{"title":"Kimberley unsightly property rules and how to report","question":"How do I report an unsightly or overgrown property in Kimberley?","slug":"unsightly-property","place":{"path":"ca/bc/kimberley","name":"Kimberley","region":{"code":"bc","name":"British Columbia"},"country":{"code":"ca","name":"Canada"}},"category":{"slug":"bylaws-and-complaints","name":"Bylaws, noise and complaints"},"owner":"municipal","owner_label":"Municipal","owner_body":{"name":"City of Kimberley","url":"https://www.kimberley.ca"},"short_answer":"Send the City of Kimberley's Bylaw Enforcement Officer a written complaint with your name, address, phone number and the property's location. Under the Good Neighbour Bylaw, owners and occupiers must not let property become unsightly, and grass and weeds over 10 cm are banned.","aliases":["overgrown lot kimberley","messy yard complaint kimberley","junk vehicle on property kimberley","long grass bylaw kimberley","vacant building kimberley"],"cost":"Municipal ticket, first or later offence: unsightly property $250 or $500; overgrown grass or weeds $100 or $200; graffiti, dumping rubbish or abandoning a vehicle $250 or $500. The City may bill its clean-up costs to the owner.","how_long":null,"where":[{"type":"phone","label":"Bylaw Enforcement Officer","value":"250-427-9663"},{"type":"email","label":"Bylaw Enforcement Officer","value":"bylaw@kimberley.ca"}],"documents":["Your name, address and phone number","The address of the property and what the problem is"],"forms":[{"title":"Good Neighbour Bylaw No. 2671, 2020 (PDF)","url":"https://kimberley.civicweb.net/document/93582"},{"title":"Municipal Ticket Information Amendment Bylaw No. 2672, 2021 (PDF)","url":"https://kimberley.civicweb.net/document/81479"},{"title":"Bylaw Enforcement, City of Kimberley","url":"https://www.kimberley.ca/services/bylaw-enforcement"}],"related":[],"nearby":[{"place":"ca/bc/cranbrook","name":"Cranbrook","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/cranbrook/unsightly-property/"},{"place":"ca/bc/canal-flats","name":"Canal Flats","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/canal-flats/unsightly-property/"},{"place":"ca/bc/fernie","name":"Fernie","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/fernie/unsightly-property/"},{"place":"ca/bc/creston","name":"Creston","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/creston/unsightly-property/"},{"place":"ca/bc/kaslo","name":"Kaslo","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/kaslo/unsightly-property/"},{"place":"ca/bc/sparwood","name":"Sparwood","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/sparwood/unsightly-property/"}],"topic":{"title":"Unsightly property fines in British Columbia, by municipality","url":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/unsightly-property/"},"facts":{"what_counts":{"label":"What counts","value":"Owners and occupiers must not let property become or stay unsightly: graffiti, accumulated filth, rubbish or discarded materials, untidy building materials, dead or uncontrolled landscaping, derelict vehicles or structures, standing water, pests. Grass and weeds over 10 cm are banned.","status":"stated","sources":[{"url":"https://kimberley.civicweb.net/document/93582","title":"Good Neighbour Bylaw No. 2671, 2020 (PDF), City of Kimberley","section":"ss. 8.1, 8.7","quotes":["No Owner or Occupier of Real Property shall cause, suffer or permit:","the property to become or remain unsightly;","any Derelict Vehicle to be placed, parked, or stored on the property, unless","No Owner or Occupier of Real Property shall allow Grass or weeds on his or her Real","Property to exceed a height of 10 centimetres."]}],"check":{"result":"matched","text_date":"2026-11-06"}},"how_to_report":{"label":"How to report","value":"Contact the Bylaw Enforcement Officer, 250-427-9663, bylaw@kimberley.ca. Complaints (except urgent safety risks) must be in writing with your name, address, phone, and the nature and specific location of the problem. Anonymous complaints will not be investigated.","status":"stated","sources":[{"url":"https://www.kimberley.ca/services/bylaw-enforcement","title":"Bylaw Enforcement, City of Kimberley","section":"How to make a Complaint","quotes":["All complaints must include the name, address and phone number of the complainant","Anonymous complaints will not be investigated.","Phone: 250-427-9663","E-mail: bylaw@kimberley.ca"]}],"check":{"result":"matched","text_date":"2026-11-06"}},"process":{"label":"What happens next","value":"The Bylaw Enforcement Officer may issue a Compliance Order stating what to fix and a deadline. If it is not met, the City may do the work at the owner's expense; unpaid costs after 30 days can be collected as a debt, and unpaid costs on December 31 are added to property taxes. Council reconsideration must be requested within 10 days.","status":"stated","sources":[{"url":"https://kimberley.civicweb.net/document/93582","title":"Good Neighbour Bylaw No. 2671, 2020 (PDF), City of Kimberley","section":"ss. 10.4, 10.5, 10.9, 10.13","quotes":["the Bylaw Enforcement Officer may issue that person a Compliance Order requiring that person","the deadline by which the non-compliance must be remedied;","at the expense of Owner, Occupier,","if the costs of doing so are not paid within 30 days of the invoice being delivered","unpaid by December 31 of the year in which the requirement was fulfilled,","ten (1 O days of the Compliance Order being served"]}],"check":{"result":"matched","text_date":"2026-11-06"}},"fine":{"label":"Fine","value":"Municipal ticket, first / later offence: property to become unsightly $250 / $500; overgrown grass or weeds $100 / $200; graffiti, dumping rubbish or abandoning a vehicle $250 / $500.","short":"Ticket $250 first offence; $500 later","status":"stated","sources":[{"url":"https://kimberley.civicweb.net/document/81479","title":"Municipal Ticket Information Amendment Bylaw No. 2672, 2021 (PDF), City of Kimberley","section":"Schedule 9","quotes":["Property to become unsightly 8.1 $250.00 $500.00","Place Graffiti - public/ private property 8.2 (a) $250.00 $500.00","Deposit rubbish etc on public/ private property 8.2 (b) $250.00 $500.00","A.bandon vehicle 8.2 (c) $250.00 $500.00","8.7 $100.00 $200.00"]}],"check":{"result":"matched","text_date":"2026-11-06"}},"bylaw":{"label":"Bylaw","value":"City of Kimberley Good Neighbour Bylaw No. 2671, 2020","status":"stated","sources":[{"url":"https://kimberley.civicweb.net/document/93582","title":"Good Neighbour Bylaw No. 2671, 2020 (PDF), City of Kimberley","section":"s. 1.1","quotes":["City of Kimberley Good Neighbour Bylaw No. 2671, 2020"]}],"check":{"result":"matched","text_date":"2026-11-06"}}},"facts_summary":{"total":5,"stated":5,"matched":5,"none":0,"unknown":0},"body_markdown":"## How it works\n\nThe [Good Neighbour Bylaw No. 2671, 2020](<https://kimberley.civicweb.net/document/93582>) says owners and occupiers must not let property become or stay unsightly. That includes graffiti, accumulated filth, rubbish or discarded materials, untidy building materials, dead or uncontrolled landscaping, derelict vehicles or structures, standing water and pests. Grass and weeds over 10 cm are banned, except in xeriscaped areas.\n\n## Steps\n\n1. Note the property address and what is wrong. The City suggests neighbours first try to resolve issues themselves.\n2. Send a written complaint to the Bylaw Enforcement Officer at bylaw@kimberley.ca, with your name, address, phone number, and the nature and specific location of the problem. Except for urgent safety risks, complaints must be in writing. Anonymous complaints are not investigated.\n3. The City's stated approach is voluntary compliance first, through communication and education. Written warnings, municipal tickets, orders and prosecution are also available.\n\n## Good to know\n\n- The officer may issue a Compliance Order saying what to fix and by when. If it is not met, the City may do the work at the owner's expense. Unpaid costs after 30 days can be collected as a debt, and costs unpaid on December 31 are added to property taxes.\n- Council reconsideration of an order must be requested within 10 days.\n- Industrial or commercial sites may keep accumulations their business requires if they are screened.\n- Municipal tickets, first or later offence: unsightly property $250 or $500; overgrown grass or weeds $100 or $200; graffiti, dumping rubbish or abandoning a vehicle $250 or $500.\n- Officers may enter property at reasonable times to inspect.","sources":[{"url":"https://kimberley.civicweb.net/document/93582","title":"Good Neighbour Bylaw No. 2671, 2020 (PDF), City of Kimberley","accessed":"2026-11-05"},{"url":"https://kimberley.civicweb.net/document/81479","title":"Municipal Ticket Information Amendment Bylaw No. 2672, 2021 (PDF), City of Kimberley","accessed":"2026-11-05"},{"url":"https://www.kimberley.ca/services/bylaw-enforcement","title":"Bylaw Enforcement, City of Kimberley","accessed":"2026-11-05"}],"sources_read":"2026-11-05","review":{"status":"machine_checked","badge":"Checked against official text","label":"Checked by script, not yet by a person: the official wording behind 5 of 5 facts was matched to the official text."},"urls":{"html":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/kimberley/unsightly-property/","markdown":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/kimberley/unsightly-property.md","json":"https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/kimberley/unsightly-property.json"}}