Mayor Stephen J. Luecke of South Bend IN recently introduced the City's strategy to reduce vacant properties by more than one-fifth, with most of the focus aimed at reducing abandoned properties by 72 percent.

Included in the initiative are;

• Proposal for consideration by the Common Council of a vacant house registration ordinance, which would require registration of any home that is vacant for more than 90 days and in violation of existing code regulations, if there are not ongoing efforts to market, sell or renovate the property.
  
• Prohibitions of participation by any prospective buyers with existing properties with code violations. If any purchasers are later discovered to have existing violations, the sales are subject to forfeiture.   
  
• Demolition of nearly 400 substandard properties citywide and in targeted neighborhoods with the highest concentration of abandoned buildings.
  
•  Acquisition and clean out of 45 abandoned or vacant homes in targeted neighborhoods on the city’s northwest and west sides.
  
• Identification of entire blocks as the focus of a specific demolition and redevelopment strategy.
  

• Freeing up of additional resources for boarding up unsafe structures.  

For additional information, please click here.

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Safeguard Properties is the largest privately held field services company in the country. Located in Cleveland, OH  and founded in 1990 by Robert Klein, Safeguard has grown from a regional preservation company with a few employees and a handful of contractors performing services in the Midwest, to a national company with over 425 employees.  Safeguard is supported by a nationwide network of subcontractors able to perform any requested superintendence, preservation, and maintenance functions, as well as numerous ancillary services in the U.S., the Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico.