Port Alberni unsightly property rules and how to report

How do I report an unsightly or overgrown property in Port Alberni?

Port Alberni, British ColumbiaChecked against official textSources read 2026-11-05

How it works

The City's Property Maintenance Bylaw No. 4712 is the main bylaw on untidy property, but its copy on the City's site has no readable text, so this answer cannot quote it. The Nuisance Abatement Bylaw No. 4705 says owners and occupiers must not let property become unsightly or unsanitary through filth, rubbish, standing water, overgrown grass, weeds or trees, or pests. "Unsightly" also includes graffiti, untidy building materials where no construction is under way, dead or overgrown vegetation, a derelict structure, or a derelict vehicle unless inside a fully enclosed permanent building.

Steps

1. Note the address and what you see.
2. Use the online Bylaw Services complaint form (preferred), drop a written complaint at the Public Safety Building, mail City Hall, or call 250-720-2831. Your name is required; anonymous complaints are not accepted.
3. The City first seeks voluntary compliance.

Good to know

• Under the Nuisance Abatement Bylaw, if the person fails to comply with a direction from Council, the City may abate the nuisance itself after giving the owner a chance to be heard by Council, and can recover the cost from the person, occupier or owner like a debt or property taxes.
• The Property Maintenance Bylaw's own notice and time-to-comply steps could not be read. The bylaw notice schedule lists accumulating refuse, derelict vehicles, construction material, noxious weeds, unsightly growth, standing water, ground openings, insects, rats, graffiti and depositing refuse.
• A bylaw notice for those offences is $200 ($150 if paid within 14 days, $250 if paid late) under the Bylaw Notice Enforcement Bylaw No. 5128. The Nuisance Abatement Bylaw's ticket schedule is $500 for a nuisance on real property and $175 in a public place.