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Taft reviews municipal code changes as code enforcement reports dozens of cases closed since 2023
Summary
Outside counsel and city staff told the City Council the updated municipal code has provided new enforcement tools; since June 2023 staff opened 40 formal cases, closed 30 with compliance and has five ongoing cases, and has used receivership and emergency abatements on several problem properties.
Valerie Escalante, outside counsel with Civica Law Group, told the Taft City Council on June 17 that updates to the Taft Municipal Code have given staff clearer authority and new tools to address nuisance and unsafe properties across the city.
Escalante said the code updates—undertaken after a council investment in June 2023—were intended to reflect recent federal and state court decisions about camping and habitation in vehicles and to streamline outdated provisions. “Since June of 2023, there were 40 formal code enforcement cases open,” Escalante said. “Of those 40, 30 of the cases were closed with compliance.” She added there are “hundreds of cases where no formal code case needed to even be opened” because staff resolved issues through proactive outreach.
The report, presented as a study session item, described the range of enforcement tools staff…
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