The Code Enforcement Division is responsible for enforcement of certain ordinances and citizen compliance with City codes dealing with substandard housing, junk, unlicensed vehicles, mobile homes, signs, and other nuisances.

Grass & Weeds

Grasses and weeds must be less than 10 inches tall at all times. If your yard is not watered and becomes a fire hazard, you may be cited even if it is less than 10 inches in height.

Vehicles

Inoperative or unlicensed vehicles may not be parked on your property except within a building or in the side or rear yard behind a sight-obscuring fence (CMC 17.18.140). Body work or a major repair to your vehicle must be performed within a structure approved for such purposes. Any vehicle parked on a public street must be moved at least once every 72 hours. Major repairs and vehicles held for sale are prohibited on city streets.

Living Arrangements

The number of unrelated persons living within a house or apartment is set by the zoning code. To check zoning at a particular address, contact the Community Development Department at 509-498-9240. The following section of the Cheney Municipal Code addresses this issue:

CMC 21.48.027 - Residential occupancy.
(a) A dwelling unit may be occupied by only one family or functional family plus a number of unrelated persons as specified in the table below.

(b) In addition to a family or functional family, the following number of persons may reside in a dwelling unit as determined by zone.

Zone and Number of Unrelated Persons Allowed

• SR-2, Semi-Rural Residential: 0
• CALR, Critical Areas Limited Residential: 0
• R-1, Single-Family Residential: 1
• R-2, Two-Family Residential: 2
• R-3, Multi-Family Residential: 3
• R-3H, High Density Multi-Family: 3
• C-1, Downtown Commercial: 0
• C-2, General Commercial: 0

(c) Except as authorized in this section, it shall be presumed that more than two adult persons unrelated by blood or marriage occupying a single dwelling unit are but a group of casual acquaintances living together for a limited duration, not to function as a family as defined herein, but for convenience and economic advantage. It shall be the burden of the occupant to rebut the presumption by clear and convincing evidence.

(d) Anyone seeking the right and privileges afforded a member of a family or functional family by this title shall have the burden of proof by clear and convincing evidence of each of the elements comprising the respective definitions of a family or functional family defined in this section.

• CMC Title 19 and all ordinances relating to the City Building Code and dangerous buildings
• CMC Title 20 and all ordinances relating to mobile/manufactured homes and mobile/manufactured home parks
• CMC Title 21 and all ordinances relating to zoning and land use
• CMC Chapter 8.12 and all ordinances relating to garbage collection and disposal
• CMC Title 15 and all ordinances relating to sewer and sewage disposal
• 2015 International Building Code
• 2015 International Residential Code
• 2015 International Mechanical Code
• 2015 International Fire Code
• 2015 Uniform Plumbing Code
• 2015 International Fuel Gas Code
• NFPA Standard No. 58 for Propane Installations
• 2015 International Property Maintenance Code
• WAC 51-11 - The Washington State Energy Code