Puyallup, WA Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)
Key Facts
- Enforcing officer
- Director of development and permitting services
- Hearing notice
- 10 to 30 days before hearing
- Appeal window
- 30 days to hearing examiner
- First offense
- Misdemeanor, up to $1,000 fine, 90 days jail
- Continuing violation
- Gross misdemeanor, up to $5,000, 364 days
- Cost recovery
- Lien equal rank with property taxes
Summary
Puyallup's public officer, the director of development and permitting services, can declare a decayed, fire-damaged, dangerous or otherwise unsafe building a public nuisance under PMC § 6.07.030 and order it repaired, vacated or demolished. Knowingly defying a final order is a misdemeanor punishable by up to $1,000 and 90 days in jail, escalating to a gross misdemeanor for continued noncompliance.
All buildings or structures in the city which by reason of decay, dilapidation, or damage by fire, the elements or any other cause, are now or hereafter shall become, in the judgment of the public officer, dangerous to the lives and safety of persons or property or unsafe or unfit for the purpose or purposes for which they are being used, unsafe or unfit structures and premises as defined in this chapter are declared to be public nuisances. ... A violation of this section is a misdemeanor and may be punished by a fine not to exceed $1,000 and/or jail confinement of not more than 90 days. Each day of violation shall constitute a separate offense. In the event of continuing violation or failure to comply, the second and subsequent days shall constitute a gross misdemeanor, punishable by a fine not to exceed $5,000 and/or imprisonment for not more than 364 days or both such fine and imprisonment.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4985225; v6 updated 2026-07-21; through 07-21-2026).
Full Breakdown
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Violations & Fines
It is unlawful to knowingly occupy a building ordered vacated, fail to comply with any order issued under this chapter, or obstruct or give false information to a city officer enforcing it. A first violation is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine up to $1,000 and up to 90 days in jail, with each day a separate offense; the second and later days of a continuing violation become a gross misdemeanor punishable by up to $5,000 and up to 364 days in jail, or both (PMC § 6.07.150).
Frequently Asked Questions
Who decides if a Puyallup building is unfit and dangerous?
What happens if I ignore an order to fix or vacate my Puyallup property?
Can I appeal a demolition order in Puyallup?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Puyallup
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Property Blight in Nearby Cities
How other cities in this county handle property blight.