VACANT HOUSE CAMPAIGN

Reservoir Hill Improvement Council

A NEW LIGHT ON DARK SPACES:

ELIMINATING THE BLIGHT OF VACANT HOUSES

The vacant houses that characterize so many urban communities like Reservoir Hill are a stark and constant reminder of the disinvestment that has contributed to the impoverishment of the community, and that continues to do so today.  Absentee property owners have a responsibility to the community the same as residents of that community. The Vacant House Campaign is designed to pursue that responsibility of the property owner and get the vacant houses rehabbed and lived-in.

Reservoir Hill Improvement Council pursues action on vacant properties in three ways:

    1.   Encouraging property owners to rehab or sell the property
    2.   Advocating for acquisition and sale of vacant property by the City.
    3.   Utilizing code enforcement to fine or prosecute for code violations.

Where We Are Today

Forty-two of the 124 privately-owned vacant houses in Reservoir Hill are at this time under some form of code enforcement legal activity. There are currently 32 open receivership cases for Reservoir Hill, being pursued by Baltimore Housing.  Owners of another 10 properties are facing prosecution by the code enforcement legal section.

Since the start of the campaign, City processes for identifying vacant houses has improved, and progress on code enforcement has increased greatly.  Sixty-one Use & Occupancy permits were issued in 2006 alone.  Progress has happened.

Challenges & Where We Need to Go

Still, we have 189 properties coded as vacant.  The cost to property owners to hold on to these derelict properties is not high enough to force them toward rehabbing or selling the property.  Fines are being levied, but there needs to be a concerted effort to fine recalcitrant property owners on a regular basis and to collect on the fines.

While the staff of the Code Enforcement Division has been responsive, the workload they are carrying city-wide is enormous. For both the imposition and enforcement of fines, and for prosecution of cases through Code Enforcement Legal, the department is understaffed.  RHIC has requested that the City re-allocate staff time for one year to address this need.

In addition, RHIC has prepared a proposal for redevelopment of a set of vacant houses as homeownership opportunities for moderate-income families.

October 2007