The Ceres Code Enforcement Unit remains very busy handling a voluminous amount of citizen reports of illegal dumping, homeless camps and messes made by the homeless, code violation and unkempt properties.

According to Cassandra De La Cruz, the secretary for the Code Enforcement division which gave a report to the Ceres City Council last week, the work is never ending.

While some of the workload is reactive to citizen complaints, the unit is also proactive in heading off situations before they worsen. Officers will often attempt to abate illegal camps early on Wednesday mornings

The unit seeks to educate violators first and seek their cooperation first before going to citations.

Most complaints come through the dispatch center, Ask Ceres website and phone calls made to city leaders.

Of the calls, nearly 60 percent are about illegal camps, 16.28 percent regard illegal dumping, 18.78 percent are about abandoned shopping centers throughout Ceres and 5.79 percent are related to reports of graffiti. Residents also call about public nuisances, zoning code violations, substandard housing and excessive weeds in lots.

“When we are not managing our caseload, we are actually doing other things such as our illegal camps, which take up most of our time, illegal dumps, shopping carts – which usually stem from the illegal camps – and graffiti,” she said.

Public nuisance calls can include things like chickens in neighborhood, noise complaints, waste wheelers being left out in public view, vehicles parked on lawns, pool maintenance with mosquito breeding, illegal signs, street vendors, lack of property maintenance and public right away encroachments.

Calls related to zoning code violations include haphazard construction by homeowners, carports, fences, front yard setbacks, and improper landscaping, dilapidated and unsafe housing and in some cases hoarding.

The unit also is called to deal with illegal dumps in the street, as well as piles of leaves and limbs left where they are not allowed in alleys, public right of ways, and vacant lot.

Tall weeds remain a concern with their growth in recent rains that will turn into fire hazards with the warmer weather.

De La Cruz explained that the “Ask Ceres” mobile phone app can be downloaded and used to report concerns to Code Enforcement.

She shared some success stories, including the cleanup of two homes, one off of Hackett Road, and the other located off of Hollister, both involving substandard housing code violations. In one case of hoarding one house was found with three-foot-high stack of belongings, rotting flooring and vector infestation.

Another well publicized case was when Code Enforcement dealt with a filthy Hollister Street home inhabited by over 85 dogs.

The inhabitants of both homes did not receive any citations because property owners cooperated with code enforcement officers. Within an eight-month period both homes were cleaned up, remodeled and sold.

“So most code enforcement cases are very complex, meaning it takes a lot of coordination between all the departments,” said De La Cruz, noting how different city departments may be called to work on a case.

A common problem facing the unit is often be the absentee owner, which means notice requirements, and coordination for repairs, can take “way longer than it should.”

She cited the case of the Triple R gas station property at 2925 Whitmore Avenue.

Councilwoman Cerina Otero offered her praise for the unit’s efforts, noting it’s not a large team and the work can be complex “so I do appreciate you being out there and doing what you can in keeping our community clean. “

Mayor Javier Lopez commented: “You guys doing such a great job. I’ve seen it personally, and I’ve seen what you do even when I’m not there, and I know that it’s a lot of hard work.”