Ordinances have 'no teeth,' councilman contends

By Eliza Ridgeway, Town Crier Staff Writer

How well can Los Altos Hills, known for its plethora of ordinances designed to protect its rural environment, enforce its own rules?

Councilman Jean Mordo posed this question at Thursday’s council meeting, saying he raised the issue because of the frustration experienced by town staff and residents when trying to enforce town regulations.

Mordo referred specifically to a resident’s recent installation of an irrigation system and plantings in the open-space easement of the Matadero Creek subdivision.

“The neighbors complained to the town, the town sent the sheriff, the people ceased for one day, came back the next day and were sent home again,” Mordo said. “We don’t have a lot of tools for enforcing our ordinances - they have no teeth. … We can spend a lot of time developing terrific ordinances, but if we can’t enforce them, it’s no good.”

Public Safety Officer Steve Garcia, who oversees stop-work orders in Los Altos Hills, said the case was atypical but not unheard of in town. He said he responds to two or three ordinance violations every week.

“Usually a contractor takes these (ordinance violations) very seriously and immediately corrects the problem,” Garcia said. “(But) you’d be surprised what homeowners are building (without permits) - second residences, sports court - they’re expensive to build and expensive to tear down.”

Planning Director and interim City Manager Carl Cahill suggested that daily fines would give the town “one more thing to work with.” He also suggested a more established enforcement process, noting that code violation matters currently go directly to the city council.

Councilman Craig Jones questioned the necessity of stepping up enforcement responses and said that the idea of daily fines or outsourcing code enforcement “raised the hair on the back of my neck.”

“We’re not out here to create hardships for our residents,” Garcia said. “Penalties and fees are for the people who just refuse to comply. There are times when contractors or homeowners will not respond quickly enough to correct (violations). There’s no real incentive to get it corrected right away because it doesn’t cost them anything.”