Officials Mull Clampdown on Excessive Holiday Displays, Nuisance Properties

An upscale Preston Hollow home known for going over the top when it comes to holiday decorations is once again garnering significant attention, this time for its Halloween display. The decked-out house has officials mulling new code violations to clamp down on properties that become neighborhood nuisances.

No doubt readers will remember the extravagant Christmas display last year that captivated social media and the thousands of onlookers who traveled to Preston Hollow to take in the awesome lights and decor in person. Not everyone walked away from the holiday season full of Christmas cheer, though.

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Some $25,000 in police resources had to be dedicated to the neighborhood to manage the volume of visitors to DeLoache Avenue, where the property sits. Council members on the Quality of Life, Arts & Culture Committee were divided on how to deal with the unique holiday situation, requesting a multi-department brainstorming effort back in April to tackle “extraordinary neighborhood events.”

Now, with spooky season in full swing, the house is back in the news for its elaborate Halloween decorations. The committee reconvened on Monday to discuss what could be done to address issues ranging from high-intensity lighting to valet parking in single-family neighborhoods.

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Staff from the code compliance, transportation, planning and development, and police departments gave their two cents on added guardrails to the city code that could curtail alleged nuisance properties. Ideas included:

• Expanding the definition of a “commercial amusement” and prohibiting a commercial event at a residence.
• Adding prohibitions against “excessive” illumination, which could be determined by neighbor complaints, sustained crowding, public safety concerns, etc.
• Adding mechanical loudspeakers or sound amplifiers in residential areas during specific times as presumed noise offensive.
• Limiting the length of time or frequency a private residence can deploy valet parking on neighborhood streets.

“This is really about protecting our neighborhoods and the peace of our residents,” said Council Member Gay Donnell Willis (District 13), who represents Preston Hollow. “There are lots of events that bring communities together that help benefit a school or neighborhood beautification, and this is not about that. … This is about the fact that we have some things really testing the limits of what goes on in our neighborhoods, and we’ve had some bad actors out there that are really exploiting neighborhoods and neighbors.”

Officials suggested any changes to the city code would need to be carefully crafted so as to not unnecessarily put non-nuisance properties out of compliance over things like private security lights, fundraising parties, neighborhood events, or large family gatherings.

Staff said there were dozens of properties a year incurring hundreds of complaints that fit the bill of what the city wants to get a handle on. Jeremy Reed, assistant director for Code Compliance, noted that they tend to look different depending on what part of town they’re located in.

“It could be houses that are being rented out specifically for having a party, or it could be what some deemed commercial grade holiday displays, or it could be a concert put on in the backyard of a large, rural-type property,” Reed said, stating that officials want to mitigate any spillover or nuisance effects stemming from enforcement gaps related noise, parking issues, traffic congestion, or lighting.

Willis tried to put the matter before the full council, but a majority of the committee shot down the motion, with members saying it was premature and that more concrete proposals needed to be fleshed out by staff and reviewed by the committee.

Council Members Adam Bazaldua (District 7) and Bill Roth (District 11), in particular, expressed reservations about legislating for the entire city over a relatively small number of problem properties, noting that code violations could be weaponized in disputes between residents.

The committee will take the issue back up next month. Staff is expected to return with data on problem properties and policy language targeting “extreme disruptions” from repeat offenders so that there are no unintended effects on regular neighborhood events.