Walla Walla County, WA Property Maintenance: Property Blight (2026)

Walla Walla County Code § 15.04.212 adopts the Uniform Code for the Abatement of Dangerous Buildings, 1997 Edition, as published by the International Conference of Building Officials, to govern buildings the community development building official finds dangerous or substandard in the unincorporated area; agricultural buildings are expressly exempted from that code. Enforcement runs through Chapter 14.13. Once the enforcing official determines a violation exists, § 14.13.080 requires a written notice of violation and order naming every record owner, taxpayer, occupant and contractor, describing the violation by code section, ordering the offending condition to cease, setting a correction deadline, and stating the right to appeal to the hearing examiner within ten days.

If the owner does not correct the condition by that deadline, § 14.13.090 lets the county revoke or suspend any permit or approval on the property, impose a civil penalty of two hundred fifty dollars per day per violation until it is fixed, seek injunctive relief in superior court, or enter the property to complete the corrective work itself and lien the property for the county's costs plus twelve percent annual interest. Willful failure to correct a violation by the deadline is also a gross misdemeanor under § 14.13.100, punishable by up to ninety days in jail, a one-thousand-dollar fine, or both, with each violation in the notice counted as a separate offense.

Before recording an advisory title notice of unresolved violations with the county auditor, § 15.04.275 requires the building official to first serve a notice of violation and order under Chapter 14.13 at least fifteen days ahead.