Tigard, OR Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)

Chapter 14.16 of the Tigard Municipal Code, titled Property Maintenance Regulations, sets the rule in the City of Tigard, Oregon: no property can hold a dangerous or derelict structure, and each such building is repaired or demolished. The Building Official, who works under the Community Development Director, decides which label fits.

A derelict structure is an unoccupied non-residential building, or a residential building that is at least 50% unoccupied, that meets one of five tests: the Building Official ordered it vacated, the Code Enforcement Officer issued a notice of infraction under Section 1.16.120, it is unsecured, it is boarded unless the Building Official requires the boarding, or the City declared a nuisance on the property while the building sat vacant. The property stays in violation until the structure is lawfully occupied, is demolished with the lot cleared and graded after City approval and a final inspection, or the owner shows the Building Official that every condition behind the status is gone.

A dangerous structure is one whose defects endanger life, health, property or public safety, and Section 14.16.380 declares it a nuisance. The printed triggers include stress above 1-1/2 times the working stress allowed for new buildings, walls that lean until a plumb line misses the middle one-third of the base, 33 percent or more damage to supporting members, 50 percent damage to non-supporting members or outside wall coverings, and demolition remnants or unfilled excavations left on a site for more than 30 days.

Once the Building Official finds a structure derelict or dangerous, the owner receives a notice of infraction under Chapter 1.16 plus a statement of the actions required. Under Section 14.16.390 that statement sets a reasonable deadline to secure permits and start repairs, to vacate, to secure a vacant building against unauthorized entry, or to demolish. If required work does not begin on time, the Building Official orders the building vacated and posted, and can cause the work to be done and charge the costs against the property or its owners. The posted notice reads DO NOT ENTER, UNSAFE TO OCCUPY, and no one can remove or deface it until repairs, demolition or removal are finished and a certificate of occupancy is issued.