Properties adjacent to Franklin Mountains State Park and the wildland-urban interface on the city's west and northeast sides must maintain weed and brush clearance under El Paso property maintenance standards to reduce desert wildfire fuel loads.
El Paso's Franklin Mountains rise to over 7,000 feet within the city, and adjacent neighborhoods sit in a wildland-urban interface vulnerable to brush fires fueled by creosote, mesquite, and tumbleweed. The Municipal Code property maintenance provisions require owners to keep lots free of weeds and accumulated brush, generally cut below 12 inches. Code Compliance can issue notices and abate at owner expense. There is no formal California-style 100-foot defensible space rule, but the combination of weed ordinances and the Fire Code adopted in Chapter 9.04 functions similarly. The Bureau of Reclamation and State Park boundaries impose additional standards on adjacent federal and state lands.
Notices typically allow 7 to 10 days to abate. City abatement liens can run into the hundreds plus administrative costs, attached to the property tax roll.
El Paso, TX
El Paso's Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) zones include the Franklin Mountains interface, Scenic Drive, and desert-edge neighborhoods on the Westside and Nort...
El Paso, TX
El Paso Code Chapter 9.08 designates overgrown weeds, tumbleweeds, and noxious vegetation as a nuisance. Property owners must control weed growth and remove ...
El Paso, TX
El Paso requires property owners to maintain a 30-foot defensible space around structures in wildland-urban interface areas and to remove weeds and brush tha...
See how El Paso's defensible space rules stack up against other locations.
Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.