TO: NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES
AND EDUCATION
COMMITTEE
FROM: Chris Burton
SUBJECT: Focus Area Service Team
Pilot Program Status Report
DATE: October 28, 2024
Approved Date:
11/7/2024
RECOMMENDATION
Accept the Focus Area Service Team Pilot Program Status Report.
BACKGROUND
As part of the Mayor’s March Budget Message for FY 2023-2024, the City Council directed the City Manager to work with Code Enforcement, BeautifySJ, and the City Attorney’s Office to develop strategies for rapidly resolving blighted private properties. In response, the City Manager collaborated with Code Enforcement to create the Focus Area Service Team (FAST) Pilot Program, leveraging existing resources to enhance enforcement efforts, address blight promptly, and promote compliance on private property.
On June 9, 2023, the City Council accepted the report on the proposed FAST Pilot Program. The report detailed the program model, six focus areas, scope of enforcement, staffing, duration, outreach strategy, and plans for tracking, evaluation, and analysis.
The pilot program included three main steps: targeted outreach and education, proactive inspections, and expedited enforcement focusing on common blight violations visible from the sidewalk or street. The program aimed to explore potential changes to Code Enforcement’s service delivery model, including resource assessment, opportunities for strategic investments in core services, the effectiveness of municipal codes and fines, and improvements in outreach, education, community partnerships, and interdepartmental coordination.
FAST Pilot Program Implementation
Program Development and Staffing: From August to November 2023, the team developed the FAST pilot program, finalizing the work plan, objectives, and focus areas.
Staff created multilingual outreach and education materials, an interactive GIS map, a COMMITTEE AGENDA: 11/14/2024
ITEM: (d)3
NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES AND EDUCATION COMMITTEE
October 28, 2024
Subject: Focus Area Service Team Pilot Program Status Report
program webpage, and performance metrics. The program's main goals included enhancing blight enforcement, promoting compliance, and analyzing the program's effectiveness. The core team consisted of 13 members from Code Enforcement and the PBCE Communications team, supported by various city departments and external resources.
FAST Focus Areas: The program targeted six focus areas identified based on the highest volume of blight complaints, representing 28% of the blight cases resolved in the past year. These areas spanned multiple Council Districts and were selected to ensure equitable administration and address historically blighted neighborhoods.
Exhibit A- FAST Focus Areas
FAST Process: The program was conducted in three phases, each involving preliminary dashboard surveys, targeted outreach, inspections, and enforcement to achieve compliance. The preliminary dashboard survey was added to establish benchmarks for outreach effectiveness and to identify conditions that must be present for 72 hours before being deemed violations per the municipal code. Early feedback led to adding a Warning Notice step in Phases 2 and 3 to allow voluntary compliance before issuing citations, aligning with normal operations. The overall process averaged 148 days to complete, with Phase 1 taking 172 days, Phase 2 taking 143 days, and Phase 3 completing in 130 days.
Exhibit B- FAST Process
*The warning notice step was added after the first phase due to feedback from the community, Mayor, and Council Outreach and Education: The program utilized a multipronged approach to ensure effective communication and outreach, including multilingual letters, informational flyers and educational videos, a dedicated program webpage, and a social media campaign on platforms like Nextdoor, Facebook, Instagram, and X. This variety of tools aimed to
NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES AND EDUCATION COMMITTEE
October 28, 2024
Subject: Focus Area Service Team Pilot Program Status Report
raise awareness, provide resources, and encourage voluntary compliance among residents and property owners, generating significant community engagement.
Exhibit C- Multilingual Outreach and Education Examples (Nextdoor Organic Post and Video Excerpt)
Community Engagement: Staff conducted virtual and neighborhood community meetings to inform and support residents. Presentations were in Spanish, Vietnamese, and English, with a Spanish interpreter available for Phases 1 and 2. Staff held six virtual community meetings and attended additional neighborhood meetings including Hyde Park, Mount Pleasant, Alum Rock Village Committee, and Downtown San José Business Association, reaching a total of 62 community members. A participant survey, mailed to 11,376 properties, gauged the program’s effectiveness and impact and gathered feedback on the program.
Interdepartmental Collaboration: The FAST team collaborated with PRNS and Council District staff to promote the pilot program and provide direct resources to FAST area residents to support compliance. Key efforts included coordinating Dumpster Day events to align with FAST areas and phases, as well as promoting the Graffiti Removal and Free Junk Pickup Programs. In total approximately 3,000 informational flyers were distributed in conjunction with Dumpster Day events by PRNS and Code staff.
To maximize the effectiveness of the program, staff used the San José 311 mobile app to proactively report and request junk and debris pickup during FAST area inspections.
In total, staff made 61 referrals, primarily for household items (70%) or appliances (21%) found on park strips and sidewalks, with 93% (57 of the 61 referrals) occurring during Phase 1 (FAST areas 1 and 2). Phase 3, which included FAST areas 5 and 6, had no referrals.
NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES AND EDUCATION COMMITTEE
October 28, 2024
Subject: Focus Area Service Team Pilot Program Status Report
ANALYSIS
Data Analytics and Insights
Case and Violation Analysis
A total of 463 blight cases were opened under the pilot program, excluding test, duplicate, and referral cases. A total of 553 blight violations were identified for enforcement with 518 violations (94%) brought into compliance. Upon conclusion of the pilot in July 2024, 434 cases (94%) were closed for compliance, with 29 cases remaining open due to outstanding violation(s) not being corrected.
The area with the highest number of cases and violations was FAST 3 with a total of 179 cases and 222 violations. FAST area 5 had the lowest number of cases and violations with 21 and 25 respectively. The number of violations per case also varied among FAST areas. As shown in Table 2- Violation to Case Ratio by FAST Area, FAST area 3 averaged 1.24 violations per case whereas FAST area 6 averaged 1.04 violations per case. Case closure and violation compliance rates also differed with FAST area 4 having the lowest case closure and violation compliance rate and FAST area 6 having the highest rates inferring that there may have been challenges in reaching compliance for FAST area 4 residents.
Table 1- Closed Case and Violation Data by FAST area
Focus
Area
Closed
Case
Count
Open
Case
Count
Total
Case
Count
% of
caseload that
reached
compliance
Closed
Violation
Count
Open
Violation
Count
Total
Violation
Count
% of
violations that
reached
compliance
FAST 1 95 7 102 93.1% 113 7 120 94.2%
FAST 2 72 5 77 93.5% 82 5 87 94.3%
FAST 3 169 10 179 94.4% 206 16 222 92.8%
FAST 4 54 6 60 90.0% 68 6 74 91.9%
FAST 5 20 1 21 95.2% 24 1 25 96.0%
FAST 6 24 0 24 100.0% 25 0 25 100.0%
TOTAL 434 29 463 93.7% 518 35 553 93.7%
Table 2- Violation to Case Ratio by FAST Area
FAST 1 FAST 2 FAST 3 FAST 4 FAST 5 FAST 6
Violation to
Case Ratio
1.18 1.13 1.24 1.23 1.19 1.04
NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES AND EDUCATION COMMITTEE
October 28, 2024
Subject: Focus Area Service Team Pilot Program Status Report
Table 3- Total Number of Violations by Type
Muni Code Violation # of Violations
17.72.525 Overgrown Vegetation 15
17.72.555* Unsecured Refrigerator* 1
17.72.565 Inoperable Vehicle 49
17.72.570 Household Items 71
17.72.575 Boxes, Lumber, Dirt, Debris 56
17.72.600 Lawn Parking 278
9.57.300 Graffiti on Property 82
9.57.310 Graffiti on Vehicle 1
Grand Total 553
Not included in original scope of FAST program violations* Variation in Case Duration and Violation Resolution Across FAST Areas Like other metrics, case duration and time to resolve violations varied across the FAST areas. On average, cases in the FAST pilot program took 66 days to resolve with FAST 2 having the longest average case duration of 74 days and FAST 6 with the shortest average case duration of 57 days. Similarly, violation resolution varied from 47 to 66 days with FAST area 3 having the shortest average timeline to correct violations despite having the highest number of violations (222) and FAST area 2 having the longest average timeline to correct violations 66 days with only 87 violations.
Interestingly, considering the most common types of violations in FAST area 3 and FAST area 2, one can infer a correlation between the type of violation and the time required to resolve it. For example, most violations in FAST 3 were parking on unpaved surfaces ("lawn parking") at 70% of all violations followed by storage of boxes, lumber, and other debris at 11% whereas the most common violation in FAST area 2 was graffiti making up 49% of all cases. FAST data showed that, across all FAST areas, graffiti on property took the longest time to comply with, averaging 71 days, while lawn parking averaged 49 days, and storing of boxes, lumber, and debris averaged 48 days. This data could indicate that certain violations may be more difficult or costly to address and thus require more time to resolve. This is further demonstrated by the fact that FAST 2 not only had the highest rate of time to resolve violations but also highest case duration, and the highest number of required inspections.
Table 4- Average Case Duration, # of Days to Close Violations, and # of Inspections to Case Closure
Focus Area Average Case Duration
(by days)
Average # of Days to Close
Violations
Avg # of Inspections to
Case Closure
FAST 1 66 52 3.2
FAST 2 74 66 3.5
FAST 3 63 47 2.6
FAST 4 65 50 2.7
FAST 5 66 61 2.9
FAST 6 57 54 2.7
Total 66 52 2.9
NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES AND EDUCATION COMMITTEE
October 28, 2024
Subject: Focus Area Service Team Pilot Program Status Report
Across all FAST areas, the most common violations identified were lawn parking and graffiti on property. Graffiti was most prevalent along the main throughways and corridors in FAST 1, 2 where mostly commercial and industrial properties are located.
Lawn parking was most common in the residential neighborhoods of FAST 3, 4, and 6.
Considering the variation in the types of prevalent violations in each FAST area, it becomes clear that targeted outreach and education are needed to address specific needs. Further analysis is also necessary to understand the characteristics and demographics of the neighborhoods and the types of violations experienced to ensure effective service delivery in those areas.
Overall compliance for blight violations averaged 94%. Inoperable vehicles had the lowest compliance rate at 85%, followed by graffiti on private property at 89%.
Overgrown vegetation and graffiti on vehicles had the highest rate of compliance indicating potentially greater feasibility of achieving compliance. The lower compliance rate for inoperable vehicles could be due to challenges property owners may have in complying with municipal code requirements, such as restoring the vehicle's operability, removing it, or storing it in a garage or rear yard. FAST 4, where inoperable vehicles were the second most common violation, had the lowest compliance rate at 92%, suggesting that the high percentage of inoperable vehicle violations impacted the overall compliance rate.
Exhibit D- Average # of Days to Close Violations by Type
NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES AND EDUCATION COMMITTEE
October 28, 2024
Subject: Focus Area Service Team Pilot Program Status Report
Table 5- Most Common Violations by FAST Area
% of Total # of Violations
FAST
Area
Total #
of
Violations
Graffiti Household
Items
Overgrown
Vegetation
Lawn
Parking
Boxes,
Lumber,
Dirt, Debris
Inoperable
Vehicle
Graffiti on
Vehicle
1 120 31% 25%
2 87 49% 22%
3 222 70% 11%
4 74 62% 14%
5 25 48% 24%
6 25 76% 12%
Table 6- Compliance Rate by Violation Type
Muni Code Description Compliance Rate
17.72.525 Overgrown Vegetation 100%
17.72.565 Inoperable Vehicle 85%
17.72.570 Household Items 93%
17.72.575 Boxes, Lumber, Dirt, Debris 93%
17.72.600 Lawn Parking 96%
9.57.300 Graffiti on Property 89%
9.57.310 Graffiti on Vehicle 100%
Table 7- Compliance Rate by FAST Area
Citations and Fines
Of the 434 cases opened in the FAST pilot program, 194 (41.9%) achieved compliance through outreach and education and an additional 87 cases (18.8%) reached compliance after a Warning Notice was issued. Thus 61% of all cases were closed for compliance before receiving the first citation. Of the 182 properties that received citations, a total of 282 citations were issued. Data in the below table shows that 62% of cases were brought into compliance after the first citation, which ranged from $100 to $250. The second citation, ranging from $200 to $750, resulted in an additional 19% compliance, bringing the total to 81%. Only 3% of violators required a third citation, ranging from $300 to $800, before achieving compliance.
This data suggests that outreach and education is the most effective tool in achieving compliance. When a citation is necessary, most residents will comply after the first citation. This indicates that current fine amounts are effective in motivating compliance for most property owners. Further, the drop in compliance after the first citation indicates FAST Area Total Violation Count Compliance Rate
FAST 1 120 94%
FAST 2 87 94%
FAST 3 222 93%
FAST 4 74 92%
FAST 5 25 96%
FAST 6 25 100%
NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES AND EDUCATION COMMITTEE
October 28, 2024
Subject: Focus Area Service Team Pilot Program Status Report
that additional citations may be less impactful. Further evaluation would be needed to determine if other factors may be contributing to the lack of compliance or if increased escalating fine amounts for subsequent violations would improve compliance.
Table 8- Enforcement Tools and Compliance Findings
Outreach and
Education
Warning Notice Citation (Fines) Total
Closed Cases 194 87 153 434
Compliance Rate 41.9% 18.8% 33.0% 94%
Table 9- Compliance Rate by # of Citations Issued
# of Citation Issuance Compliance Rate Citation (Fine) Amount Range 1 st Citation 62% $100 - $250
2 nd Citation 19% $200 - $750
3 rd Citation 3% $300 - $800
Comparison of FAST Pilot Program and Citywide Blight Enforcement Key data points reveal significant differences between the proactive FAST pilot program and the current complaint response model in terms of number of cases processed, number of inspections, average case duration, and compliance rates.
The FAST pilot program model showed that more blight cases could be processed in a shorter amount of time with targeted outreach and education, proactive inspections, and dedicated, focused resources. In the year prior, Code Enforcement opened 375 blight cases based on complaints from the public in the FAST areas. These cases were processed by the area inspector who also carries a caseload of addressing other violations and complaint types such as building, zoning, substandard housing, solid waste, or a combination thereof. On average, the cases took 129 days from open date to case resolution and closure. Under the FAST pilot program, 434 cases were proactively opened over approximately 5 months and had an average case duration of 66 days. Additionally, the compliance rate after the first citation was 12% higher in the FAST program, achieving 62% compliance compared to 50% citywide. Data also show that each case required 2.1 inspections from open date to case closure. In contrast, the FAST program averaged 2.91 inspections per case. The increased number of average inspections per case is likely due to the need for a preliminary dashboard survey inspection, part of the FAST process, to observe violations that must be present for 72 hours before they are considered municipal code violations.
These efficiency improvements under the FAST pilot program model cannot be fully recognized without considering the impact and influence of the robust outreach and education campaign that came before the inspection and enforcement stage on compliance. By amplifying outreach and education through a variety or new and traditional methods, the FAST program saw a high compliance rate at first compliance inspection. Another critical factor is the ability for FAST inspectors to proactively
NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES AND EDUCATION COMMITTEE
October 28, 2024
Subject: Focus Area Service Team Pilot Program Status Report
address violations and focus exclusively on blight cases allowing for faster case processing. In the current service delivery model, cases often involve multiple types of violations, making them more complex and resulting in longer resolution times.
Additionally, inspectors receive new cases from the public daily, with varying priorities, which diverts resources and attention to ensure priority and emergency cases involving health and safety meet required response times. Lastly, inspectors are carrying a highvolume caseload of an average of 358 cases per inspector making efficient case management an ongoing challenge.
Table 10- Compliance Rate post Citation Issuance- FAST vs. Citywide # of Citation
Issuance
FAST
Compliance
Citywide
Compliance
1 62% 50%
2 19% 16%
3 3% 8%
Outreach and Education Tools
Social Media
The team launched four organic posts across Facebook, Instagram, X, and Nextdoor.
Among these platforms, Nextdoor generated the highest impression (view) count, with approximately 50 times more views than Facebook, Instagram, and X. This notable difference is attributed to the audience reach; while Facebook, Instagram, and X limit views to page followers, Nextdoor shares posts with all residents of San José. In addition to increased impressions, Nextdoor posts prompted higher engagement levels, marked by a mix of positive, negative, and constructive comments.
In addition to the organic posts, the team spent a budget of $460 for targeted paid ads on Facebook and Instagram focused on specific FAST areas. The targeted paid ad campaign achieved over 64,000 impressions in total demonstrating a wide reach at low cost. In total, the social media campaign garnered 105,317 views.
Exhibit D- Organic Social Media Posts and Paid Meta Ads Impressions
NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES AND EDUCATION COMMITTEE
October 28, 2024
Subject: Focus Area Service Team Pilot Program Status Report
FAST Program Webpage Activity
The FAST pilot program's webpage traffic increased in tandem with social media outreach efforts and process steps. For example, initial mailers and social media posts in Phase 1 led to an average of 28 visitors per day, with a Nextdoor post garnering 76 comments and a targeted Facebook post generating 94 page visits in four days.
Similarly, citation issuance and media coverage in January increased activity to 169 visitors while mailers prompted 113 webpage visits in Phase 2. Altogether, there were 3,145 visits, 4,207 views, 2,218 unique visitors, and 230 return visitors from November 2023 to April 2024.
The FAST Program webpage behavior map revealed that the GIS map received the highest volume of activity, with visitors using it to check if their property was within a focus area. Frequent searches for the definition of "blight" indicated a need for more focused outreach and education. These insights suggest that further development of tools to support residents, business, and property owners in understanding and addressing blight may be beneficial.
Exhibit E- Webpage User Behavior Map and Activity
Community Survey
To gauge residents' awareness of the pilot program, effectiveness of the outreach and education campaign, and overall impact of the pilot program on the FAST areas, staff conducted a post pilot survey of FAST area residents. Staff mailed a postcard with a survey link and QR access code to all properties in the FAST areas receiving a total of 154 responses. Survey analysis indicated that most respondents were from FAST area
NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES AND EDUCATION COMMITTEE
October 28, 2024
Subject: Focus Area Service Team Pilot Program Status Report
1 (37%), followed by FAST 5 (24%), and FAST 6 (13%). Data also showed that 94% of respondents indicated they did not receive a citation, while 3% stated they were cited.
Among the responses, customers noted that they learned about new city resources through the pilot with 60 respondents learning about Dumpster Day events, 26 about Free Pickup of Unwanted Vehicles, and 56 about San José 311. Survey results also indicated that outreach conducted as part of the Dumpster Day events was one of the most effective methods for raising public awareness about the program. Social media and Nextdoor posts were the second most common ways residents learned about the FAST pilot program and only two respondents learned about the program through the virtual community meetings, highlighting their limited reach.
Lastly, the survey helped staff to understand the impact of the program on the overall conditions of the neighborhood. As part of the survey, respondents were asked to rate the exterior condition of their neighborhood before and after the pilot program. The percentage rating their neighborhood as “Very Good” increased from 17% to 25%, suggesting a positive impact of the program. There was also a 4% decrease in “Poor” ratings, indicating fewer respondents viewed the neighborhood conditions negatively following the program and demonstrating an overall positive shift in perception. Also compelling was the desire for the program to continue with nearly 80% (122) of the respondents expressing a desire for the FAST pilot program to continue in their neighborhood.
Table 11- Community Survey- Condition of Neighborhood
Exhibit F- Community Survey- Program Efficacy
Condition Before Program After Program Change
Excellent 5% 3% -2%
Very Good 17% 25% +8%
Good 32% 31% -1%
Fair 25% 23% -2%
Poor 18% 14% -4%
No Response 4% 4% No change
NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES AND EDUCATION COMMITTEE
October 28, 2024
Subject: Focus Area Service Team Pilot Program Status Report
FAST Pilot Program Costs
Development and administration of the FAST pilot program required significant personal and non-personal resources. Non-personal expenses such as postage, printing, interpretation services, and general supplies totaled $27,406. As of October 17, 2024, PBCE personal expenses totaled to $278,279 for a combined total of $305,685 expended through fiscal year 2023-2024 and first quarter of fiscal year 2024-2025 on the FAST pilot program. There were also additional personal costs in the form of support provided by other city departments that were not calculated or factored in the expense amount indicated above. An accounting of the high-level program expenses is calculated in the table below.
Table 12- FAST Pilot Program Costs
APPN Detail Detail Description Total
0581 4001 SALARIES-REG-FULL TIME 154,853
4003 SALARIES-REG-PART TIME 16,476
4006 SALARIES - OVER TIME 187
4011 BENEFITS: RETIREMENT CONTRIB 79,908
4012 OTHER FRINGE BENEFITS 20,506
4013 OTHER BENEFITS 6,348
0581 Total $278,279
0582 4030 SUPPLIES AND MATERIALS 175
4032 COMM EXPNSE: TELEPHNE-TELEGRPH 16
4033 COMM EXPNSE: POSTAGE 6,900
4034 PRINT/ADV-OUTSIDE VENDORS 15,743
4052 PROF & CONSULTANT SVCS 4,572
0582 Total $27,406
Grand Total $305,685
Lessons Learned and Opportunities
The FAST pilot program affirmed the effectiveness of existing service delivery practices like outreach and education while highlighting opportunities for improvement through new strategies such as targeted social media campaigns. The program successfully
NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES AND EDUCATION COMMITTEE
October 28, 2024
Subject: Focus Area Service Team Pilot Program Status Report
raised public awareness through a multimedia outreach campaign and increased partnerships with city departments. Staff gained insights into predominant blight violations, motivators, and challenges to compliance across different communities. It educated residents about city resources like Dumpster Days and San José 311, and improved public perception of neighborhoods, achieving a 94% compliance rate in addressing 553 blight violations in just a few months.
The program impacted service delivery operations, in that General Code Program resources were shifted to the FAST program, with caseloads assigned to a retiree rehire and temporary staff. The launch of the Enhanced Vacant Building and Storefronts effort downtown was delayed to allow the inspector to complete FAST Phase 1.
Approximately 3,072 staff hours were spent on the FAST program, diverting attention from other operations. The following are potential opportunities based on the insights and lessons learned from the pilot program:
1. Implement Targeted Outreach and Expand Educational Resources:
Use paid social media ads, targeted media campaigns, and educational materials tailored to area demographics to raise awareness and provide support.
Utilize educational tools like videos, social media, and web content to promote blight prevention and voluntary property maintenance.
2. Enhance Interdepartmental Collaboration:
Continue partnering with PRNS to leverage outreach opportunities and promote resources such as Dumpster Day events.
Proactively refer issues to San José 311.
3. Expand Community Partnerships:
Build partnerships with Neighborhood and Community Organizations in high-blight areas.
Provide support, improve communications, and enhance transparency.
4. Increase Analysis and Evaluation:
Collaborate with the PW GIS team to use mapping to analyze program data and performance metrics.
Further evaluate impacts of enforcement tools, blight rates in certain areas, and racial and social equity contributing factors to develop strategies to better support residents and distribute resources more equitably.
COORDINATION
This memorandum has been coordinated with the City Attorney's Office and the City Manager’s Budget Office.
NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES AND EDUCATION COMMITTEE
October 28, 2024
Subject: Focus Area Service Team Pilot Program Status Report
/s/
Chris Burton
Director, Planning, Building, and
Code Enforcement
For questions, please contact Rachel Roberts, Deputy Director, Planning, Building, and Code Enforcement, at email [email protected] .