- ERIC SANDY/SCENE
- Vacant properties dot neighborhoods across Cleveland.
“Vacant and abandoned properties pose a threat to citizens’ safety, contribute to an environment that fosters crime, slow community development, depress neighboring property values, and accelerate residential flight.”
That’s a notable line in the ordinance establishing the Cuyahoga County Property Demolition Fund. Council members are expected to vote on the fund during today’s meeting.
At his State of the County speech last month, Executive Ed FitzGerald promised to funnel $50 million in bonds toward the demolition of vacant homes and the restoration of those properties. Once council approves the new fund, the first step will have been taken toward meeting that goal.
The “restoration” portion of that goal, which was not immediately identified during his speech, revolves around possibilities like “buy-hold-and-maintain strategies [or] site assembly for strategic development and construction,” according to county documents.
This program would include annual progress reports to council and the public.
Council members will discuss the fund at today’s meeting, which will be held at 5 p.m. at the Justice Center.
This article appears in Apr 16-22, 2014.
Good people became snarled in the economic chaos that yielded “too big to fail” — and government’s best solution is plow under its failed policies, with some vague idea of “restoration” that will stumble onto the stage at a later date.
Well, at least they’re doing something with the old houses. I mean, you can only have so many places for raccoons to live and illegal activities to occur.
Best news out of Cleveland in a decade.
I’m a big restoration person. Some of these places are way past saving. Tear them down and make neighborhood parks and community gardens to feed people.
Let’s tear down someone’s property to avoid blight in our neighborhoods! Don’t fool yourself. This is big business.
They are abandoned…and have been for a very long time. The only thing they are being used for are #1 squatters, #2 raccoons and stray cats, #3 breaking in for destruction, copper piping ect….I lived on the East side in the past year, recently moved, and having every other property on your block totally abandoned does nothing for anyone. No one is buying them, they are beyond repair. The property would be better suited for selling to people who want to build homes next to neighbors who actually keep up on their property, parks/playgrounds, businesses ect. Shitty people like to set abandoned houses on fire, destroy them, gut them and only bring destruction to the area. I see no need in letting them stand if no one ownes them or has taken care of them in years and they are literally falling apart.