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The Farmers Branch City Council voted 4-1 Tuesday, March 17 to extend the city's garage conversion amnesty program for an additional six months, pushing the deadline to July 31, 2026, as roughly 600 homes remain out of compliance with city ordinance.
The council approved the ordinance, which amends the city's comprehensive zoning ordinance to continue a program designed to help residents bring illegally converted garages up to code. Council Member Lupe Gonzalez cast the lone dissenting vote.
The program requires homeowners to pay a $100 permit fee and submit to a code enforcement inspection limited solely to the garage. It has been in place since July 2024.
The city originally identified approximately 1,300 homes as potentially having illegally converted garages, but staff removed a significant number after confirming they either remained garages or had valid permits on file. Of the remaining homes, 213 have completed the amnesty process, 86 are currently in various stages of the permitting process, and between 600 and 700 have yet to come forward. Staff estimated that another 200 to 300 homes could come into compliance in the coming months, though the full extension runs through July 31.
Officials said fear appears to be the primary obstacle keeping residents from participating.
"From what we have experienced, it is them being scared," a city code enforcement official told council members. "We're just there to make what was done legal and make sure that you meet the minimum life safety requirements."
Council Member David Reid said the program's purpose was straightforward.
"The primary focus of this is to ensure that the enhanced structure is safe for the occupants," Reid said.
Council Member Roger Neal asked staff during the meeting how many homes had come into compliance since the program began, prompting the status update. He also pressed City Attorney David Berman on whether the city could face liability if a new homeowner purchased a non-compliant property and later encountered permitting roadblocks.
"No, we're simply enforcing our ordinances," Berman said. "That doesn't create liability."
Berman also confirmed that one lawsuit related to the program, filed by a resident who received a citation, was dismissed at the trial court level and is expected to be formally closed after July 31.
Mayor Terry Lynne said the responsibility falls on the city to communicate the program's benefits more clearly.
"The onus is on the city to be better communicators as to the benefit that the program provides the homeowner," Lynne said.
Council Member Elizabeth Villafranca said misinformation in the community has contributed to low participation, with some residents incorrectly believing the fire department would inspect their entire home.
"You come into the city, you pull your $100 permit, code enforcement comes out and only checks the garage," Villafranca said. "They're not going to go through your whole house. They only want to make sure that you're safe, that there aren't any wires hanging, electrical things hanging out."
Villafranca said she would personally canvass her district to encourage participation, noting District 1 had the highest concentration of violations.
"600 non-compliant homes is worrisome, only because I would not want something to happen," she said.
Council Member Gonzalez voted against the extension, citing concerns about the program's impact on future home buyers. Under the current ordinance, a home whose owner fails to come into compliance cannot receive major building permits, such as those for remodels or additions, even after the property is sold to a new owner.
"I don't think it's fair that the new homeowner should have to take part in that," Gonzalez said. "A new homeowner should be able to keep their converted garage if they so please, get that up to code, maybe grandfather that part in."
The garage conversion ordinance was originally written around 1999. The amnesty program was first approved in July 2024 as an 18-month initiative before Tuesday's extension.
