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City reports rise in code-enforcement cases and plans limited demolitions under tight budget
Summary
Development services staff said the city opened 1,434 code-enforcement cases in 2024 (up from 898 in 2023), has a $40,000 annual demolition budget and plans to demolish 10 structures next week at roughly $4,000 each on average; staff described limits when owners are corporations or cannot be located.
Development services staff updated the City Council on stepped-up code enforcement that began in August 2024, described demolition activity planned under a constrained budget and explained limitations in municipal enforcement when property ownership is corporate or unknown.
The matter affects public appearance, property safety, blight and downtown and corridor investments. Staff said early, targeted enforcement focused on major corridors and obvious safety and maintenance issues.
Kevin (development services staff) told council that code enforcement cases increased to 1,434 in calendar year 2024 from 898 in 2023. "In 2024, we issued 27 citations that went to municipal court," he said. He reported the city maintains an annual demolition budget of roughly $40,000 and plans to begin demolition of 10 structures next week; staff estimated demolition costs have risen from a little over $3,000 per structure to about $4,000 per structure because of inflation.
Kevin described enforcement challenges when an owner is a corporation or an LLC: municipal-court bench warrants are issued for people, not corporations, which complicates noncompliance enforcement. He cited specific eyesores the city continues to monitor, including the old Valero property and a former Church's Chicken building, and said staff are trying to identify a named person to serve citations where the legal entity is not a natural person. Councilman Fossum asked about the Stonehenge property on Sixteenth Street; staff said they do have a named person associated with that property but that the owner is reportedly based in New York and enforcement remains a challenge.
Council members requested follow-ups about individual complaint cases and asked staff to return with options for making prominent entry corridors more attractive; Kevin said staff is gathering information from other cities to present potential code changes.
No new enforcement ordinance or municipal-code amendment was adopted during the meeting; the presentation was informational and staff described planned demolition activity within the current budget.
