I've searched the municipal codes and I can't find anything that relates to the issues you mention. If it were a gated community, city or county would have no authority to enforce HOA rules, or even if it's not a gated community, for that matter.
I was an enforcement officer for 6 years and had to deal with 6 different HOA's. Often a resident would want a covenant enforced but that's a civil matter to be taken up with the HOA officers.
City officials cannot cite someone for any kind of violation without informing them of the code section they're in violation of. You must know how you are in violation. On the Code Enforcement site, it says that the officer does not have access to rear yards unless someone reports a violation in a rear yard. This is a listing of the enforcement responsibilities of the code enforcement officer.
Rear Yards — Code Enforcement does not have legal access to rear yards to cite violations, so Code Enforcement relies on HELP from adjoining property owners lodging an anonymous complaints.
Whenever violations are found, pictures are taken and a “courtesy infraction notice” or “housing infraction notice” is issued in an attempt to obtain voluntary compliance. If you are a recipient of an “infraction notice,” communications with the Code Enforcement Officer is highly recommended. In some cases, time extensions can be obtained if necessary and requested. If there is no communication with the City and the violation continues past the “infraction notice” re-inspection date, violations will result in Code Enforcement issuing a Municipal Court Summons and a Court date. Below is a sample list of items Code Enforcement is tasked with regulating and assuring Code Compliance:
Grass or weeds over 8 inches
No building permits
Trash, limbs and debris
Parking of vehicles on unimproved surfaces
Unsafe/Unfit structures
Derelict, Unlicensed Vehicles on residential property
Residential Occupancy Inspections and Permits
Nuisance Noise
No gate. Yes, I get everything without pics thrown out. One citation stated that my carport had ”unapproved items” on it. It was bicycles we were getting ready to ride, and a bag of rock salt. They said I could only have cars in my carport. Another time, same citation, it was a box delivered by fedex.
Oh. The code officers aren't supposed to cross the property line, but I've found them in my carport, in my back yard, on my deck, etc. Even some pictures could only have been taken from in my yard. That was how one officer got fired. He kindof had it out for me after I caught him in my back yard. It was well below freezing, no power, but I had a pot of boiling water on. I dumped the water on him, and told him to stay out of my yard. He caught his pants on the fence while climbing out of my yard, and tore the crotch. Funny, that a grown man can't hop a low fence. Weeks later, I came home and he was harassing my wife. Boy did he run. Bawwwwwk, bawwwwwk! His car was parked in front of my house, but I chased him for about 2 blocks.
They used to stick the infraction notices on the front window. These things don't peel off. I had to scrape them off with a razor, then finish up with soap and water. If you get 2 or 3 of these in as many days, it's a day's work to remove them, because they're almost letter-sized. Somebody stuck one on the code enforcement officer's windshield.
At some point, the supervisor decided it wasn't safe for the code enforcement officers to speak with the residents (they worry about an altercation), so the cowards sneak around and mail infraction notices. In my spare time, I walk around the neighborhood with an air horn. If I happen on one of the skunks lurking in my neighborhood, the air horn is used to discourage skulking. I only actually used it once. Now I can just say ”boo” and the moron about jumps out of his skin. Usually, he drops his binoculars and runs.
Did you know that you aren't supposed to cut down trees while the code enforcement officer is in said tree? We were at the neighbor's house (this redneck would fit right in with those Duck Dynasty dudes), and had been talking about cutting down a tree in his back yard, when we saw the officer up in the tree with his binoculars. The tree is dead, and about 1.5 feet in diameter. When we started the chainsaw, the officer started yelling. We cut the tree, but not down, because then we'd have to remove it. The police came, and we had to listen to a grown man bawl his eyes out about the vibrations in the tree. If the officer had told us he was going to illegally go into the yard and climb a dead tree, we'd have told him it was a bad idea. The poor sap had to jump.
