Duluth, MN Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)

Section 10-3 of the Duluth Legislative Code puts the building official in charge of any building or structure reported as damaged, dilapidated or dangerous. If the official's good-faith, reasonable estimate to repair and restore the structure exceeds 60 percent of its current fair market value, as shown in the county assessor's records, it becomes unlawful to repair or alter the building and the structure must be torn down and removed once ordered. The official, or the Building Appeal Board on appeal, may still allow repair instead of demolition for good cause tied to the building's use, location or unique characteristics, but only if the owner shows dedicated funds, a signed repair contract, and a plan to finish all repair and restoration work within 18 months.

Every demolition or repair order must be in writing, signed by the building official, and must give the owner not less than 30 days to comply; it must also identify the structure, state the legal basis for the order, the fair market value, the cost estimate, the calculation behind the demolition decision, and the appeal procedure. Notice must be posted on the property, delivered to the owner and any known lienholder of record, and published once a week for two weeks in a legal newspaper in St.

Louis County. If an order goes unheeded, or the structure poses an immediate threat and no appeal was taken under § 10-5, the city council can direct the building official to proceed with demolition or contract the work out, then assess the cost as a municipal lien against the property, certified to the St. Louis County auditor for collection like any other special assessment.