10/29/2026
YOU GOT A NOTICE. HERE'S HOW TO CLEAR IT.
Did you receive a Code Compliance notice from the City of Eloy for w**ds, trash, or overgrown plants? Do the five things below and finish by the date on your notice. You do not have to clear the whole lot. Most desert plants can stay right where they are.
FIVE THINGS TO DO
1. Remove the trash and debris. Junk, tires, appliances, furniture, and building material, including what is hidden under the brush. (§ 10-30(A)(1))
2. Cut grass shorter than 12 inches. Pulling w**ds out by the roots works better than cutting. (§ 10-30(A)(7))
3. Clean up to the edge of the street. Your job runs from the curb, edge of pavement, or edge of roadway, across your lot, and halfway into any alley behind it. (§ 10-30(B))
4. Trim tree branches up to about 5 feet, so you can see under the tree and walk under it. On a corner lot, thin up to 10 feet. (§ 21-4-2.11)
5. Pull dead and w**dy plants. Leave living mesquite, palo verde, ironwood, creosote, cactus, and other native plants standing. (§ 10-30(A)(7))
DO NOT CLEAR THE LOT DOWN TO BARE DIRT
This notice is not telling you to remove native plants (trees, shrubs, grass) or to scrape the lot. Losing the plants that hold your soil in place causes dust and washouts. Remove the w**ds, trash, and dead plants.
CORNERS AND STREET EDGES
Most complaints come down to one thing: drivers cannot see.
Keep the corner clear:
- Measure 33 feet back from the corner along each curb, edge of pavement, or edge of roadway, then draw a line between the two points. This is the sight triangle.
- Keep the triangle and the strip out to the street clear of walls, fences, and material. Native live plants must be trimmed to no more than 24 inches tall.
- Nothing taller than 24 inches may be placed in the triangle, including bushes, walls, fences, or signs.
- Do not plant new trees in the triangle. Any new plants must have a maximum growth height of 24 inches. (§ 21-4-2.11, § 21-4-2.5)
Trees over the street:
- Trim the lowest branches to about 5 feet off the ground, or remove the tree. Cut where the branch meets the trunk. Do not cut off the top of the tree or strip it bare.
- Cut back any branches hanging over the street or sidewalk. If a car or a person has to go around it, it needs to be trimmed. Branches should be no lower than 8 feet over a sidewalk and 14 feet over a street.
- A tree already growing in the triangle can stay. Trim its branches up so drivers can see under it. (§ 10-30(B), § 21-4-2.11)
WHAT STAYS, WHAT GOES
The rules ask for a clean lot, not an empty one. Desert plants are welcome.
KEEP: Desert plants. Trim them; do not take them out.
- Trees: Velvet mesquite, palo verde, desert ironwood
- Shrubs: Creosote bush, brittlebush, bursage, wolfberry, fairy duster, jojoba, desert hackberry
- Ground cover: Blackfoot daisy, desert marigold, trailing indigo bush, damianita
- Cactus: Saguaro, cholla, prickly pear, and other cactus
Planting something new? Pick from the Arizona Department of Water Resources plant list for the Pinal County Active Management Area. (§ 21-4-2.5(D)(1))
Taking out a protected plant like a saguaro or ironwood? Notify the Arizona Department of Agriculture first. (A.R.S. § 3-904)
REMOVE: Fast-spreading w**ds. These w**ds crowd out desert plants and burn fast.
- Stinknet (globe chamomile), a state-listed w**d. Wear gloves; it can irritate your skin and lungs.
- Buffelgrass, Sahara mustard, salt cedar (tamarisk), and fountain grass
Pull them before they go to seed, roots and all. Bag them for the trash. Do not compost or burn them, and do not leave the pile on the lot.
WHAT HAPPENS IF THE WORK IS NOT DONE
Give us a call. We would rather work with property owners so they can address the violation on their own. If the deadline passes and the work is not completed:
1. The City cleans it. City crews or a contractor will clear the property. (§ 10-30(G))
2. You pay for it. The cost of the work, plus ten percent for inspection and paperwork, is billed to you as a lien. (§ 10-30(G))
3. It follows the property. An unpaid bill is filed with Pinal County and stays on the property until it is paid. (§ 10-30(H))
4. You can appeal. Send a written request for a hearing to the City before the deadline on your notice. (§ 10-30(I))
Questions? Contact City of Eloy Code Compliance at 520-466-9201 or visit us at 595 N. C Street, Suite 104, Eloy, AZ 85131.
