SUMMIT COUNTY — Summit County officials are preparing to tackle the issue of abandoned and vacant properties using recommendations made by the Summit County Abandoned and Vacant Task Force.
The task force was created in October 2008 by resolution of Summit County Council and was charged with finding ways to reduce the number of abandoned and vacant properties, decreasing neighborhood blight and decay, maximizing the use of these properties and preventing future problems by addressing the needs of homeowners who face the loss of their homes.
The group is chaired by Summit County Council member Cazzell Smith Sr. (D-District 5) and includes Summit County Executive Russ Pry, Fiscal Officer John Donofrio, Consumer Affairs Director Cynthia Sich, Akron Mayor Don Plusquellic, Barberton Mayor Bob Genet, Cuyahoga Falls Mayor Don Robart, as well as representatives from the city of Hudson, Summit County Health District (SCHD), the nonprofit organizations CFO Neighborhood Development Corp. and East Akron Development Corp, real estate companies Lolita Adair Realtors® and Design Construction Services, Fifth Third Bank and Broderick Insurance Agency.
The task force presented its findings and recommendations, developed after a year of study on the issue, Jan. 27 at the Akron-Summit County Main Library to a crowd that included Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray, county and court officials and representatives from Akron City Council, Summit County Council, area police departments, the Summit County Sheriff’s Office, community governments and local organizations.
Cordray praised the task force and called the recommendations “sensible and intelligent.”
“This is a good plan and good framework going forward,” he said. “I see great and strong leadership here.”
Cordray added government and community leaders’ efforts to “get in front of this wave will make a big difference for the character of neighborhoods.”
He agreed with the task force that abandoned and vacant properties were created by predatory lending and the downturn in the economy, and added the problem was “magnified by Wall Street.”
He also said he plans to share the report with other communities facing issues associated with abandoned and vacant properties.
The task force identified problems associated with those properties, including safety issues involving rodents and other animals, and the properties becoming dumpsites and serving as an attractive nuisance to children. They also were identified as attracting criminal activity, such as methamphetamine labs and drug dealers, and lowering property values and contributing to neighborhood blight.
The recommendations of the task force include four goals to address the problems of abandoned and vacant properties:
• developing a centralized system for tracking abandoned and vacation properties;
• enforcing existing codes and developing more effective legislation;
• identifying and making recommendations for the best use of current funding streams that could be used to address the problems and seeking other resources to prevent abandoned and vacant properties; and
• developing partnerships to implement alternate uses for such properties.
The task force recommended using the SCHD to serve as the host of the database effort because it already has the resources to collect the data and much of the information.
“This will serve a great need in the community,” said SCHD representative Donna Skoda, who explained details of the goal during the meeting. “It would be less costly and could be done faster with SCHD as a partner.”
The longterm goal is to make it an interactive database for involved organizations and to allow the general public to access some portions of it. The public would be encouraged to report abandoned and vacant properties.
The second goal would be to include the creation of a specialty court, such as those used by the city of Cleveland.
Summit County Common Pleas Court Judge Tom Teodosio reported 50 percent of the Civil Court docket relates to foreclosures that include criminal activity such as drug deals, meth labs and rape.
The task force report suggested such a court and one judge would provide consistency and expediency, expertise in managing housing cases with a big picture approach and possibly increase accountability of those involved with such properties.
The third goal could be achieved through the creation of land banks, and education and assistance to homeowners of at-risk properties, according to the report.
The land banks would be used to transform the properties for productive use and community development as well as to improve tax revenues. The report recommended the county explore the use of Neighborhood Stabilization Program grant funds.
Education and assistance could be achieved through more foreclosure clinics, as presented by the Consumer Affairs Office. Six of these are planned, with the first two planned for March 10 from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Twinsburg Community Center, 10260 Ravenna Road, and April 6 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at The Job Center, 1040 E. Tallmadge Road in Akron.
Other assistance could come from counseling programs or using temporary foreclosure mediation or other measures, according to the report.
The fourth goal identified alternative uses for abandoned and vacant properties to include green spaces and community gardens, which has been implemented in Akron; the rehabilitation or removal of uninhabitable buildings; and continued collaborations with the Green Policy Task Force.
Abandoned and Vacant Task Force officials reported an ad hoc committee is being formed to continue working on the issue of abandoned and vacant properties.
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