WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah — A West Valley family says code enforcement notices have turned routine home upkeep into a source of stress as they try to balance other work and life responsibilities.
The city says the rules are meant to keep neighborhoods safe and clean, but the Muñoz family says keeping up with the demands has gotten harder.
FOX 13 News noticed on the West Valley, Magna, and Kearns news Facebook page, a place where residents share updates about what is happening in their neighborhoods, some concerns about seeing an uptick in code enforcement notices in a West Valley City neighborhood.
That led us to meet the Muñoz family. The family says they received warnings in April and June for issues including tires in the back of their truck and inoperable cars in front of their home. The family said the cars are used vehicles they bought that often break down.
“It’s annoying because we don’t have money for new cars, you know,” Paloma Muñoz said. “You try to do your best, like knocking stuff down and trying to get rid of things in time, but it’s hard because people do have jobs and people don’t have the time or money.”
FOX 13 News met with Tumi Young, West Valley City’s Chief of Code Enforcement, and rode along with him through several neighborhoods to see what officers look for.
“These are the kinds of things we see where people will store things that need to head to the dump,” Young said while pointing out chopped wood stored in a trailer outside of a home.
He said residents typically have at least 14 days to fix issues, including dead trees, weeds over 6 inches, and improperly stored items outside like couches or other junk. He said people often receive multiple notices before a citation is issued.
FOX 13 News asked him about neighbors’ concerns that enforcement might be increasing.
“In the summertime, our code enforcement goes up a little bit due to the number of complaints. With all the complaints that we do receive, it’s about tall weeds, especially with drought situations,” Young explained. He says each officer receives about 10-20 complaints per day.
The Muñoz family said they complied with the warnings they received. But they say code enforcement notices are now just one more thing to worry about. “We’re paranoid and stuff because you don’t know what’s going to come next,” Paloma Muñoz said.
