The Goshen Redevelopment Commission of Goshen, Indiana has approved a new plan to reuse their vacant properties. This plan would create a temporary “Economic Revitalization Area,” and individuals or companies interested in putting vacant properties located within this area back to productive use would qualify for  a tax break. “The plan, as proposed, would allow the Goshen City Council to approve tax phase-ins for any building that’s been empty for more than a year where new operations are starting, said Larry Barkes, city attorney.”
This initiative represents yet another way cities …

South Euclid, OH has passed a new law to fight blight caused by vacant and abandoned properties. The law implements two new measures:
one identifies owners or others who control the property; the other creates a system to ensure that violations get fixed and aren’t handed off from one owner to another.
In addition, owners of vacant properties will be forced to pay a $200 fee.
Although there are people who oppose the law, supporters of the new law say it will deter people from “flipping properties” and emphasize the fact that vacant …

Toni Griffin will become Detroit’s new Planner. Heralded by Time as “a star urban planner” the article says that she will “help lead what might be the most ambitious urban makeover in American history–the downsizing of Detroit, a city built to accommodate a population more than twice its currents size.” This effort underscores the key concept behind the Community Regeneration, Sustainability and Innovation Act of 2009 (CRSI): older industrial cities will not be able to recreate the vast manufacturing bases they once had, nor will their population peak be regained. …

This article critiques strategies for reclaiming vacant and abandoned property. Moreover, it stresses the need for different levels of government and community organizations to become involved in the process rather than relying solely on the unpredictable market to rectify the problem. It is through this lens, that the author offers examples of strategies that various cities have used to address this problem and outlines some of the issues that must be overcome when implementing these strategies. As such, the article is a good starting point for those beginning to think …

A few months ago the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Department of Policy Development and Research issued a report on the ways in which land banks can revitalize foreclosed properties. Land banks are an effective tool that cities with large percentages of vacant properties can use to effectively manage their vacant properties and turn those properties into something that will benefit their cities as opposed to objects that create blight. The article gives a basic overview of how land banks operates and then provides detailed overviews of the …

Authorities in Akron, Ohio, a city within Summit County, estimate that the city has nearly 7,000 vacant properties. As a means of addressing this issue the county has begun to take control of tax delinquent properties in a system modeled after the Genesee County Land Bank Authority. Once the city has control of the property it will be able to either rehabilitate the structure and then resell it, or raze the property and hold onto the land for future development. Read more about this new initiative here.

According to a report issued by Smart Growth Ohio, vacant properties in Lima, OH cost the city $1,855,038 in 2006. This amount was determined by examining the cost vacant and abandoned properties caused the city in services and forgone property tax collection. The report conveys the toll vacant properties take on cities and their tax paying citizens. For a visual representation of Lima’s problem, pay special attention to the map identifying vacant and abandoned properties on page 9. Read the full report about this Ohio city that has a story …

On Thursday, October 29, 2009 there was a CRSI briefing on Capital Hill. The briefing, which was sponsored by the Northeast Midwest Institute and the National Vacant Properties Campaign, generated energy around the bill and made Hill staffers aware of the Bill and the need for the Bill. Read more about who presented at the briefing and what the had to say here.

Since Detroit has cut its police force by approximately 25%, residents of the the city’s Indian Village neighborhood have pooled their resources to hire private security. This article portrays the connection between high percentages of vacant properties and increased. Furthermore, it highlights how citizens of one wealthier neighborhood are addressing this issue.

One real estate agent in Detroit has started conducting “Lonely House Tours” in which she shows prospective buyers historic homes from the early 1900s that are now selling at rock bottom prices. This article explains some of the problems that arose out of having large percentages of vacant property in the city and how these problems, in turn, detract from the appeal of buying one of these homes.