City officials are pointing to a worrying trend of more and more illegal parties and nightclubs that pose a number of health and safety concerns to patrons and neighborhood residents.

According to the Inspectional Services Department (ISD), 30 illegal gatherings were broken up in just the past year by law enforcement and the ISD for safety code violations, with almost half of the cases brought from Dorchester locations.

“These parties have always happened,” said Flavio Dareiga, chair of the Investigation and Enforcement team at the ISD.

“Unfortunately, we only hear about them when first responders or the BPD respond to them.”

When sites are found to be out of compliance, Dareiga said, officials usually work with the property owners to get them the proper permits to hold their events. But in cases where violations keep piling up, ISD might shut down the premises and impose costly fines. “We just want to make sure folks are doing these things safely,” he said.

Dareiga and ISD’s Lisa Timberlake noted the various things that ISD inspectors and police officers look for at questionable locations. Are there proper means of egress should a fire break out? Are food and drink being served illegally, that is, for cost without the proper permits? Are underage attendees being served? Is there staging set up without safety measures in place? Is the site crowded beyond its permitted capacity? Is food stored safely?

One nightclub that they cited a few weeks ago for illegalities was operating in the basement of the Grove Hill Convenience Market on Blue Hill Avenue. Timberlake said that more than 100 individuals were gathered there, in a space with a legal occupancy of 16 people. The inspectors also uncovered multiple sanitary and safety code violations.

These sorts of parties are also happening on private properties, like homes, Timberlake said. The city maintains a “problem properties” listing of places that they keep an eye on if complaints are made too often.

Dareiga said that the uptick with this issue is likely tied to the era of pandemic-driven social restrictions. When bars and restaurants shut down, he said, backyards and basements became the places where people gathered. Timberlake added that one alternative to hosting parties or nightclubs in unsafe or out-of-code locations would be the rental of a neighborhood venue.

“A few years ago, the city kicked off neighborhood block parties,” Timberlake said. “The neighbors can come together and host a block party, and the city has funds that can contribute to that. They can also provide a police detail or X-Y-Z, whatever you need to ensure the safety of the community. If you need health permits, like if you’re going to have hot dogs or food like that, there are a lot of things that we have here in place.”

It may seem like the city is trying to put a damper on people’s mood, Timberlake said, that isn’t the goal. “We’re here to help, we’re not here to hurt anybody or be the fun police,” Timberlake said. “We just want to make sure everybody is safe.”

Dareiga recommends calling the BPD if you are concerned that a nightclub or party might be illegal. You can also find out more about the block party program at boston.gov/blockparty.