Aliso Viejo, CA Code Violation Reporting: Common Violations (2026)

Chapter 8.24 opens by declaring that each listed act or condition is a nuisance for purposes of the chapter. The list in section 8.24.010 covers fire hazards from dry or dead growth, polluted water in an abandoned or unfiltered pool or pond, refuse and waste, overgrown or dead vegetation, stored trailers and vehicles, broken furniture, unsafe buildings, unsafe pool enclosures, illegal signs and removal of enhanced hardscape on private property.

The refuse clock is a printed number: refuse and waste kept on any property for a period in excess of seven calendar days. The definition of refuse and waste reaches rubble, broken asphalt, concrete, plaster, tile, rocks, bricks, building materials, scrap metal and trimmings from plants and trees, along with trash, cans, bottles and barrels. Polluted water is water containing bacterial growth, algae, insect or animal remains, rubbish, dirt, debris or chemicals in a magnitude, nature or location that creates an unhealthy or unsafe condition.

Section 8.24.020 puts the liability on any person who owns, leases or otherwise controls the property. The chapter prints no penalty of its own. It sends every violation to Chapter 1.06, where section 1.06.010 makes a violation of the code a misdemeanor unless the city attorney or other prosecutor chooses to prosecute it as an infraction. Section 1.06.020 treats each day a violation is committed, continued or permitted as a separate offense.

The city can also skip court. Chapter 1.06 makes every code violation subject to an administrative citation, and section 1.06.060 states that the chapter imposes strict civil liability on owners, lessees and tenants of real property for building, housing, fire, health and zoning violations on the premises. An enforcement officer under section 1.06.070 includes a deputy sheriff, an animal control officer or another Orange County employee acting under contract with the City of Aliso Viejo.

The cross-reference note after section 8.24.010 points to related rules elsewhere in the code, including solid waste containers (AVMC 7.05.200), construction or demolition debris (AVMC 7.15.100), graffiti (AVMC 8.14.020), noise (AVMC 8.12.100) and sign maintenance (AVMC 15.34.060).