Mount Prospect, IL Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)

Section 21.220 does two things. Subsection A declares public nuisances any building or part of one that has deteriorated to a dangerous condition and any incomplete building or excavation on which work has stopped for more than thirty (30) days. Subsection B gives the owner ten (10) days after the director of community development serves notice to take the necessary action, after which the Village pursues remedies under the code and law.

Chapter 23 adds a longer list. Under § 23.1403, it is a nuisance within the Village and within one-half (1/2) mile of the corporate limits to keep a structure in violation of any life safety regulation, or in violation of more than one other structure, safety, property maintenance or land use regulation (item K); to keep a structure that is structurally unsound or whose exterior is not in good repair (item M); to board up or cover any portion of a structure with tarps, unless done temporarily because of a fire or weather related emergency or while completing work under a valid Village permit (item N); to own or maintain a vacant structure without the vacant structure registration certificate (item L); and to allow attractive nuisances such as abandoned foundations, structures or excavations and improperly maintained or secured pools (item R).

The abatement procedure is in § 23.1404. Notice goes to the owner, presumed to be the person to whom the last general tax bill was sent, by regular mail and by posting at the front entrance. It states the location and nature of the nuisance and gives fourteen (14) days to abate unless the code states otherwise or public health and safety require less. If the owner does not act, the Village can abate the nuisance and assess the cost against the land. The village manager can act immediately on a nuisance that threatens community welfare and safety.

Structural damage has its own track. Under § 21.219(E), when a building damaged by decay, fire or otherwise is unsafe and the owner does not take immediate action, the director instructs the department of public works to brace, wreck or otherwise eliminate the condition, and the owner pays.