Richmond, VA Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)

1:1, and Section 5-86 adopts that state statute and Va. 1-251 by reference. The process starts with Section 5-118: the Mayor makes a preliminary determination that a property is blighted, sends written notice to the owner of record stating the reasons, and the owner then has exactly 30 days from the date the notice is sent to respond in writing with a spot blight abatement plan addressing the blight within a reasonable time. If the owner misses that window, or submits a plan the Mayor finds unacceptable, Section 5-119 lets the Mayor ask the City Planning Commission for a public hearing and requires the Mayor to prepare a written City blight abatement plan for the Commission's consideration.

At the hearing, Section 5-120 requires the Commission to determine whether the property is blighted, whether the owner failed to cure it or propose a reasonable plan, whether any repair proposal matches the comprehensive plan and zoning, and, for properties in a National Register historic district, to weigh comments from the Commission of Architectural Review. 1:1(G). Section 5-123 makes clear this article adds to, rather than replaces, other blight and nuisance remedies in City or state law, including the separate Derelict Building Program in Chapter 5, Article V.