that our property value is compromised."
The 80-year-old Borchardt, who is awaiting back surgery, said he's spent countless hours over the past year trimming and tidying, but he believes the natural benefits of his vegetation outweigh any further aesthetic considerations. Ann Borchardt has chronic health problems and isn't able to help with yardwork.
In the end, the city gave Borchardt until June 1 to get his yard into what officials consider an acceptable condition. . . .
It does appear as if the City of North Mankato is taking its lawn police duties mighty seriously.
Except perhaps in its own backyard.
Photos: TOP: "Ed Borchardt, 80, a natural-yard advocate and former botany professor, has been ordered by the city of North Mankato to clean up “rank growth” on his property." Photo by John Reinan, Star Tribune. LOWER THREE: Photo of Borchardt's former buckthorn suckers, which contrasts with North Mankato's own fully-grown buckthorn in Spring Lake Park. Photos courtesy of Tom Hagen.
Related posts:
- Mankato Free Press: Borchardts' North Mankato lawn war case heard in Minnesota appeals court
- North Mankato lawn wars: City Council passes natural yards ordinance limiting pollinator habitat
- North Mankato natural lawn fight update: Borchardt sues city for public nuisance order
- Buzz kill: North Mankato Planning Commission not so much into lawns to legumes
- North Mankato declares “Monarch Wayfair” lawn a public nuisance from “infestation of the premises by plants, animals, and birds”
- Strib picks up North Mankato lawn police story
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