Resident tells Helotes council staff conducted unlicensed code enforcement, asks council to direct permit approval

Anthony Gonzales, a Helotes resident, told the Helotes City Council on June 12 that city staff have conducted code-enforcement actions at his property without proper licensing and that the city failed to respond to a Texas Public Information Act request he filed May 27.

Gonzales said the person performing enforcement at his property is “actually a dog catcher with no legal authority to conduct code enforcement activities” and that “only licensed personnel can legally perform these functions.” He told the council the city refused to approve his building permit despite an inspection by a licensed professional engineer that, Gonzales said, found the retaining wall “adequate with no remediation required.”

The complaint, made during the Citizens to Be Heard portion of the meeting, asked the council to take several administrative actions. Gonzales asked the council to direct staff to approve his building permit; ensure code enforcement is performed only by licensed personnel; respond to his outstanding public-information request; and investigate the building department’s handling of the matter. He said he has filed formal complaints with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation and the Texas Board of Professional Engineers.

“Your staff is demanding that my engineer certify that I built a retaining wall according to plans, except the engineering plans were created after the wall was completed. No ethical engineer can certify construction they didn't observe,” Gonzales said. He added that when he met with the mayor, the city administrator and the building coordinator, city staff “couldn't cite a single code section” authorizing the additional requirements they were applying.

Gonzales told the council he filed his public-information request on May 27 and said the city “has a legal obligation to respond within 10 days.” He described the department actions as “retaliation” after he raised procedural concerns with the building coordinator and asked the council to investigate and implement policies to prevent future violations.

The council did not announce any immediate formal action on Gonzales’s requests during the meeting; his remarks were part of public comment and the agenda moved on to the consent items that followed.