York County, PA Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing chapter
- York County Code Chapter 13
- Adopted
- April 4, 2018, Ord. 2018-03
- Committee size
- 8 members
- Certification requires
- Property must be vacant
- Owner protection
- Notice, order and right of appeal
- Ultimate consequence
- Condemnation under Urban Redevelopment Law
Summary
York County's Blighted Property Review Committee can certify a vacant, derelict property to the Redevelopment Authority for acquisition once the owner is served notice and an order to fix the blight, under Chapter 13 (Ord. 2018-03). Non-compliance after appeal rights run out can lead to condemnation.
The Committee, the Municipal Planning Commission and the County Planning Commission, upon making a determination that any property is a blighted property within the terms of this chapter, must certify said blighted property to the Redevelopment Authority except that: A. No property shall be certified to the Redevelopment Authority unless it is vacant. B. No property shall be certified to the Redevelopment Authority unless the owner of the property or an agent designated by him/her for receipt of service of notices within the County has been served with notice of the determination that the property is blighted, together with an appropriate order to eliminate the conditions causing the blight and notification that failure to do so may render the property subject to condemnation under this chapter and the Urban Redevelopment Act... C. No property shall be certified to the Redevelopment Authority until the time period for appeal has expired and no appeal has been taken, or, if taken, the appeal has been disposed of and the owner or agent has failed to comply with the order of the Committee or court of law.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 2886585; v8 updated 2021-04-21; through 04-21-2021).
Full Breakdown
Chapter 13 of the York County Code, adopted April 4, 2018 by Ordinance 2018-03, creates the York County Blighted Property Review Committee to implement the state Urban Redevelopment Law. Section 13-4 defines BLIGHTED PROPERTY broadly: premises that are a public nuisance at common law or under local housing, building, plumbing or fire codes; an attractive nuisance to children because of wells, shafts, basements or unsafe fences or structures; dilapidated, unsanitary, unsafe, vermin-infested or otherwise designated unfit for human habitation; a fire hazard or otherwise dangerous to nearby persons or property; stripped of utilities, plumbing, heating or sewage service so it is unfit for its intended use; a neglected vacant lot that has become a trash or vermin haven; unoccupied and tax-delinquent for two years; or vacant and unrehabilitated for a year after a municipal code enforcement notice.
Section 13-7 sets the certification process. The Committee, the Municipal Planning Commission, and the County Planning Commission must first find the property blighted, and it cannot be certified to the Redevelopment Authority (RACY) unless it is vacant. The owner or a designated agent must be served notice of the blight determination along with an order to eliminate the conditions and a warning that failure to comply may subject the property to condemnation under the Urban Redevelopment Law. Owners get a right of appeal under the Committee's rules and regulations (an attachment to Chapter 13), and certification cannot proceed until the appeal period runs or any appeal is resolved and the owner still has not complied with the Committee's or a court's order.
An eight-member Committee, including a County Commissioner or designee, the Redevelopment Authority chair or designee, a County Planning Commission member, and five Board-appointed members drawn from the county's geographic planning regions, oversees these determinations and meets annually each January under Section 13-6.
Violations & Fines
There is no fine schedule in Chapter 13 itself; the consequence is certification to the Redevelopment Authority once the owner ignores the abatement order and exhausts or forgoes the appeal, exposing the property to acquisition or condemnation under the Urban Redevelopment Law rather than a monetary penalty.
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes a property 'blighted' under York County's code?
Can the county take a blighted property without warning the owner?
Does this apply to occupied homes?
Who runs the blight review process?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in York County
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