Corpus Christi, TX Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)

Under Corpus Christi Code of Ordinances Sec. 13-22, the code official who finds a property maintenance code violation affecting health, safety, or general welfare must give the owner written notice describing the violation, the code section broken, the penalty, and a 30-day deadline to cure the defect before further action follows. If the owner refuses to comply or the 30 days lapse, the code official can prosecute the violation in municipal court, present a complaint to the Building Standards Board, or both. The board must hold a hearing between 10 and 45 days after the complaint is filed, with at least 10 days' notice to the owner (and the occupant, if the premises will be vacated).

At the hearing the board can order a structure repaired within 30 days if it can reasonably be brought into compliance, order it vacated and placarded if it is a serious hazard, or order it demolished if it cannot be repaired because of its condition or the owner's refusal to act. If the owner still does not comply, the city may do the repair or demolition work itself, charge the cost to the owner, and file a lien against the property carrying 10 percent interest from the date the city pays for the work.

Owners can appeal a board decision to the city council in writing within 30 days, and filing an appeal suspends the board's order until council rules. Separate emergency-demolition procedures under Sec. 13-27 let the building official order immediate demolition of a structure that poses a clear and imminent danger, though a hurricane-damage demolition cannot proceed within 30 days of the storm. Sec. 13-26 sets flat administrative fees the city adds to any abatement bill: $125 for mowing and clearing, $412 for intensive clean-up or warrant abatement, and $174 for structure board-ups.