Sahuarita, AZ Property Maintenance: Vacant Lot Maintenance (2026)
Key Facts
- Notice period
- At least 30 days
- Recording office
- Pima County recorder
- Smallest assessment tier
- Under $500, due in 1 year
- Largest assessment tier
- $10,000+, due in 10 years
- Penalty
- Class 1 misdemeanor
- Appeal right
- Under STC § 15.05.080
Summary
Sahuarita requires owners, lessees and occupants to clear weeds, rubbish and dilapidated structures from vacant and improved lots alike under Town Code § 8.35.020. The town must give written notice and 30 days to comply before it removes the hazard itself and assesses the cost against the property, and unabated violations are a class 1 misdemeanor under § 8.35.030.
A. The owner, lessee or occupant of property shall remove rubbish, trash, weeds or other accumulations of filth, debris or dilapidated structures which constitute a hazard to public health and safety from buildings, grounds, lots, contiguous sidewalks, streets and alleys. ... 1. The town must give written notice of the violation to the property owner by notifying the owner, the owner's authorized agent or the owner's statutory agent, and to the occupant or lessee, by either personal service or certified mail, as provided below. ... b. The notice shall be given not less than 30 days before the day set for compliance and shall include the legal description of the property and the cost of such removal to the town if the owner, occupant or lessee does not comply.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4745395; v0 updated 2025-12-08; through 12-08-2025).
Full Breakdown
020 requires the owner, lessee or occupant of any property, vacant or not, to clear rubbish, trash, weeds and other accumulations of filth, debris or dilapidated structures that constitute a health and safety hazard from buildings, grounds, lots, contiguous sidewalks, streets and alleys. Before the town can act, it must serve written notice on the owner, the owner's authorized or statutory agent, and any occupant or lessee, either personally or by certified mail to the owner's last known address and the address the tax bill was mailed to.
080, and the owner gets at least 30 days from the notice to comply. If nobody clears the hazard, the town may remove or abate it and record the cost as an assessment in the Pima County recorder's office; assessments recorded after July 15, 1996 take priority over every lien except general property taxes. Repayment is staged by size: under $500 is due within one year, $500 to under $1,000 within two years, $1,000 to under $5,000 within three years, $5,000 to under $10,000 within six years, and $10,000 or more within ten years, with interest accruing under ARS § 44-1201 on any past-due balance. 020 was last amended by Ordinance 2011-044.
Violations & Fines
Failing to abate a lot after the 30-day notice lets the town remove the hazard itself and record an assessment lien against the property, on top of any misdemeanor exposure under § 8.35.030. It is also independently unlawful under § 8.35.020(A)(3) for anyone to dump rubbish, trash, filth or debris on property they do not own or control, whether or not they are the property's owner of record.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much notice does Sahuarita give before clearing weeds from my lot?
What happens if the town clears my vacant lot for me?
Can I be cited even if I don't own the land I dumped on?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Sahuarita
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