{"id":281728,"date":"2025-10-06T13:02:16","date_gmt":"2025-10-06T13:02:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/281728\/"},"modified":"2025-10-06T13:02:16","modified_gmt":"2025-10-06T13:02:16","slug":"top-ten-code-violations-and-how-to-avoid-them-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/281728\/","title":{"rendered":"Top ten code violations – and how to avoid them"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Metro Creative Images<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve seen City of Dallas code compliance officers working in my neighborhood over the past few weeks, and I admit I\u2019m of two minds. I want our beautiful community to remain clean and vibrant, and I\u2019m glad to see officials monitoring our streets to catch repeat violators \u2014 as long as I\u2019m not the one receiving a citation.<\/p>\n

Dallas City Hall has issued a list of the top ten code violations<\/a>, enforced in residential areas, apartment communities and businesses, they say, \u201cfor the safety, health and welfare of citizens.\u201d If you recognize yourself on this list, do yourself a favor and make repairs before you find a ticket on your front door.<\/p>\n

If you do get a citation, I\u2019ll share some advice from, ahem, a fellow recipient. Don\u2019t get testy with the poor guy (or gal) who comes to your home \u2014 they are just doing their job. Chances are good they\u2019ve documented your violation with digital photography and are responding to a call from your neighbors.<\/p>\n

If you have the time, instead of simply paying the fine, consider visiting one of the city\u2019s code enforcement district offices<\/a>. (In Oak Cliff, that office is at 4230 W. Illinois.) I\u2019ve heard, ahem, that the people there are quite lovely and helpful. Cooperative offenders who throw themselves upon the mercy of those officials just might, ahem, find a person willing to allow time to make repairs without penalty.<\/p>\n

David Letterman-style, here is the city\u2019s Top Ten List of code violations:<\/p>\n

(10) Graffiti<\/strong>\u2014 Defined as any marking, including, but not limited to, any inscription, slogan, drawing, painting, symbol, logo name character, or figure that is made in any manner on tangible property. An owner of any tangible property in the city commits an offense if he\/she fails to remove all graffiti from the property that is visible from any public property or right-of-way or from any private property other than the property on which the graffiti exists. Statistics prove that removing graffiti quickly may prevent the graffiti from re-appearing. Owners will be issued a Notice of Violation and a timeframe to remove the graffiti. Failure to remove the graffiti may result in a citation.<\/p>\n

(9) Illegal outside storage<\/strong>\u2014 A person commits an offense if he\/she places outside on a lot, in excess of 24 continuous hours, an item that is not customarily used or stored outside or is not made of material that is resistant to damage or deterioration from exposure to the outside environment (unless permitted by zoning and a valid Certificate of Occupancy exists).<\/p>\n

(8) Illegal dumping<\/strong>\u2014 The improper disposal of waste at any location other than a permitted landfill or facility.<\/p>\n

(7) Junk vehicles<\/strong>\u2014 Motor vehicles that are inoperative and\/or partially dismantled and have expired license tags or safety stickers are considered junk motor vehicles. Owners of the vehicles and all lien holders will be notified of the violation by certified mail. Should the owner fail to remove the junk motor vehicle from the property or prove the vehicle operable, the vehicle will be towed and sold for salvage. Owners may store inoperable vehicles in a garage to avoid towing. Please note: Code Compliance only addresses vehicles on private property. If the vehicle is on the street, the Dallas Police Department has jurisdiction. Please report your concern to 311 and Dallas Police Department will respond.<\/p>\n

(6) Substandard structures<\/strong>\u2014 Property owners are required to keep structures in good repair. Peeling paint, leaking roof, electrical and plumbing problems, holes in the wall, floor and ceiling, and decayed wood are building violations.<\/p>\n

(5) Bulk trash out too early or includes prohibited items<\/strong>\u2014 The city\u2019s once-a-month large item (large limbs, shrubbery, bagged leaves sealed in bags up to 50-gallon capacity, furniture, appliances, mattresses and box springs, etc.) is operated by the sanitation department. The city does not collect debris from construction, demolition or clearing of land unless an additional fee has been paid. Additionally, no dirt, rock or concrete will be removed. No material may be placed out front earlier than 7 a.m. on Thursday prior to collection week and must be in place by 7 a.m. on the Monday of the pickup week. Violators of the bulky trash ordinance are immediately ticketed.<\/p>\n

(4) Signs in public right-of-way<\/strong>\u2014 It is a code violation to post any signs (notices, posters or other paper devices) on a utility pole, lamp post, tree or and public structure. This includes garage sale signs.<\/p>\n

(3) Obstruction of alley, sidewalk or street<\/strong>\u2014 The occupant or owner is responsible for keeping the street, alley, sidewalk and public grounds clear of obstructions. This includes the trimming of trees, shrubbery and vines which may obstruct any vehicle traveling through an alley, or which may obstruct a sidewalk or street or other public grounds. Additionally, sidewalks must have a height clearance of 8 feet \u2013 streets and alleys must have 15 feet of overhead clearance. Take advantage of the city\u2019s Bulky Trash Program by trimming trees and shrubbery to coincide with your legal Bulky Trash Week.<\/p>\n

(2) Litter<\/strong>\u00a0\u2014 Homeowners or tenants are responsible for keeping lawns mowed, clipped mulched or cleared and the property free of litter \u2014 paper, cardboard, wood, glass, bedding, auto parts, appliances, limbs, etc. The property must be maintained between the curb in front of the house (or if no curb then from the edge of the pavement) to the middle of the alley (or the back property line if there is no alley).<\/p>\n

And the top code violation in Dallas is\u2026(1) High weeds or grass<\/strong>\u2014\u00a0Weeds or grass more than 12 inches high is a violation of code. Failure to keep them under control\u00a0may result in a court citation or\u00a0a bill for the city\u2019s mowing services.<\/p>\n

To report a negligent neighbor, call 3-1-1. Typically, the neighbor will first receive a warning.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Metro Creative Images I\u2019ve seen City of Dallas code compliance officers working in my neighborhood over the past…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":281729,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5135],"tags":[5229,1596,358,3187,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":{"0":"post-281728","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-dallas","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-dallas","10":"tag-texas","11":"tag-tx","12":"tag-united-states","13":"tag-united-states-of-america","14":"tag-unitedstates","15":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","16":"tag-us","17":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115327359881185278","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/281728","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=281728"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/281728\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/281729"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=281728"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=281728"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=281728"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}