Lake Charles, LA Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)

Sec. 5-9 of the Lake Charles Code declares blighted and abandoned property a public nuisance and bars any property owner within city limits from maintaining it. "Blighted property" covers vacant, uninhabitable and hazardous commercial or residential premises, including lots, whose physical condition endangers persons or property. "Abandoned property" covers anything vacant or not lawfully occupied, including structures left without required utilities, unsecured against unauthorized entry, or so dilapidated and deteriorated that they endanger public safety, health, or welfare. Owners who board up doors and windows to secure a vacant structure must use minimum half-inch structural panels, two-by-four framing, and three-eighths-inch carriage bolts meeting International Building Code standards, and only one door may remain available for authorized entry.

A boarded residential structure cannot stay in that condition longer than 24 months total; a boarded commercial structure is capped at 12 months, after which the property is automatically deemed blighted. Demolitions must also remove concrete slabs, which cannot remain on a property longer than 24 months from May 1, 2024 (or from the purchase date for adjudicated properties), unless the owner obtains a six-month minor conditional use permit under Sec. 4-203 to keep and reuse the slab. S. 00 per day for further offenses or each day the violation goes unabated.