The Task Force consisting of legislators, staff and community stakeholders was convened in June 2020 and has released their report. Per Co-chair Matt Peter (County Legislature 5th District – D) “blight is both a countyREAD MORE
Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative – Springfield Illinois Analysis
City of Springfield, IL recently utilized Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative Fellow Megan Willis-Jackson to provide an analysis, and recommendations to address vacant and dilapidated housing. Recommended changes included changes to; Inspection processes Legal processesREAD MORE
JAMA Study Municipally Funded House Repairs and Crime Rates
Recent article in the Wall Street Journal, discusses a July 2021 study in the Journal of the American Medical Association, that “found a tight link between municipally funded house repairs and a drop in crimeREAD MORE
Pennsylvania House Bill 1827 Focus on Code Enforcement
Pennsylvania once again is at the forefront in the fight against blight and with new proposed legislation shines the spotlight directly on code enforcement. House Bill 1827, would give local governments the opportunity to applyREAD MORE
CA SB 296 Code Enforcement Safety Law
California Governor Newsom signed SB 296 “Code enforcement officers: safety standards” into law. “The Legislature finds and declares that code enforcement officers are disproportionately at risk for threat, assault, injury, and even homicide due toREAD MORE
Ohio Neighborhood Protection Act
Newly proposed legislation would require vacant property owners to file contact information with the county auditor’s office. For more information, please click here.
Community Engagement – “Neighborhood Academy”
The Jackson MS (recent recipient of 1 of 8 $100,000 “Love your Block” grant) Director of Planning and Development seeks to establish a “neighborhood academy”. The purpose of the academy would be “to provide homeownerREAD MORE
Nuisance Ordinances – More Trouble than its Worth?
For one particular community that may be the case. Richmond KY may soon repeal a 2019 chronic nuisance property ordinance that imposes a civil fine on hotels and motels that are found to be aREAD MORE
Financial Support to Address Blight from New and Interesting Sources
We have previously provided numerous innovative and creative approaches and partnerships to addressing blight in local communities. In a recent feature, East Orange NJ was highlighted as the latest recipient of launch the ”#DrivingForChange program”,READ MORE
Public Safety Strategies for Addressing Mortgage Fraud and the Foreclosure Crisis
In 2010 a report was released from the Center for Court Innovation supported by the Bureau of Justice Assistance, a component of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs, titled “Public Safety StrategiesREAD MORE
Comcate Webinar “How to Combat Vacant Property Blight with VPROs”
MuniReg President Michael Halpern was privileged to conduct a webinar titled “How to Combat Vacant Property Blight with VPROs”. In this webinar, Halpern provided an overview of the evolution of “Vacant Property Registration” ordinances, howREAD MORE
City of Springfield Illinois Receives Analysis to Address Blight
City of Springfield Illinois recently utilized Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative Fellow Megan Willis-Jackson to provide an analysis of the city provide recommendations to address vacant and dilapidated housing, including recommended changes to; • InspectionREAD MORE