A recent report discusses the "Building for a Better New Bedford" Initiative inacted by Mayor Scott W. Lang of the City of New Bedford MA (02740-46). As elaborated in the official Press Release, the initiative includes;

• The creation of an enforcement team designed to expedite the process of declaring an abandoned/derelict house a public nuisance. The team, will assess a neighborhood block by block and concentrate on areas that demonstrate the greatest number of derelict properties.  During the identification stages, all code violations are noted and entered into a database. Owners will be notified and required to address code violations and safety issues within a certain time period. Owners unable or unwilling to make the necessary investments in a timely manner will receive enforcement notices and bills for related charges. This initiative will involve the board up and securing of all ‘at risk” buildings.

• Attorney General "Abandoned Housing Program" - Under the Program, residential properties with persistent, unremediated building, health and safety code violations are identified by the community for potential action. Unless absentee owners address their obligations, the program obtains receivers to rehabilitate the property and make it habitable. The Program is an effective, innovative way to remove the blighting and destructive influence problem properties have on our neighborhoods.

• Vacant Building Registry – The City is developing a mandatory Vacant Property Register. The process will require responsible parties to implement a maintenance plan for such buildings in order to remedy any public nuisance problems and prevent deterioration, unsightly blight, and consequent adverse impact on the value of nearby property. The ordnance requires owners to register their buildings with the City of New Bedford within 30 days of becoming vacant. Individuals that fail to register their property will be subject to fines and penalties.

  To run a property report for New Bedford MA properties housed in the Safeguard database please click on the following link.

  New Bedford MA
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  Mayor Targets Decay
  
  Mayor Scott W. Lang took aim at blighted properties yesterday, unveiling a comprehensive plan to address vacant, abandoned and unsafe buildings throughout the city.
  Called "Building for a Better New Bedford," the initiative will use strict code enforcement, grant funding, low-interest loans, partnerships with nonprofit groups and a state receivership program to bring some of the worst blighted properties in the city back to life.
  The city will also aggressively pursue the worst tax scofflaws. Since the beginning of the year, the city has taken 12 properties and recovered more than $2.5 million in back taxes.
  Another tool is a receivership program, offered by the Attorney General's Office, in which abandoned properties can be assigned a receiver who will dictate that a property be renovated or cleaned up, without taking it away from the private property owner. Under the program, the property owner could do the repairs required by the receiver, or simply pay for them.
  The mayor, who made his announcement to department heads at the New Bedford Art Museum, has also proposed a new city ordinance that would allow for the city to set guidelines for who can buy properties taken for back taxes by including stipulations on historical character, owner-occupied or first-time home buyers.
  "Our neighborhoods are defined by the worst house in the neighborhood," Mayor Lang said. By addressing abandoned properties, issues "like safety, security, stability and overall improved quality of life will follow.
  "The city of New Bedford will no longer bear the cost and responsibility of maintaining vacant and derelict private properties at taxpayer expense," he said. "If a property owner is going to hold a vacant non-code-compliant property, there will be a cost and other consequences, perhaps foreclosure of the property itself."
  Some of the items city officials are looking at to determine what constitutes a blighted property include health and safety code violations, fire damage, significant unpaid taxes and large numbers of police calls to the address. A committee of neighborhood groups also pointed out problem properties in their neighborhoods.
  The Attorney General's Office will hold several informational seminars for landlords, in September.
  The sessions will relate why the city and state expect landlords to meet certain standards with their properties, and "to assure owners they have access to resources to address problem tenants and other issues."
  A number of city department heads spoke in support of the program, including Patrick Sullivan, director of the Office of Housing and Community Development; City Treasurer and CFO Daniel Patten; Tax Title Attorney Blair Bailey; Acting Building Commissioner Daniel Romanowicz; City Planner David Kennedy; Historic Housing Planner Anne Louro; Fire Chief Ronald Leger and Police Chief Ronald Teachman.
  Under former Mayor Frederick M. Kalisz Jr., a similar program called "Operation Makesafe" was launched in 2005. The program had some successes, but was disbanded before Mayor Kalisz left office.
  Mayor Lang said he would hold landlords accountable.
  "They have to fully respect the rights of their tenants, and the building and housing codes," he said. If a landlord is operating a blighted building, "You're unfairly bringing down the entire neighborhood. The days of everyone riding by, ignoring it, is over."
  As part of the press conference, Mayor Lang handed out a list of 35 properties to be targeted. Several of them have been taken by the city for failure to pay back taxes, including a historic, single-family home at 115 Summer St. Another longtime vacant home, at One Washington Square near County Street, will be taken by the city in 60 to 90 days. The city is also looking into redevelopment possibilities for the old fire station at 109 Hillman St., at the corner of County Street.
  Mr. Sullivan, of the city's Office of Housing and Community Development, said the city would seek to sell them at auction under the proposed city ordinance, should it be passed by the City Council. The ordinance would allow the city to sell properties with conditions, such as requiring that the new owner occupy the home or that certain historical elements be preserved.

To view the online article, please click on the following link.

New Bedford MA "Building for a Better New Bedford" Initiative