Code Enforcement

The City of Redondo Beach has a Code Enforcement  section enforces the City's Zoning Ordinance, Housing Code, and numerous other codes dealing with land use.  It is the goal of our Code Enforcement program to improve neighborhood livability. This section is staffed with two Code Enforcement Officers, who report to the Municipal Enforcement Manager. One officer is assigned to the Northern part of town, and the second officer is assigned to the Southern part of town, with the dividing line being Herondo/190th Street. Should you wish to report a problem to our staff, you can do so by e-mailing the staff below:
North: debra.duvall@redondo.org  --   South: jo.salcido@redondo.org

Home Occupations    ---   Illegal Dwellings   ---   Declared and Prohibited Nuisances

Home Occupations.  Operating a business from a residence is allowed under certain conditions.  The code sections that govern this are listed here:  

RBMC 6-1.22 License rates.

26) Home occupation. Every person engaged in operating a home occupation shall pay an annual license tax in the amount of Fifty and no/100ths ($50.00) Dollars. A statement of intent shall be filed with the License and Collections Department for a home occupation business license. The statement shall set forth the type of business activity proposed as well as the manner and hours of operation. A business license may then be issued provided the following conditions are met:

 (a) The business shall be restricted to only one room in the dwelling and all materials, equipment, or facilities shall be kept therein. Patio or outside storage shall not be permitted.

 (b) No garage shall be used in connection with such business, except for the parking of a residence or business vehicle. In the event a third or two and one-half garage is constructed, the business may be transferred to that new addition.

 (c) The home occupation shall be authorized only one business car, pickup, truck, or van. Street parking shall not be authorized for any business vehicle.

 (d) Only persons residing on the premises may be employed.

 (e) There shall be no display of merchandise, projects, operations, signs, or nameplates of any kind visible from outside the dwelling.

 (f) The appearance of the dwelling shall not be altered in any manner which would indicate that a business is being conducted at the dwelling.

 (g) The home occupation shall not generate pedestrian or vehicular traffic beyond that which is normal to the particular neighborhood.

 (h) The home occupation shall not involve the use of commercial vehicles for the delivery of material to or from the premises.

 (i) Any marked commercial vehicle used in conjunction with the occupation shall have no more than two (2) square feet of front yard setback of the premises.

 (j) The home occupation shall not create noise, odor, dust, vibration, fumes, or smoke readily discernible at the boundaries of the parcel on which the home occupation is situated. Furthermore, the occupation shall not create any disturbance which adversely affects electrical appliances located on adjacent properties by means of static electricity or radiation.

 (k) Home occupations involving vehicle or boat repairs, wood or metal construction, biological farming or biological agents and research shall not be permitted.

 (l) All provisions of the Uniform Fire Code and all noise provisions of this Code shall be complied with. Any violation of the conditions set forth in this subsection or other conditions set forth in this Code for the approval of a home occupation shall be the basis for the revocation of the home occupation business license. Upon the notification of a violation, such home occupation shall cease immediately. In the event the City finds that such home occupation continues after notice to cease, legal steps shall be taken against the applicants.

 (m) The applicant shall demonstrate to the satisfaction of the City that the home occupation is not prohibited by any applicable lease or rental agreement, or in the case of a condominium project or common interest development, any applicable covenants, conditions and restrictions.

10-2.402 Definitions.

(86) "Home occupation" shall mean an occupation carried on by the occupant's) of a dwelling as a secondary use in connection with which there is no display, no walk-in customers, no stock-in-trade, nor commodity sold upon the premises, no person employed, and no mechanical equipment used, except such as is necessary for housekeeping purposes.

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Illegal Dwellings.  This practice occurs when persons subdivide and rent out separate units to other individuals.  This is sometimes accomplished by converting an existing garage to living quarters.  This can be very dangerous because garages are originally constructed with less fire protection than other habitable portions of the dwelling.  This practice also places a burden on the already scarce parking resource within the City because vehicles are now denied access to off-street parking.  Sometimes the practice of subdividing a residence is done by portioning off parts of a house and renting that portion to other persons.  Generally single family homes and units are only to have one kitchen.  When an area has been portioned off, many times another kitchen has been installed creating another dwelling unit.  If you are aware of situations similar to these, you are encouraged to notify our staff so that we can make a proper investigation and follow-up

Declared and Prohibited Nuisances.  The following codes prohibit these actions.  If you are aware of this, please notify our staff.  Please give us as much information as possible because determining the parties responsible for such actions is crucial in order to fully enforce the ordinance.

4-10.02 Declared and prohibited nuisances.
 The following are hereby expressly declared to be nuisances, and any person maintaining or permitting such nuisances, or any of them, to be maintained or to exist on his premises, whether as owner, lessee, or otherwise, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and each and every day such nuisances shall be permitted to be continued shall constitute a separate offense:
 (a) Affecting peace and comfort or interfering with lawful businesses.
 (1) Unnecessary noises. The unnecessary making of, or knowingly and unnecessarily permitting to be made, any loud, boisterous, or unusual noise, disturbance, or commotion in any hotel, motel, apartment house, court, rooming house, auto court, trailer camp, dwelling, place of business, or other structure, or upon any public street, park, public place, or building, except the ordinary and usual sounds, noises, or commotion incident to the operation of such places when conducted in accordance with the usual and normal standards of practice applicable thereto and in a manner which will not disturb the peace and comfort of adjacent residents or which will not detrimentally affect the operators or customers of adjacent places of business;
 (2) Vulgar and obscene language through loudspeakers. The uttering through any loudspeaker, sound-making, or sound-amplifying device, or otherwise, of any obscene, vulgar, profane, or indecent language, or uttering language intending to, or which would reasonably be expected to, incite riot, destruction, or damage to property or injury to any person, or intended to, or which would reasonably be expected to, incite others to do any unlawful act, or which utterances would reasonably be expected to create a condition which would result in a clear and present danger of the commission of such unlawful acts; and
 (3) Noises generally. The tolerating, making, causing, or permitting to be made any unnecessary noises or sounds by persons, animals, or fowl, or by automobiles, motorcycles, engines, machines, or other mechanical devices, or by musical instruments, loud-speakers, or amplifiers, which noises are annoying to persons of ordinary sensitiveness or which are so loud, harsh, prolonged, unnatural, or unusual in their time and place as to occasion unnecessary discomfort to the inhabitants of the neighborhood from which such noises emanate or so as to interfere with the peace and comfort of the operators or customers in adjacent places of business or which may detrimentally or adversely affect such places of business.
 (b) Affecting public peace and morals.
 (1) Fighting. Fighting, brawling, quarreling, or haranguing in a loud or boisterous manner;
 (2) Persons obstructing entrances to buildings. Unnecessarily obstructing the ingress or egress to or from any residence, hotel, apartment house, auto court, trailer court, motel, or business or industrial establishment other than in a moving, single-line formation of not to exceed six (6) persons to each exit or entrance, whether such exit or entrance consists of one opening or a group of adjacent openings, and, for the purposes of this chapter, adjacent openings shall be considered as a single entrance or exit;
 (3) Congregating of persons. The congregating of persons on the public streets, parkways, alleys, or sidewalks in such numbers as to impede or obstruct vehicular or pedestrian traffic;4) Obstructing public ways. The placing of any obstructing or instrument, object, or substance in, on, over, or across any public street, alley, parkway, or sidewalk, which object obstructs, or may reasonably be expected to obstruct, the free passage of vehicular or pedestrian traffic or which interferes with or obstructs, or may reasonably be expected to interfere with or obstruct, the entrance or exit to any residential or business structure by persons lawfully entitled to enter or depart therefrom;
 (5) Placing merchandise on sidewalks. The placing, allowing, or permitting of any goods, wares, or merchandise to be placed, stored, or displayed in any yard or any sidewalk in front of or adjacent to any place of business in the commercial districts established by Chapter 2 of Title 10 of this Code or upon any place upon property used for sales or display, except in the building or storeroom owned or operated by the owners or operators of such businesses;
 (6) Parades and processions. The carrying on of parades or processions composed of persons, vehicles, or animals without a permit being granted therefor by the Chief of Police. An application for such permit shall be filed with the Chief of Police, and a hearing shall be held after at least forty-eight (48) hours' notice to the applicant of such hearing, unless notice shall be waived. If the application is denied, the applicant, within fifteen (15) days after the date of such order or denial, may appeal from the decision of the Chief of Police to the Council. The Council shall hold a hearing thereon upon notice to the applicant in the same manner as the hearing before the Chief of Police;
 (7) Commercial exploitation of explicit sexual conduct. The commercial exploitation of explicit sexual conduct through the public exhibition of lewd films, the sale of lewd publications, and the use of so-called massage parlors and model studios for purposes of lewdness, assignation, or prostitution. The special procedures for the regulation of the nuisances described in this subsection (7) are set forth in Sections 4-10.10 through 4-10.18 of this chapter, and the procedures described in Sections 4-10.02 through 4-10.09 of this chapter shall not apply to the nuisances described in this subsection (7).
 (c) Affecting public safety.
 (1) Traffic sight restrictions. Tolerating, allowing, or permitting trees, hedges, vegetable growth, billboards, walls, fences, or other structures to be so located with respect to driveways or street intersections as to prevent a clear view of approaching vehicles in sufficient time to bring a vehicle driven at a reasonable speed to a full stop before such intersection or driveway approach is reached;
 (2) Flammable materials near dwellings. Tolerating, allowing, or permitting hedges, trees, shrubs, or other vegetable matter or other material of inflammable character within twenty (20') feet of a dwelling used for human habitation;
 (3) Damaged structures. Tolerating, allowing or permitting buildings, walls and other structures which have been damaged by fire, decay or otherwise to such an extent that they cannot be repaired to conform to the requirements of the Building Code of the City;
 (4) Building Code violations. Tolerating, allowing or permitting buildings and alterations to buildings located within the fire districts established by the City in violation of the Building Code of the City;
 (5) Abandoned buildings. Buildings which are abandoned, boarded up, partially destroyed, or left in a state of partial construction or uncompleted after building permits have been expired;(6) Debris in public places. Tolerating, allowing or permitting waste matter, rubbish, garbage, debris, excavations, pipe lines, hose and other materials and facilities on, in, over or across any public street, alley, sidewalk or other public grounds except under such conditions and in such manner as is specifically permitted by law;
 (7) Signs over streets and sidewalks. Tolerating, allowing or permitting hanging signs, awnings and other similar structures over streets or sidewalks;
 (8) Fences, limbs and vegetation over streets and sidewalks. Tolerating, allowing or permitting barbed wire fences or limbs of trees, shrubs, hedges or vegetable growth so situated or located as to endanger persons traversing streets or sidewalks in the immediate area thereof;
 (9) Unguarded machinery. Tolerating, allowing or permitting dangerous or unguarded machinery in any business place or so situated or operated on private property as to attract members of the public;
 (10) Other dangerous conditions. Tolerating, allowing or permitting any other situation, condition or thing which creates, or may reasonably be expected to create, a clear and present danger of injury or damage to any person or property;
 (11) Explosives. The storage or use of gun powder, dynamite, fireworks, explosive chemicals or other explosive materials without a permit being granted therefor by the Chief of the Fire Department. Such permit application shall be filed with the Chief of the Fire Department, and a hearing shall be held after at least forty-eight (48) hours' notice to the applicant of such hearing unless notice shall be waived. If the application is denied, the applicant may, within fifteen (15) days from the date of such order of denial, appeal from the decision of the Chief of the Fire Department to the Council. The Council shall hold a hearing thereon upon notice to the applicant in the same manner as the hearing before the Chief of the Fire Department;
 (12) Keeping reptiles and insects. Keeping or maintaining snakes and other reptiles or bees or other insects within the City unless a permit therefor has been obtained from the Council, upon application regularly filed, which permit shall set forth the location and manner in which such reptiles or insects shall be kept; and
 (13) Barbed wire. The use of barbed wire for fences or enclosures except for anti-climb devices not exceeding six (6) strands of barbed wire supported on arms attached to the top of a wall or fence six (6') feet or more in height.
 (d) Affecting public health.
 (1) Unwholesome food. The keeping or maintaining of decayed or unwholesome food sold or offered for sale to the public;
 (2) Manure and debris. The keeping or maintaining of accumulations of manure, rubbish, debris, or animal or vegetable matter of any kind or character from which foul smells or odors emanate or which provide, or are likely to provide, a breeding place for vermin, insects, or rodents of any kind;
 (3) Polluted wells and water. The pollution of any well, cistern, stream, creek, or other body of water by sewage, industrial wastes, or other substances which are, or may reasonably be expected to become, detrimental to the public health or the keeping or maintaining, or permitting to be kept or accumulated, on any private property of ponds or pools of stagnant or waste water, oil, or industrial wastes;
 (4) Noxious weeds. Permitting or allowing noxious weeds and other rank growth or vegetation on private property; (5) Production of smoke and fumes. The production of dense smoke, noxious fumes, gas, soot, cinders, or smog by any commercial manufacturing or industrial or other organization through furnaces or other facilities utilized by such industrial or manufacturing plant or other operation when such smoke, noxious fumes, gas, soot, cinders, or smog is in such quantities as are in excess of the amount necessary in the reasonable operation of such plants, or the production by any person through any means whatsoever of dense smoke, noxious fumes, gas, soot, cinders, smog, or other obnoxious substances which are, or may reasonably be expected to become, detrimental to the public health or which unnecessarily interfere with the health, comfort, or safety of any person;
 (6) Dumping. Throwing, depositing, or placing in or upon, or permitting to be regularly placed or maintained at or upon, any lands in Zones R-1, R-2, and R-3 of the City any machinery, trucks, automobiles, building materials, rubbish, wrecked vehicles or parts of wrecked vehicles, empty bottles, refuse, paper, explosives, or materials having a noxious odor or unsightly appearance so that the noxious odors or the unsightly appearance thereof will annoy or harass the occupants of adjoining lands or prevent the enjoyment of the quiet occupancy of other lands thereof or materially depreciate the value of other lands in the vicinity thereof; and
 (7) Production of dust. The creation by any operation of farming of dust in such quantities as are excessive of the amount necessary in the reasonable operation of farming, or the farming industry, or the production by any such operation, or by any means of dust in such quantity as may reasonably be expected to be or to become detrimental to the public health or which unnecessarily interferes with the health, comfort, or safety of any person or any neighborhood.