Richland, WA Code Violation Reporting: Common Violations (2026)

Section 10.04.040 enumerates the conditions Richland treats as nuisances affecting peace and safety, and several make up the bulk of the city's routine code enforcement caseload. Subsection (D) covers buildings or structures "damaged by fire, decay, or have otherwise deteriorated so as to endanger the safety of the public," including sagging or leaning fences and walls whose structural members lean far enough that a plumb line from the center of gravity falls outside the middle third of the base. Subsection (F) targets accumulations exceeding two cubic yards in volume on a lot, street, alley, sidewalk, or park, including "filthy, littered, or trash-covered yards," unpiled scrap wood or metal, and uncovered bottles, cans, or scrap that could shelter rodents or create a fire hazard; the same volume threshold reaches material stored in a trailer or pickup bed.

Subsection (R) covers objects that "interfere with, obstruct, tend to obstruct, or render dangerous for passage" on a public park, street, sidewalk, alley, or highway, expressly naming basketball hoop standards, street hockey goals, and abandoned or partially repaired vehicle parts. Other frequently cited subsections in the same list include (O) noxious weeds and (P) grass and weeds over six inches. Reports go to Development Services or the compliance officer, defined in § 10.04.010 as the city manager's designee, who can require the responsible person to abate the condition before escalating to a civil violation notice.