Eastvale handles 270% more code enforcement cases, nearly eliminating complaints from residents

At A Glance

The City of Eastvale needed a digital way to track and manage code violations to improve the quality of life for residents. By incorporating a code enforcement tool, city staff was able to handle 270% more code enforcement cases and reduce complaints from residents.

Challenge

Code Enforcement is an often-undervalued component of a city’s service delivery and citizen engagement efforts. In the City of Eastvale, CA (pop. 75,000), the Community Enhancement and Safety (CES) team was tasked with doing code enforcement work that helped improve the quality of life for Eastvale residents but inefficient and antiquated processes made it hard for staff to move enforcement cases through to completion.

The CES team was being buried under the flow of new cases with no system in place to efficiently track active cases and move them to the next step. With complaints to city council members and the city manager about the effectiveness of the code enforcement program, Eastvale needed a more efficient way for its staff to manage and communicate around code enforcement cases.

Solution

Eastvale updated its entire code enforcement process, allowing staff to now document inspections, set follow-up reminders, and view enforcement activity using GOGov. The city also enhanced communication with residents without sacrificing staff time through automated notifications on the new MyEastvale app.

With the many process improvements, the CES team was able to work on hundreds more cases per year than before, and even better, citizens saw the difference. As the level of customer service increased, fewer complaints were submitted to the city council and the city manager about cases being dropped or not being handled.

Having centralized the customer service and processes involved in code enforcement, the Community Enhancement and Safety team can concentrate on proactive enforcement to improve the quality of life for Eastvale's residents.

Outcomes

Outcome 1

The Community Enhancement and Safety team was able to handle over 600 more code enforcement cases per full-time employee in 2021 than in 2019, a 270% increase

Outcome 2

The city council and city manager no longer receive complaints from residents about cases not being followed up on

Outcome 3

Integration with other processes has allowed Eastvale’s departments to work smarter and deliver better customer service to residents

Outcome 4

The city’s mobile app has made it easy for residents to engage with the city, with over 1,400 residents now able to conveniently submit requests, access news, and message city officials

Outcome 5

Eastvale has used data to adopt a more proactive approach to code enforcement, educating residents in areas with frequent violations about potential property issues