City of Dallas Receives 2025 Community Service Award

Creative initiatives that drive community ownership have earned the City of Dallas, Texas, the 2025 Community Service Award, announced during the International Code Council’s (ICC) 2025 Annual Conference in Cleveland, Ohio.  

ICC’s Community Service Award recognizes outstanding service that promotes public health, safety and welfare. Instilling a sense of pride in its residents, the City of Dallas developed an engaging and effective slate of programs and placemaking for safer and cleaner neighborhoods. 

“My inspiration has always come from the understanding that code compliance is not just about enforcement—it is fundamentally about people, dignity and opportunity,” said Brian Morris, MBA, PMP, former assistant director, Dallas Code Compliance Department and current director, Code Compliance Department, City of Garland, Texas.  

“Many residents want to comply and take pride in their neighborhoods but lack the resources, physical ability or support to do so,” added Morris. “That reality requires a balanced approach that blends accountability with compassion.” 

Keeping Dallas Beautiful   

The City of Dallas administered community programs through the framework of Keep Dallas Beautiful (KDB), a nonprofit organization that aims to educate and engage Dallas residents on the importance of a clean and healthy city. These programs include:  

• Code Cares: at no cost, provided direct assistance to elderly, physically challenged and low-income residents who could not address code issues—preventing violations, displacement and unnecessary enforcement while preserving housing stability.
• Love Your Block: funded by a $100,000 Bloomberg Philanthropies grant, empowered residents to lead revitalization efforts in their own neighborhoods through beautification projects that combat blight, and reinforce ownership, pride and community stewardship. 
• Adopt-a-Spot: created sustained partnerships with schools, businesses and civic groups to select areas for monthly cleanings, transforming chronically blighted areas into consistently maintained community assets.  
• Waste in Place: educated youth in local schools on environmental responsibility including litter-free communities along with cool swag and mascots “DaCoda” and “Captain Codey,” planting seeds of stewardship that extend well beyond a single cleanup.  
• Tools on the Go: offered free use of lawnmowers, chainsaws, blowers and more to community organizations involved in a cleanup or to individuals who wanted to maintain their own property but lacked the resources. 
• Community Clean Trash-Offs: proactively reduced illegal dumping and removed health hazards, signaling that the City is present, engaged and willing to invest in community health and welfare. 

These collective efforts removed hundreds of thousands of pounds of trash, reduced dumping hotspots, improved public health and strengthened trust between the City and its residents.  

“We expanded these initiatives because enforcement alone does not create sustainable changes—community ownership does,” said Morris. 

Volunteer efforts generated more than $300,000 in service value including 15 annual Community Clean Trash-Off events providing residents with a free, responsible way to dispose of waste, hazardous materials and documents.  

The Power of Art 

Transforming vacant lots into vibrant spaces, the City of Dallas projects often involve art installations completed by local artists that help to redefine a lot from vacant to vibrant. 

“Creative solutions such as public art installations, murals and reimagined vacant spaces give neighborhoods an identity and a gathering place while honoring the history and culture of the area,” said Morris. “They invite neighbors to connect, create shared experiences and protect what they helped build.” 

Morris emphasized that art and placemaking transform forgotten spaces into symbols of pride. 

“These initiatives matter because they address root causes, not just symptoms—reducing blight, discouraging illegal dumping, increasing property values and improving overall livability. When residents feel proud of their neighborhood, they actively defend it,” he said. 

ICC’s Community Service Award is about people: embracing empathy and compassion through code enforcement. 

“Winning the International Code Council Community Service Award validated the department’s philosophy that code enforcement can—and should—be a force for positive social change,” said Morris. “It recognized that Dallas Code Compliance went beyond traditional enforcement to deliver innovative, human-centered solutions that improved health, safety and quality of life.”

Their investment paid off. 

“For the City of Dallas, the award affirmed that investing in community partnerships, creativity and compassion yields tangible outcomes and positions code compliance as a trusted community partner—not just a regulatory authority,” said Morris. 

Fulfilling the Mission 

Morris said these programs advance ICC’s mission by demonstrating how codes can be a tool for empowerment, resilience and community wellbeing.  

“They show the industry that effective code enforcement is not solely about citations—it is about collaboration, prevention, education and sustainability,” he said.  

“By integrating service, art and partnerships into enforcement strategies, these initiatives elevate the profession, build public trust and provide a replicable model for jurisdictions nationwide,” added Morris. “They help reframe code enforcement as a proactive, people-focused discipline that protects communities while helping them thrive.”

Additional recognition includes the Gold Star Designation from Keep Texas Beautiful and the 2024 American Association of Code Enforcement Innovative Program of the Year Award. 

View all 2025 ICC award recipients here.         

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