A number of Ceres residents came before the Ceres City Council on Oct. 28 in protest of the city coming down on them for having carports.

The Ceres Municipal Code does not allow carports and city officials have notified a number of residents to take theirs down.

“We were getting various complaints and code enforcement is complaint based,” explained Community Development Director Lea Simvoulakis. “Somebody was complaining about a carport so they went out to give the fine and then noticed another one. They’re popping up I think because it’s been unchecked.”

Simvoulakis said that since 1968 city code does not allow structures in the front setback, which is typical of all suburban zoning.

“People have been getting code enforcement letters, asking them to take them down, that they are a violation of the municipal code. They’re unpermitted. They didn’t pay any fees. They’ve never been inspected so they’re not technically safe structures that have building permits.”

Property owners who received the letters naturally don’t want to remove their carports and asked the council to amend the code to permit them. To do that, Simvoulakis said the council would have to develop standards, determine what kinds of building materials are allowed, where they may be located and how high they can be.

Pastor Jose Magana was the first to complain to the council, saying that when he received his letter from the city that he thought it was addressing several trailers in front of his house. He said the trailers are used in a ministry feeding 3,700 people each week and helping those fighting addiction and the homeless. But the letter turned out to be a complaint about his carport at the side of his house.

“They gave me a couple of days to take it out,” Magana told the council. “I’m here with all these guys. We all have nice carports. We’re asking for an amendment to do something so we can still have our nice – I paid $11,000 for a carport — for a ministry. That was a lot of money.”

Mayor Javier Lopez said city staff would get back to him.

Luis Martinez, a resident at 2204 Louise Avenue, said he is willing to pay an annual fee to keep his carport which he said is used to load and unloaded a wheelchair into vehicles. “It’s pretty difficult when it’s storming out,” added Martinez.

Derek Cowell spoke on behalf of his parents who live at the corner of Lunar and Fowler who also received a notice. He too asked the council to consider a change in local zoning law.

“From what I understand, with the progressive movement in the early 1900s, codes were written for safety, sanitation,” said Cowell. “They had very practical applications for the good of the people that were living on that property. And so any ordinances that don’t abide by that criteria and don’t seem to be necessary, we’d like to ask that you would consider reconsidering.”

Simvoulakis noted that the Cowell’s carport is “very large” and impedes visibility for a neighbor because it runs right to the sidewalk. The Cowells have a corner lot so their front side yard is somebody else’s front yard “and it’s blocking their view backing out their car,” she added.

The subdivision map recorded for that the subdivision the Cowells live in also states that no structures are to be placed within 20 feet of the street.

“There are reasons we have the restriction.”

Besides visibility, she feels carports negatively affect the aesthetics of neighborhoods.

Some of carports have intruded on the public utility easements and have caused problems. For example, she said the city is installing sidewalks in Morrow Village and carports are in the way.

“They don’t own all the way to the edge of their property where they have placed some of these carports. We have right-of-way and we’re going to put sidewalks there. You can’t have your structure in the public right of way. They’re going to have to move it back if they get to keep it at all because we have a right to put a sidewalk there and things like that.”

Joy Avenue resident Janet See said she has a “very nice” carport and requested an ordinance change “so we can keep these very nice carports. The weather’s not getting any cooler. We had almost 50 days of over a hundred degrees. I don’t think this is too much to ask. These are not tattered carports. These are very well constructed carports and it’s my understanding that one of the people …on the city council has one.”

See said she spent a lot of money to have hers built and doesn’t have the funds to tear it down and remove it.

“It just seems absolutely crazy that I can’t keep my carport. There’s no visibility issue. There’s nothing.”

Simvoulakis said some of the carports were added in recent years, probably because the city was lax on enforcement and they were allowed to slide by. 

“I think that when someone sees their neighbor do it it’s like, ‘oh, it must be allowed so then I can go do it.’”

Since the council has called for increased enforcement of code violations some residents are getting upset, she noted.

“Just because you didn’t know it was the code doesn’t mean that it wasn’t and this particular restriction it’s not a new one.”

Simvoulakis said she doesn’t know of any other city that allows carports.

“I used to work in a very wurban city and it’s not allowed. And there’s arguments that in a more urban setting you want to bring the building to the street, bring the front doors to the street but these structures (carports) are ultimately going to accumulate junk. That’s why people don’t park in their garages, right, because they’re full of junk.”

She noted that one Lunar Drive carport not only is used to cover a boat but also used for storage but the garage was illegally converted to living space.

At the end of the meeting Councilman Daniel Martinez suggested that the council revisit the matter and “see if there’s anything we can do to help these people who came here this evening.”