08-13-12 Residential Neighborhoods

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RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBORHOODS AUGUST 13, 2012 4:40 P.M. Committee Member's Present: Tim Scott, Karen White Citizen Members: Ken Bradford, Jen Tindel Other Council Member's Present: Henry Davis, Valerie Schey, Dr. David Varner, Derek Dieter Other's Present: Kathy Cekanski - Farrand, Kevin Allen, Jim Kelly, Richard Chambliss, Jerry Niezgodski, Regina Williams- Preston, Mike Schmuhl Agenda: Update - Vacant & Abandoned Housing Task Force — Jim Kelly Residential Neighborhoods Committee Chairperson Tim Scott called this meeting to give the Council an opportunity to hear a progress report on the Mayor's task force formed to address the problem of vacant and abandoned properties. Before introducing the head of the task force, Tim who serves as the Council's representative on the task force, gave a brief breakdown of the focus, funding, and committee structure of the group. Tim referred to materials he had previously provided the Council as a reference point. Tim then introduced Jim Kelly, appointed by the Mayor and serving a chair of the task force. Jim is a faculty member of the Notre Dame law school and has extensive experience in rescuing challenged deteriorating neighborhoods particularly in Baltimore. Kelly reported an enthusiasm in neighborhoods to work together to salvage and improve them. He said the early focus of the group was to accumulate data which would methodically detail the number of vacant and abandoned homes. That base line data would be used to develop a matrix to objectively identify which homes were economically salvageable and which had to come down. Houses designated for demolition would be prioritized by a list of factors including safety risk and input from neighborhood Code and people living there. Tim Scott, interjected to say the Mayor had pledged an additional 1 million dollars in 2013 for demolition. Jim Kelly then went on to identify the committees created and their mission. One was to collect data and establish objective measures. A land bank approach, perhaps requiring state legislation was tasked to another. Capital availability, what we have and what we might get was yet another. Another committee was to investigate how to best use the vacant lots left after demolition. He went on to say individual properties would be evaluated for rehab where market factors made it practical. The market factor approach might also have an application to the land bank process of "bundling" properties for sale to developers. Karen White wondered if demographics were taken into account. Kelly said they were indeed adding we have to know how we got to where we are before we can plan where we want to go.