Scranton, PA Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)

Scranton's primary blight ordinance is Chapter 360 (Property Maintenance) of the Code of the City of Scranton (eCode360 https://ecode360.com/11606457), which is structured around the International Property Maintenance Code as adopted and amended by the city. Chapter 360 explicitly identifies the spectrum of blighting conditions as 'lack of property maintenance, littering, improper trash storage, inoperable vehicles, vendor operations without permits, high grass and weeds, graffiti, and snow/ice accumulation,' and recites that these are costly problems contributing to property value deterioration. The companion building-code platform is the 2021 ICC Series (Building, Residential, Plumbing, Mechanical, Fire, Energy) adopted by Council and applicable to all plans effective January 1, 2026. Day-to-day enforcement is run by the Bureau of Code Enforcement within the Office of Economic and Community Development, headed by Building Code Official Thomas Oleski (570-348-4193, toleski@scrantonpa.gov). As of January 6, 2025, a full-time Code Enforcement Officer has been on duty Tuesday through Saturday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. to expand non-permitted-work and housing-compliance inspections. Complaints are taken via the Scranton311 portal (scranton311@scrantonpa.gov, 570-348-4101). The PA Act 90 of 2010 backstop (Neighborhood Blight Reclamation and Revitalization Act, 53 P.S. §6101 et seq.) authorizes Scranton to deny any building permit, occupancy permit, business privilege license, or zoning approval to applicants who hold delinquent tax claims or serious code violations on any property anywhere in Pennsylvania, including 'in rem and in personam' liability under 53 P.S. §6111. Court conservatorship is also available statewide under the PA Abandoned and Blighted Property Conservatorship Act (68 P.S. §1101 et seq.).