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Kern supervisors declare 10509 Meacham Road a public nuisance, approve penalties
Summary
After staff described repeated code violations at 10509 Meacham Road (APN 45004045) including commercial vehicles and unpermitted activity, the board adopted staff’s recommendation to declare the property a public nuisance and assess administrative penalties; the property owner disputed the currency of some photos.
Kern County supervisors on Jan. 27 adopted a resolution declaring the property at 10509 Meacham Road (APN 45004045) a public nuisance and approved assessing administrative penalties after staff presented a history of complaints and citations.
Joshua Champlin of Kern County Public Works told the board the county had received complaints about the property beginning in August 2024 and had issued multiple notices to abate and administrative citations through December 2025. Champlin said staff documented taco trucks, trailers, porta‑potties and multiple commercial vehicles being stored on a parcel that is zoned for residential use and recommended the board declare the property a public nuisance and impose penalties.
"This is an unusual item for your board to be hearing. It's not a common item that we bring here, and it's not something we take lightly," Champlin said.
Property owner Carlos Sierra told the board many of the photographs shown by staff were old and said he removed items that had been behind his gate after code-enforcement contact. "A lot of those photos are old photos," Sierra said, and he asked the board and staff to clarify what he is allowed to keep on the property and what constitutes a permissible home-occupation use.
Craig Murphy, director of Planning and Natural Resources, told the board the parcel is estate residential and that running a business on residential property generally requires a home-occupation permit or a zone change; storage of a single truck may be permitted depending on size and permit requirements.
After hearing staff and the owner, the board voted unanimously to adopt staff's recommendation to declare the property a public nuisance and to assess administrative penalties. County staff directed interested parties to Planning and Natural Resources or Public Works Code Compliance for further clarification about allowable uses and permit requirements.
Next steps: the owner and staff may follow up with code‑compliance and planning staff about specific allowable activities and any required permits.
