St. Tammany Parish, LA Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)

Section 26-85 defines "blighted property" as commercial or residential premises, including lots, declared vacant, uninhabitable, or hazardous by an administrative hearing officer, and separately defines "derelict and dangerous" structures using structural-safety, unhealthful-condition, and fire-hazard criteria, plus a catch-all for buildings otherwise dangerous to human life. A structure vacant or not lawfully occupied for more than six months is treated as a public nuisance under section 26-85(5)(d) unless it is under an active repair permit being diligently pursued or is code-compliant and actively listed for sale, lease, or rent.

Section 26-86 requires the enforcing department to inspect a complained-of property within 90 days and add violating properties to a maintained list. Section 26-87 governs the hearing: the building is posted with a violation notice, the owner gets a hearing before the administrative hearing officer, and if the officer finds a violation, the order can require vacating an occupied dangerous structure within 48 hours, repairing or demolishing at the owner's option if repair is feasible, demolishing outright if it is not, or securing an unoccupied structure from entry, with compliance generally due within 30 days absent a longer period set by the hearing officer.

Section 26-88 lets the director of inspection and code enforcement act immediately, without advance notice, when a building poses an immediate danger to health, life, or safety, followed by a hearing within ten days. Appeals go forward under section 26-92 per the procedures in section 2-565.