Indio adopts new rules targeting vacant commercial buildings

The Indio City Council voted unanimously Wednesday to adopt an ordinance requiring owners of vacant commercial, industrial, and office buildings to register their properties with the city and meet new maintenance and security standards.

The new rules require owners to register within 10 days of a building becoming vacant, designate a local contact person available around the clock, submit monthly inspection reports, and obtain permits before boarding up doors, windows or other openings.

City Attorney Steven Graham Pacifico told the council the goal of the ordinance is not punishment. He said his office has coordinated with the city manager and code enforcement staff on an educational effort to inform commercial building owners and businesses about the new requirements before enforcement begins.

“The purpose of all of our municipal codes is compliance. It’s not punishment,” Pacifico said, adding that property owners found in violation would receive notice and a reasonable opportunity to correct problems before the city initiates administrative citations or civil penalties.

Councilmember Ben Guitron said the city has long needed stronger enforcement tools, “They need more teeth to address these vacant business buildings that they’re just boarding them up, and they’re becoming a nuisance,” Guitron said.

He added, “If you’re going to invest in Indio, maintain your property. We’re not dealing with a resident; we’re dealing with an investor that came in.”

Guitron also said some vacant properties have deteriorated to the point of becoming fire hazards and that the city has had to spend money securing buildings that owners failed to maintain. He said residents that notice poorly maintained vacant commercial buildings should report them on the city’s My Indio app.

Under the vacant commercial property ordinance, buildings are considered vacant if at least 35% of their total floor area is unoccupied. Owners located more than 40 driving miles away must retain a local property management company to conduct weekly inspections. The ordinance also sets escalating administrative penalties for violations in Downtown Indio, starting at $500 for a first offense and rising to $2,500 for a third violation of the same issue.

The ordinance follows action the council took in January, when it unanimously adopted a residential rental inspection program aimed at reducing neighborhood blight. That program shifted the city from a complaint-based enforcement model to one built on periodic, proactive exterior inspections, requiring rental property owners to register annually and pay inspection fees.

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