South Florida

Couple Challenges Miami Shores Front-Yard Garden Ban

A South Florida couple is headed to court to challenge a village's ban on front-yard vegetable gardens.

A hearing is set Monday before a judge in Miami on a lawsuit filed by Hermine Ricketts and Tom Carroll against the village of Miami Shores. The couple wants a ruling that the Miami Shores zoning ordinance prohibiting such gardens is unconstitutional.

Institute for Justice attorneys representing the couple say they used the front-yard garden to grow vegetables and other plants for 17 years. But they dug up the garden after Miami Shores officials said it violated an ordinance adopted in 2013 and was punishable by fines of $50 per day.

The couple's lawyers say the ordinance violates their property rights. Last year a judge refused to dismiss the lawsuit.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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