Season’s Greetings from Baltimore

The wreaths are a nice touch–perhaps the folks at K1-D2 could add some of their own holiday cheer to a few of Richmond’s blighted properties.

Short Video of Vacant Properties

A short video tour through a few Richmond neighborhoods that are being affected by vacant, blighted properties:

City Ramps Up Blight Abatement Efforts

NBC 12′s Rachel DePompa covers the City’s stepped-up efforts to address blighted, vacant properties:

http://www.nbc12.com/Global/story.asp?S=13373594

Federal Reserve Conference on Vacant Property

“Turning Around Vacant Property in Greater Richmond”

Mark your calendar for August 20th, and register by the 13th.  Looks like this will be worth attending. 

Don Lacey Sentenced

Judge Hudson did not go easy on him–10 years and one month, followed by 3 years of supervised release. 

NBC 12′s Rachel DePompa on the sentencing

Times-Dispatch on the story

The sentence doesn’t reverse the damage those blighted, vacant properties inflicted on their neighborhoods, but will perhaps serve as a warning to others.

Meanwhile, in Flint

Slate picks up the Genessee County Land Bank story.

Fortunately, it looks as if Richmond may no longer be a member of the shrinking cities club.

In the meantime

check these out, courtesy of the intreprid John Murden of Church Hill People’s News:

100 Vacant Houses of Chuch Hill

and, more recently,

The 10 Most Blighted Houses in Church Hill

the most infuriating thing is that the links above only focus on Church Hill.  This doesn’t touch on Jackson Ward, Barton Heights, Highland Park, Manchester, Blackwell, Broadrock, etc. etc. etc.

Changes

Dear readers,

You have probably noticed some changes to the blog recently.  As this blog has matured, I’ve become concerned about the accuracy of the information that is presented here, and the format in which it is presented.  Everything that has been posted to date has been compiled from public information–in other words, all of this information is available to anyone who takes the time to look it up.  As simple as that sounds, aggregating this information is, I believe, a very informative, if simple, tool. 

The majority of the information is pulled from data available on the City of Richmond’s website.  In large part, this information seems to be accurate, although not always up to date.  Although it would be easy and simple enough to compile this information and present it here, along with photos and commentary, I’ve become uncomfortable lately with the idea that this information is incomplete and not telling the whole story.  For example, there are instances where the City lists individuals as being the point of contact for vacant properties, yet folks claiming to know assert that those individuals have nothing to do with the vacant property.  In other cases, it may be canceled building permits or transaction amounts listed in the City’s parcel mapper.  Without a better way to verify this information or put it into context, one way or another, it puts the credibility of this blog at stake. 

In an effort to continue highlighting Richmond’s vacant, blighted property problem fairly, accurately, and effectively, you may notice some more changes to this blog as we figure out how best to move forward.   A few years ago, there was a great website called “vacant richmond” that ended up going on an indefinite hiatus due to the outdated nature of the information they were using.   I hope that will not be the case here, but I do want to feel more comfortable about the information that is presented and the manner in which it is presented. 

Speaking for myself and the folks who have helped out, Richmond is a city with incredible potential.  Unlike larger cities with blighted property problems, Richmond’s is manageable in scale, if only there were enough political will, civic responsibility, and resources directed towards the issue.   Admittedly, blighted property is only one of a number of issues that hold Richmond back from reaching its potential.  However, blighted property is an issue that can be dealt with easily enough, in my humble opinion.   If you own a blighted property, fix it up or sell it to someone who will. 

The amount of input from readers, in addition to being recognized recently by rvanews as best new blog of 2009, reassures me that this issue is one that resonates in Richmond, and that residents of this city do feel strongly about the presence of blighted properties in their neighborhoods.  If you have ideas, suggestions, or want to be involved, feel free to leave a comment or email rvaslumlordwatch[at]gmail[dot]com

City Code Enforcement Audit

The City Auditor’s Office just released a report on their audit of the City’s Property Maintenance Code Enforcement Division.  The results are not surprising, nor are they entirely encouraging. 

1905 North 28th Street. Not in the City's vacant property registry.

In light of issues that have been highlighted on this blog in the past (vacant City-owned property, vacant houses that are not included on the vacant property registry), the report is refreshingly candid, both acknowledging shortcomings in the department and offering practical recommendations for improvement. 

In good news, the Auditor’s Office appreciates the role of code enforcement, saying in the introduction to the report:

According to the 2006 – 2008 U.S. Census Bureau, 85% of the housing units in Richmond were built before 1979; of those, approximately 56,500 (60%) of the units were built before 1960.  Maintenance of older properties may be expensive.  Non-maintenance could result in deterioration of the properties.  The widely accepted broken window theory states that blight caused by unabated code violations or other means could encourage criminal behavior.  In Richmond, there appears to be a correlation between code violations and crime.  Enforcement of code could deter certain types of crime.

 

Among the “salient findings of the audit” are the following:

 - Similar to unmaintained private properties observed during this audit, the auditors also found that certain City owned properties and City rights of way areas were not in compliance with City code. PMCED must communicate code violations on City owned properties to the appropriate agencies.

 - Auditors found that 40% of selected vacant properties were not monitored in a timely manner. It is important to monitor vacant and abandoned structures because they invite crime, cause community blight and present potential hazards. The auditors observed that conflicting guidance was provided to staff. The requirements for inspection of vacant properties were changed from 90 days to 45 days and vice versa.

 - Based on focus groups input and research done by the City Auditor’s Office, it appears that conducting proactive inspections would benefit the City by reducing non-compliance with the City codes. There is a technology already available to the City that could assist in selecting areas for proactive code enforcement for maximum effectiveness.

The report is worth reading: it includes some great maps and a number of interesting findings.    Will this result in the City becoming better equipped to deal with vacant properties?  Hope so. 

 

 

It’s Official

As a number of sources have reported, the U.S. Attorney’s Office filed charges against Hermitage Realty’s Don Lacey yesterday.   The number of vacant properties tied up in his various schemes is staggering, as is the amount of money involved. 

1012 N. 32nd Street, owned by Tower Building Properties LLC, C/o Stacy Martin

According to the Times-Dispatch (article here):

The U.S. attorney’s office charged Lacey, a former Henrico County police officer, with one felony count each of mail fraud and engaging in unlawful monetary transactions…

The charge of mail fraud carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison. The maximum penalty for the second charge is 10 years. The maximum fine for each charge is $250,000…

Lacey also ran several other businesses, including Clayton Investment Group, Premier Investment Properties and Tower Building Properties. He funneled money from Capital Funding through the entities under his control.

In effect, the money was supposed to be used to buy and fix up houses in the Richmond area and flip them at a profit.

“The loans exceeded the loan-to-value ratios promised to investors and the money . . . was rarely used for the designated real estate projects,” according to the court filing.

Thanks to Rachel DePompa at NBC 12, John Murden at Church Hill People’s News, and Carol Hazard at the Times-Dispatch for staying on top of this.

In other news, check out Baltimore Slumlord Watch for updates on the split-level tax proposal designed to hold owners of vacant, uninhabitable property accountable.