---
title: Tumbler Ridge unsightly property rules and how to report
question: "How do I report an unsightly or overgrown property in Tumbler Ridge?"
place: Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, Canada
place_path: ca/bc/tumbler-ridge
category: Bylaws, noise and complaints
owner: municipal
owner_body: District of Tumbler Ridge
sources_read: 2026-11-08
review: machine_checked
canonical: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/tumbler-ridge/unsightly-property/"
json: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/tumbler-ridge/unsightly-property.json"
---

# Tumbler Ridge unsightly property rules and how to report

**Question:** How do I report an unsightly or overgrown property in Tumbler Ridge?

**Short answer:** In Tumbler Ridge, call the Bylaw Enforcement Officer at 250-242-3939 to report an unsightly or overgrown property. Under the Unsightly Premises Bylaw the officer can order the owner to clean up, and the District can do the work at the owner's cost. A ticket is $100.

**Who handles it:** Municipal (District of Tumbler Ridge, https://www.districtoftumblerridge.ca)  
**Cost:** Ticket: $100 per listed offence. Court penalty up to $10,000.  
**How long:** A Removal Order gives 14 days (building materials, vehicles, rubbish, fences) or 7 days (graffiti, garbage, odours, standing water, untidy materials, overgrown vegetation); the order states the period.  
**Where:**
- Phone: Bylaw Enforcement Officer, 250-242-3939 (Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.)
- In person: Town Hall front desk, 305 Iles Way, Tumbler Ridge, BC V0C 2W0 (Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.)

## Key facts

- **What counts:** An owner must not let a parcel become or stay unsightly: accumulated building materials (without a building permit), unregistered or inoperable vehicles, buildings missing coverings, rubbish and scrap, graffiti, uncontained garbage, excessive dog feces or offensive odours, standing water, uncontained compost, untidy storage, damaged fences, overgrown vegetation or weeds (lawns on developed property over 15 cm), dead landscaping, fruit that attracts wildlife, and hazardous trees or hedges.
  - Source: [Unsightly Premises Bylaw No. 444, 2001, consolidated, s. 2.1](https://tumblerridge.civicweb.net/document/28326/)
  - Official wording: "No owner shall cause, allow or permit a parcel to become or to remain unsightly, and," … "including allowing a grass lawn on a developed property to grow higher than 15 centimeters;" … "the accumulation on the parcel of garbage not contained in a covered receptacle;" … "permit any standing water on the parcel"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08
- **How to report:** Contact the Bylaw Enforcement Officer at (250) 242-3939.
  - Source: [Municipal Bylaw Enforcement, Complaint Process](https://www.districtoftumblerridge.ca/p/municipal-bylaw-enforcement)
  - Official wording: "Bylaw Enforcement responds to complaints." … "Please contact the Bylaw Enforcement Officer at (250) 242-3939"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08
- **What happens next:** An officer may deliver a Removal Order: 14 days to comply for items such as building materials, vehicles, rubbish and fences; 7 days for graffiti, garbage, odours, standing water, untidy materials and overgrown vegetation. The owner may apply within 5 business days to appear before Council. If not done, the District may do the work at the owner's cost; unpaid costs are added to taxes on December 31.
  - Source: [Unsightly Premises Bylaw No. 444, 2001, consolidated, ss. 4.1, 4.3, 5.1-5.3](https://tumblerridge.civicweb.net/document/28326/)
  - Official wording: "requiring the removal, clearing or remedying of any thing or things listed in" … "subsections 2.1(a - d, i - j, l), including a class of things, that render the parcel" … "unsightly within 14 days of delivery of the removal order;" … "subsections 2.1(e – h, k, m - p) including a class of things, that render the parcel" … "unsightly within 7 days of delivery of the removal order;" … "within 5 business days from delivery of the removal order." … "the District shall add the cost of the work to the taxes due and owing on the" … "affected parcel."
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08
- **Fine:** Municipal ticket: $100 for each listed offence (for example rubbish, unsightly grass or weeds, graffiti, vehicle on property).
  - Source: [Municipal Ticket Information Bylaw No. 560, 2011, consolidated, Schedule 11](https://tumblerridge.civicweb.net/document/28324/)
  - Official wording: "Rubbish on Property" … "Unsightly Grass or Weeds" … "Vehicle on Property"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08
- **Bylaw:** Unsightly Premises Bylaw No. 444, 2001 (amended by Nos. 652, 2017 and 704, 2021).
  - Source: [Unsightly Premises Bylaw No. 444, 2001, consolidated, Cover and s. 9.1](https://tumblerridge.civicweb.net/document/28326/)
  - Official wording: "UNSIGHTLY PREMISE BYLAW" … "No. 444, 2001" … "Unsightly Premise Amendment" … "Bylaw No. 704, 2021"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08

## How it works

The District of Tumbler Ridge's [Unsightly Premises Bylaw No. 444](<https://tumblerridge.civicweb.net/document/28326/>) says an owner must not let a parcel become or stay unsightly. Bylaw Enforcement responds to complaints and tries first to get voluntary compliance.

## Steps

1. Call the Bylaw Enforcement Officer at 250-242-3939. The District's page says you can also complain by email, but it gives no address.
2. An officer may deliver a Removal Order to the owner.
3. The owner has 14 days to comply for items such as building materials, vehicles, rubbish and fences, or 7 days for graffiti, garbage, odours, standing water, untidy materials and overgrown vegetation. The order states the interval.
4. The owner may apply within 5 business days to appear before Council.
5. If the work is not done, the District may do it at the owner's cost. Unpaid costs are added to the property taxes on December 31.

## Good to know

- Covered: accumulated building materials (without a building permit), unregistered or inoperable vehicles, rubbish and scrap, graffiti, uncontained garbage, excessive dog feces or offensive odours, standing water, uncontained compost, untidy storage, damaged fences, overgrown weeds or vegetation (lawns on developed property over 15 cm), dead landscaping, and hazardous trees or hedges. See s. 2.1 for exceptions.
- A municipal ticket is $100 per listed offence ([Municipal Ticket Information Bylaw No. 560](<https://tumblerridge.civicweb.net/document/28324/>)). Each day is a separate offence.

## Official forms and pages

- [Unsightly Premises Bylaw No. 444, 2001, consolidated (PDF), District of Tumbler Ridge](https://tumblerridge.civicweb.net/document/28326/)
- [Municipal Ticket Information Bylaw No. 560, 2011, consolidated (PDF), District of Tumbler Ridge](https://tumblerridge.civicweb.net/document/28324/)
- [Municipal Bylaw Enforcement, District of Tumbler Ridge](https://www.districtoftumblerridge.ca/p/municipal-bylaw-enforcement)

## Related questions

- [Tumbler Ridge bylaw fines and how tickets work](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/tumbler-ridge/bylaw-fines.md)
- [Tumbler Ridge noise bylaw: quiet hours, construction hours and fines](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/tumbler-ridge/noise-rules.md)
- [Tumbler Ridge backyard fire and burning rules](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/tumbler-ridge/backyard-fire.md)

## The same question elsewhere

- [Unsightly property fines in British Columbia, by municipality](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/unsightly-property.md)
- [Chetwynd](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/chetwynd/unsightly-property.md)
- [Dawson Creek](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/dawson-creek/unsightly-property.md)
- [Pouce Coupe](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/pouce-coupe/unsightly-property.md)
- [Mackenzie](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/mackenzie/unsightly-property.md)
- [Fort St. John](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/fort-st-john/unsightly-property.md)
- [Prince George](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/prince-george/unsightly-property.md)

## Sources

- [Unsightly Premises Bylaw No. 444, 2001, consolidated (PDF), District of Tumbler Ridge](https://tumblerridge.civicweb.net/document/28326/) (read 2026-11-08)
- [Municipal Ticket Information Bylaw No. 560, 2011, consolidated (PDF), District of Tumbler Ridge](https://tumblerridge.civicweb.net/document/28324/) (read 2026-11-08)
- [Municipal Bylaw Enforcement, District of Tumbler Ridge](https://www.districtoftumblerridge.ca/p/municipal-bylaw-enforcement) (read 2026-11-08)

_Checked by script, not yet by a person: the official wording behind 5 of 5 facts was matched to the official text. Gov Handbook is an independent guide, not affiliated with District of Tumbler Ridge. How answers are checked: https://govhandbook.com/methods/ · Canonical page: https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/tumbler-ridge/unsightly-property/_