Some carports overflow with junk ...broken-down washers, rusted bicycles, trash bags, piles of old clothes.

"My wife and I work hard to make our property presentable to our neighbors," said George Culprit, a 28-year resident of Dean Road. "But when you have people who toss everything out of the house and into the yard, it makes us look bad. It's almost heartbreaking. This is our livelihood."

Other concerns in south Shreveport include declining property values, potholes, broken sidewalks, speeders and noisy neighbors. But the unkempt properties mar some otherwise well-manicured blocks, prompting resident complaints.

"I'm getting complaint after complaint from people who want these problems corrected," Caddo Commissioner David Cox said.

"What we have is one or two people making an entire area look bad, and we have got to do something to make the people, who simply do not care, stop violating the codes of the city or the parish."

To address the growing number of complaints about filthy, neglected and abandoned property, Cox plans to call for the formation of a code enforcement committee within the next six months to review the city and parish property standards laws.

The committee would consist of parish commissioners, Shreveport council members and a representative from code enforcement, along with area business and homeowners.

Cox hopes the committee will revise the laws pertaining to the deadlines and increase the financial penalties for property owners who violate standards.

A person has 10 days to react to a violation warning before receiving a court citation.

A city judge then hears the case, but that could take up to six months due to violators who have the tendency of having the cases postponed, Cox said.

"I want to go through the codes to see where we can improve on the response time of violators and what we can do," said Cox, District 10 representative.

Property standards violations are widespread and affect every Shreveport neighborhood, but the inner-city and poorer neighborhoods typically have higher code enforcement issues, according to officials with the Shreveport Bureau of Code Enforcement.

First violation with no history of previous conviction within the 24-month period immediately preceding the conviction -- fine of not less than $200.

First violation with history of previous conviction within the 24-month period immediately preceding the conviction -- fine of not less than $300 or by ordering the payment of restitution to the city for expenses, including reasonable and required administrative charges of the work of mowing, cleaning, maintaining the premises or abating any nuisance, whether such work was performed by the city or by a private contractor, or by a combination of fines and restitution.

Second violation with history of previous conviction within the 24-month period immediately preceding the conviction -- fine of not less than $400 or by imprisonment of not more than 60 days, and by ordering the payment of restitution to the city for expenses, including reasonable and required administrative charges of the work of mowing, cleaning, maintaining the premises or abating any nuisance, whether such work was performed by the city or by a private contractor.

Subsequent violations with a previous conviction within the 24-month period immediately preceding the conviction -- fine of not less than $500 and by imprisonment of not more than 60 days, and by ordering the payment of restitution to the city for expenses, including reasonable and required administrative charges of the work of mowing, cleaning, maintaining the premises or abating any nuisance, whether such work was performed by the city or by a private contractor.