City of Colleyville - Most Common Complaints

Most Common Complaints

Most common complaints are high grass and weed violations, junked vehicles, home-based businesses, and unpleasant premises and debris.

High Grass and Weed Violations

It is a violation of city ordinance to allow grass or weeds to exceed twelve (12) inches in height. A property owner who fails to comply with a request from the Code Enforcement Department is subject to having their property mowed by a City-hired contractor and the costs of the mowing charged against the property. The owner of the property would be billed for the City's expenses plus a $100 administration fee. If the bill is not paid, interest-bearing liens are placed on the property. Only one notification per year is made and if the same city code violation is repeated within 365 days of the initial notification, the Code Enforcement Officer may enter the property again without further notification to abate the violation and issue citations to the owner.

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Junked Vehicles

Parking a junked motor vehicle in public view is a violation of City ordinance. The definition of a junked vehicle is as follows: "Junked Vehicle" shall mean a vehicle that is self-propelled and inoperable and that does not have lawfully affixed to it either an unexpired license plate or a valid motor vehicle inspection certificate, or is wrecked, dismantled, partially dismantled, or discarded, or has remained inoperable for more than thirty (30) consecutive days.

Failure to comply with a notice of violation results in citations being issued. Additionally, the City may initiate a public hearing process allowing a municipal court judge to make a determination. In a ruling favoring the City, the judge may sign an order requiring the Code Enforcement Division to tow and destroy the junked vehicle.

A junked vehicle or vehicle part that is located in a place where it is visible from a public place or public right-of-way is detrimental to the safety and welfare of the general public, tends to reduce the value of private property, incites vandalism, creates fire hazards, constitutes an attractive nuisance creating a hazard to the health of safety of minors, and is detrimental to the economic welfare of the city by producing urban blight adverse to the maintenance and continued development of the city and is hereby declared to be a public nuisance.

For a proper break down to see if the vehicle or part of a vehicle meets the Junked Vehicles legal definition the city encourages its citizens to call the Code Enforcement officer to have him investigate and take appropriate action.

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Home Based Businesses

The Colleyville Land Development Code contains zoning regulations that place restrictions on most home based business activities within a residential occupancy. However, some home based businesses are allowed, provided they are not a nuisance within a residential neighborhood. An acceptable home based business is customarily conducted entirely within the dwelling and is carried on solely by residents of the dwelling, is clearly incidental and secondary to the use of the dwelling for dwelling purposes, does not change the character or external appearance of the dwelling, and shows no external evidence of such use other than one sign, not exceeding one (1) square foot in area, non-illuminated, and mounted flat against the wall of the principal building.

A home based business must not become injurious to the neighborhood and must comply with a number of restrictions. No traffic shall be generated by such home based business in greater volumes than would normally be expected in a residential neighborhood, and any need for parking generated by the conduct of such home based business shall be met off the street on a driveway or other all weather hard surface. No equipment or process shall be used in such home occupation which creates noise, vibration, glare, fumes, odors, or electrical interference detectable to the normal senses of any adjacent or nearby site occupant.

Home based business uses and activities shall be limited to the following: seamstress; accounting; bookkeeping and tax services; notary public; insurance and real estate; cosmetics and household sundries; private educational, music and dance tutoring; arts, crafts and home hobby shops; garage, yard and patio sales of short temporary duration; mail order brokerage; and other similar activities --- but excluding medical and law offices, beauty shops, pet grooming services, kennels and other such activities.

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Unpleasant Premises and Debris

Property owners or tenants who fail to maintain a clean premises can be fined up to $2,000 per municipal court citation. The Code Enforcement Officer is authorized to issue a citation for each day the violation exists. Generally, these regulations prohibit the accumulation of garbage or junk and debris on public or private property. The Colleyville Code of Ordinances defines a public nuisance as follows:

"any condition or occurrence which is dangerous to human life or health, or which renders the ground, the water, the air or food a hazard or injury to human life or health, or that is offensive to the senses, or that is or threatens to become detrimental to the public health is and shall constitute a nuisance."

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Saturday, September 6, 2008