Lower Merion, PA Property Maintenance: Vacant Lot Maintenance (2026)

The Township of Lower Merion adopted the International Property Maintenance Code 2018 as its Property Maintenance Code under Section 92-1, and Section 92-2 lists the local insertions and revisions that modify the model code for use here. Subsection O of Section 92-2 tightens Section 302.4 of the IPMC by inserting a specific height limit for weeds or plant growth of 10 inches, a standard that reaches any parcel covered by the code, including vacant and unimproved lots, not just occupied dwellings. The Code Official is authorized to investigate complaints and conduct inspections under the amended Section 104.2, and where consent to enter is refused, may seek a warrant from a district justice under Section 104.3.

A property found in violation receives a written notice of violation under Section 106.2, served by mail, in person, or by posting a copy at the entrance if other methods fail. Failing to cut the vegetation back below 10 inches after notice is an unlawful act under Section 106.1, and Section 106.4, as amended by Subsection H of Section 92-2, makes the offense a summary offense punishable by a fine of not more than $1,000 for each offense, collectible before a magisterial district judge, with every continuing day of noncompliance treated as its own separate violation.

An owner who disputes a notice may appeal to the Building and Planning Committee of the Board of Commissioners under the amended Section 111.1, in writing, within 10 days of the decision. Separately, Chapter 59, Brush, Grass and Weeds, reaches similar overgrown vegetation as a nuisance on any land in the Township, with its own notice-and-abatement process and a fine of up to $600 per offense under Section 59-5, so a vacant lot can draw enforcement under either chapter.