Shoreline, WA Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)

Shoreline's blight and unsafe-building authority runs through SMC § 15.05.070, the city's amendments to the International Property Maintenance Code. Section 108.1 lets the code official condemn any structure, equipment or premises found unsafe, dangerous or unfit for human occupancy; for premises found merely unlawful rather than physically unsafe, condemnation is limited to cases where the Director determines the unlawful condition actually threatens the health, safety or welfare of occupants or the public, so an unlawful use alone does not automatically trigger condemnation. Where imminent danger exists, such as a building at risk of collapse, Section 109.1 lets the code official order immediate vacation and post a notice reading 'This Structure/Premise Is Unsafe and Its Occupancy/Use Has Been Prohibited by the Code Official,' and Section 109.2 authorizes temporary safeguards like boarding up openings or fencing the premises even before the formal condemnation process finishes.

New Section 109.4 folds the most urgent cases into the city's imminent-nuisance and summary-abatement process under SMC Title 20, Chapter 30, subchapter 9, letting the city act without waiting for a hearing. If the condemned property is a rental, Section 108.7 requires the landlord, when they knew or should have known of the unsafe condition, to pay relocation assistance plus any prepaid deposit and rent to displaced tenants under RCW 59.18.085; if the landlord does not pay, the city advances those funds to the tenants directly and then recovers the cost from the landlord.