Downtown Vacant Premises Ordinance

In January of 2025, the City Council passed Ordinance O-24-61, the Downtown Vacant Premises Ordinance. This ordinance requires property owners to register vacant properties located within the Downtown Core and maintain them in accordance with City regulations.

Beginning July 1, 2025, property owners in the Downtown Core with vacant buildings must register their properties with the City’s Code Enforcement Division. In addition to registering, the property owner must obtain a Vacant Building Maintenance License. The property owner will renew their Vacant Building Registration and pay an annual fee to renew the vacant building maintenance license by June 30th of each year, if they were vacant for at least nine months during the prior City fiscal year (July 1 through June 30). If a property owner plans to vacate the premises, they must apply for a vacant building maintenance license 15 days before vacating.

A Vacant Building Maintenance license applicant must disclose all measures to be taken to ensure that the vacant premises will be kept weather-tight and secure from trespassers, safe for entry by police officers and firefighters in times of emergency, free from nuisance, and in good order.

This Ordinance defines a Vacant Premise as a building or property where no person lawfully lives or operates a legally licensed business on a permanent, non-transient basis. Or:

• A building is deemed vacant if 30% or more of the ground floor Usable Floor Area (UFA) is unoccupied.
• An empty parcel or lot is considered vacant.

Downtown Core Geographic Boundaries

The Downtown Core area is bounded by 8th Street to the West, Copper Avenue to the North, Gold Avenue to the South, and 1st Street to the East. This includes all properties with a front lot line along Gold Avenue to the North and South.

Resources

Ordinance O-24-61