Reporting a Property

How is city staff notified of a code violation?

In addition to proactive inspections, City staff receive complaints from neighboring property owners and city employees working to keep the city clean, safe and orderly.

How does city staff respond to a complaint?

The issue is entered into a data base.  Then the Inspector visits the property within 3 to 5 working days to determine if any violations exist.  Imminent health or life safety hazards should be reported to our Division immediately or to the Police Department at 911 after-hours so they can contact us. 

What happens if a property is found to be in violation of an applicable code?

The property owner will receive a written notice of the violation with a given time to correct the violation, depending on the type of violation.  City staff will re-inspect the property to confirm the violation has been corrected.

What happens if the property is not cleaned up in the given time frame?

Depending on the type of violation, the property owner will receive an additional notice indicating the legal consequences for the failure to correct the violation(s), such as city-facilitated abatement, citations, mandatory court appearance, etc.  With an abatement, the property owner will be required to pay the cost of removing the violation, plus an administrative fee.  If the costs are not paid, they are specially assessed to the property.   If a citation is issued, the property owner is liable for the payment of that citation.  Fines double for repeat violations up to a maximum to $2,000 each incident.

Where can I learn more?

You may learn more about the City Code on the city's website.

How do I file a complaint?

In order to help us better serve you, please follow the steps below when making requests and reporting a concern: 

Please keep in mind that your assistance or testimony may be necessary in order for certain types of situations to be resolved, such as intermittent types of violations.  Other options for resolving neighborhood  issues exist such as mediation or involving your Neighborhood Watch group.  Many disputes could be prevented or resolved by timely and good communication with your neighbors.

• Please leave your name, address and contact number by calling us at 763-493-8070.  This will enable us to contact you if we have problems locating the issue or need more information.  In addition, we can update you if a delay in corrections occur to the necessity of enforcement actions.  Note:  Your name is kept confidential in accordance with Minnesota State Law.

• Please provide the address of the property in question.  This is how our database records information and will save our staff time in trying to locate a property, especially if we already have an open case on the property.

• Please indicate the specific type of concern you have and whether this issue can be seen from the street or public way.  If not, we may need to make other arrangements to view the issue.

• Staff will review the property to determine whether a violation of city code exists.  If a violation exists, the property owner and/or responsible party will be contacted to make the necessary corrections in the specified time frame.  If the responsible party/parties are not cooperative, enforcement actions or city facilitated abatement may be required extending the time for you to see a difference.