RIVER FALLS – Tyler Galde, planning and engineering technician, updated the River Falls City Council recently on how code enforcement is going in the city.

In June 2021, the council approved the transition from a reactive approach to a proactive approach in code enforcement, Galde explained.

“Meaning instead of waiting until somebody calls us about a violation, we’re being more proactive in trying to find those violations and get those taken care of before we get a phone call from somebody,” he said.

City staff didn’t want the transition to be abrupt, so it has taken about two years to implement the following steps: g

• Adopted a code enforcement manual in 2021, which is a set process for how code enforcement cases are handled.
• .5 FTE added to support code enforcement in 2021.
• Ordinance modifications approved by city council in 2022.
• Implemented code compliance through internal GIS software and built an app for staff to use when out and about in the field.
• Education and outreach has been important so the transition wasn’t abrupt (articles in River Falls Reader, sent out letters to local businesses and nonprofits, etc.)
• Regular monitoring (staff members takes an hour or two on a Friday to drive through a section of town looking for violations)

“We have found quite a few violations doing this, and we were able to get those taken care of before we got a phone call from an upset resident,” Galde said.

Ordinance updates approved in August 2022 related to parking, public nuisance, residential rental uses, signage, enforcement procedures and expanded ordinance language.

“What this did was eliminate gray area within our city code and made things more enforceable,” Galde said. “For example, in our nuisance code, we now have a pretty robust list of items that you cannot just store in your yard. Before, it was pretty open for interpretation.”

Galde said working with people is important to the city, so they work to build relationships with residents, to have empathy and to understand compliance barriers.

“Typically, when a code enforcement case gets to a second or third letter in our process, there’s typically some sort of compliance barrier. Something that we’re not seeing is stopping them from coming into compliance,” Galde said. “Whether it’s time, money, mental or physical health, disabilities. If we can develop some sort of relationship and learn about those things, learn what is preventing them from coming into compliance, we can better help them by giving them extensions if we’re making progress or getting them in touch with local organizations to help with cleanup, whatever it may be.”

From 2021-2023, the city has seen a 52% increase in code violations, the vast majority of which can be attributed to the updated sign ordinance. Each sign in the right-of-way is considered an individual violation. General nuisances are the number 2 violation (couches in the front yards, appliances left outside, piles of wood laying around, etc.)

Other business

• The South Wasson Lane reconstruction, a Wisconsin DOT managed project, is scheduled to bid in May for a mid-summer construction start. The project will include a roundabout at the intersection of Cascade and Wasson, new curb and gutter on South Wasson Lane, new high-capacity storm sewer and stormwater treatment systems, a new multi-use trail, and improved lighting.
• After a closed session concerning City Administrator Scot Simpson’s annual performance evaluation, the council voted 5-1 in favor of his employment agreement with Alderperson Jeff Bjork voting against.