A Missouri man is fighting to keep his sunflower garden after the city government repeatedly instructed him to take it down.
Christopher Bank began planting the sunflowers in his front garden four years ago during a difficult period in his life, and has been fighting to keep them alive ever since.
The garden was started to honor his late cousin, who loved sunflowers. Now, Bank says his memorial project has turned into ‘an example of abuse of power at its finest.’
The city of St. Peters sent Bank a letter accusing him of violating an ordinance that required residents to limit plants to a 50 percent ratio with grass in 2022.
St. Peters’ officials also argued that he violated a separate ordinance regarding a fence on his front lawn.
Bank told local CBS affiliate, First Alert 4, that he didn’t believe he violated the ordinance, because his front yard had plenty of grass.
He fought back against the initial violation, but the law has since been amended. Last September, the law was edited to clarify that all landscaping in residential districts needs to have a minimum of 50 percent of turf grass, excluding pools or a paved surface.
Bank then received another letter that classified his sunflowers as a ‘crop.’ St. Peter’s limits its residents to planting only 10 percent of their front yards with crops, except for corn.
A Missouri man is fighting a legal battle to keep his massive sunflower garden in his front yard
Christopher Bank said he started planting flowers years ago and has received multiple letters from the city notifying him that he’s violating an ordinance
The ordinance labeled his sunflower farm a ‘crop,’ which Bank disputes, arguing that he doesn’t harvest, consume, or sell the seeds. Pictured: His garden before he planted the flowers
Bank disputes the definition of his sunflower garden as a ‘crop,’ arguing that he doesn’t harvest, consume, or sell the seeds.
‘The amount of people who enjoy it, the good it does for the environment… it’s a win, win, win all the way around,’ he argued.
‘I am a nature lover; this is my oasis. I take pride in the sunflower yard. I manicure it on my hands and knees so grass doesn’t get too high between the sunflowers,’ Bank wrote in a GoFundMe description to help pay for his legal fees.
‘In my little free time, I sit and admire the bees, hummingbirds, and other wildlife that my yard supports’.
Bank shared on Facebook that the legal expenses have been a headache, but that he doesn’t want to let the city win.
Lisa Bedian, the Director of Communications with the city, told Daily Mail that town officials can’t pick and choose what ordinances they want to enforce.
She added that St. Peters has received multiple complaints about the sunflower farm that they were obligated to respond to.
Bank said the garden is a memorial for his cousin, who loved sunflowers
Bank has fought back against the ordinances and even went to court to defend his sunflower garden
‘Our goal isn’t to fine someone. We work with people to try to get them to correct the situation. Our goal is to solve a problem for our residents,’ Bedian added in a statement.
‘When our residents file a concern, we have to check it out. If there’s a violation, we try to work with people to fix the issue. If they don’t, we have to follow the legal process’.
Bank entered a not guilty plea at the city’s municipal courthouse and was given a trial date of October 14.
He shared a link to the fundraiser on social media with the caption: ‘It seems like no matter the victories against the city, they just keep changing the law until I lose.
‘So hopefully this year will be the final year of this battle and if you can’t donate, I totally understand’.
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