Show All Answers

1. Who Is on the Committee?

The committee consists of five city residents, appointed by the mayor with the advice and consent of the city council; one supervisory-level member of AFPD; the City’s nuisance enforcement officer; and one member of the city council, assigned by the mayor.

2. What If I Want to Join the Committee?

You are more than welcome to attend and participate in meetings. If you wish to be appointed to the committee as a voting member, please advise a committee officer or the mayor that you wish to be considered, when a vacancy occurs.

3. What Is a Nuisance?

There are many kinds of nuisances. Some are more serious than others; some require more urgent attention than others. The Municipal Code lists these, among others:

• Party houses
• A condition that causes visual blight, is offensive to the senses, creates a harborage for rodents or pests, or detrimentally affects property in the surrounding neighborhood or community.
• A condition that impairs the reasonable and lawful use of property.
• A condition that unreasonably or unlawfully affects the health or safety of one or more persons.
• A fire hazard as defined in the Uniform Fire Code.
• Emanation of noxious or unreasonable odors, fumes, gas, smoke, soot or cinders.
• Noxious weeds located on property, including vacant lots, or along public sidewalks or outer edge of any public street, or weeds in any other location which constitutes an unreasonable fire hazard or is contrary to the purpose of this chapter.
• Keeping or storing of any refuse and waste matter which interferes with the reasonable enjoyment of nearby property.
• Polluted or stagnant water which constitutes an unhealthy or unsafe condition.
• Accumulation of soil, litter, debris, plant trimmings, or trash, on sidewalks, in vestibules, doorways, passages, breezeways, parking areas or any public right-of-way or alley.
• Accumulation of used or damaged lumber; junk; salvage materials; abandoned, discarded or unused furniture; stoves, sinks, toilets, cabinets, or other fixtures or equipment stored so as to be visible from a public street, alley, or adjoining property.
• Any attractive nuisance dangerous to children and other persons.
• Dead, decayed, diseased, or hazardous trees, weeds, hedges, and overgrown or uncultivated vegetation which is in a hazardous condition, is an obstruction to pedestrian or vehicular traffic, or which is likely to harbor rats, vermin or other pests.
• Improper storage of inoperative, unregistered, abandoned, wrecked or dismantled vehicles or vehicle parts, including recreational vehicles.

4. Where Can I Find the City’s Nuisance Laws?

The City Municipal Code is available online at the City website, afcity.org. Nuisance laws are found in several parts of the code, but most are in Chapter 8.08, entitled “Nuisance Abatement.”

5. How Do I Report a Nuisance?

Monday through Thursday, between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., call the American Fork Police Department at its non-emergency number, 801-763-3020, and tell them you want to report a nuisance. Any other time, call Utah County Dispatch at 801-794-3970 and tell them the same.

Please note that the City, including the committee, tends to prioritize the most serious nuisances, preferring to deal with them before addressing less serious nuisances.

6. What Happens When Nuisance is Reported?

Someone from AFPD will attempt to inspect the reported nuisance. If it is a legitimate nuisance under the law, the first step will be to secure voluntary compliance in removing the nuisance. A fix-it ticket may be issued, but there is no fine or other penalty at this stage, if the owner or tenant handles the situation in a timely and reasonable manner.

If a responsible party refuses to comply, he or she can be charged with a misdemeanor and summoned to appear in court.

The City makes every effort to abate nuisances voluntarily without legal action, and may turn to the Neighborhood Preservation Committee or other community resources for help. In fact, American Fork handles these matters – quite intentionally – with a lighter touch than most or all other Utah cities which have nuisance ordinances. Nearly all nuisances are resolved without fines or court action.

However, uncooperative, persistent, or repeat offenders may immediately be charged with a misdemeanor and issued a court summons.

7. Can't I Do Whatever I Want on My Property?

In a word, no. Your property rights are real and very important, but so are the property rights of your neighbors. If conditions on your property diminish the value of neighboring properties or infringe on others’ reasonable use and enjoyment of their property, you are infringing on their property rights. If conditions on your property or pose a hazard – from fire to rodent infestation to dangerous situations which attract children – then other rights might be infringed as well.

There is no nuisance law against painting your home a color which your neighbors find repulsive, for example. Nuisance laws protect property rights and promote public safety; they do not exist to promote or enforce beauty. 

8. Does Nuisance Enforcement Really Reduce Crime in the City?

Yes. Signs of neglect in a neighborhood invite criminals who benefit from such neglect. A well-kept neighborhood, where nuisance laws are reasonably enforced, discourages the presence of criminals and their activities.

9. What If I Have More Questions or Want to Help?

Contact AFPD or the Neighborhood Preservation Committee chair. Also, the public is always welcome at committee meetings, which are publicly noticed and held at least quarterly.