Roswell, GA Property Maintenance: Vacant Lot Maintenance (2026)
Key Facts
- Condition
- Unsecured property attracting trespassers
- Governing section
- Code of Ordinances § 8.8.2
- Covers
- Improved and unimproved land
- Who acts
- City code enforcement officer
Summary
Roswell's nuisance code treats an unsecured vacant lot that could attract trespassers, vagrants, or unlawful activity as blighted property, exposing the owner to code enforcement action.
Blighted property means any property on which there exists any one (1) or more of the following conditions or activities: ... (3) Property which is in an unsecured state so as to potentially constitute an attraction to children, a harbor for vagrants, criminals, or other unauthorized persons, or so as to enable persons to resort thereto for the purpose of committing a nuisance or unlawful act.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 17 | Unified Development Code: Supplement 5).
Full Breakdown
Under Roswell's blighted-property definition, a vacant or undeveloped lot doesn't have to be littered or overgrown to draw code enforcement: being left unsecured is enough. The Code of Ordinances flags any property in an unsecured state that could constitute an attraction to children, a harbor for vagrants or criminals, or otherwise enable people to use it for a nuisance or unlawful act. Because the code's 'premises' definition expressly covers land whether improved or unimproved, this reaches empty parcels as well as developed ones. A code enforcement officer who documents the unsecured condition can require the owner or responsible person to correct it.
Violations & Fines
An unsecured-property finding lets code enforcement order the owner to secure or abate the condition; the property can be logged as blighted under the nuisance chapter until corrected.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this rule apply to empty land with no building?
What makes a vacant lot 'unsecured' under the code?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Roswell
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Vacant Lot Maintenance in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Fulton County handle vacant lot maintenance.