The City of Columbus, Ohio, Department of Development has said that Columbus neighborhoods, nuisance properties are on the decline.
The department said in its annual release that “vacant property count and, overall, the number of vacant structures is down 61 percent since 2012.
“At the end of 2017, there were 3,817 vacant structures, while there were 6,284 vacant and blighted properties in 2012. In all but one of the neighborhoods, the number of vacant structures is down more than 50 percent,” the report said.
Vacant and abandoned structures cause blight and can be magnets for crime.
Columbus City Mayor Andrew Ginther said, “We know that vacant structures diminish neighborhoods. Our continued work to demolish or see to the rehabilitation of these properties improves the appearance and safety of our communities.”
The City attributes several factors to the decline of vacant properties in neighborhoods. Since 2012, the city’s Land Bank Office, in partnership with the Central Ohio Community Improvement Corporation, has demolished 1,507 properties that could not be salvaged.
Additionally, the Land Bank Office has seen a continued increase in property sales for both structures and vacant lots, as they work strategically with for profit and non-profit partners to rehab and construct new homes. The Proactive Code Enforcement team (PACE) continues to work with property owners to encourage the rehabilitation of units within their ownership or the sale of blighted properties that they do not have the capacity to improve.
Another factor for the decline is that banks have begun to increase lending activity for rehabs. Five years ago, properties were going unbid during foreclosure proceedings because banks were not providing loans following the housing collapse.
No comments:
Post a Comment