FitzGerald to introduce County Council legislation establishing fund to support demolition efforts

Download or read:  Ordinance No. O2014-000 - An Ordinance establishing the Cuyahoga County Property Demolition Fund; and declaring the necessity that this Ordinance be immediately effective.

CLEVELAND - Cuyahoga County Executive Ed FitzGerald, Thriving Communities Institute Director Jim Rokakis, Vacant and Abandoned Property Action Council (VAPAC) Chair Frank Ford, and Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Tim McGinty today held a press conference with housing advocates to propose legislation establishing a $50 million fund to demolish blighted and abandoned structures that place an economic strain and risk to public safety in communities across Cuyahoga County.

"It is critical that Cuyahoga County take immediate action to deal with tens of thousands of vacant, abandoned, and blighted structures that are placing such an unnecessary strain on working families today," said FitzGerald. "I am proud to stand with so many advocates in introducing this new legislation, and I look forward to collaborating with the members of our County Council on this important work."

FitzGerald will introduce legislation (attached to this email) during tonight's County Council meeting. His proposal would lay the groundwork for a new $50 million fund he first proposed during this year's State of the County address. Since then, Cuyahoga County has convened discussions with each city in the county to hear their recommendations on moving forward.

"This problem of vacant and abandoned properties is affecting communities all over Ohio. Our studies demonstrate that depressed property values in the City of Cleveland and certain inner-ring suburbs have shifted additional costs to more stable communities in Cuyahoga County," added Rokakis. "I am certain this pattern has been repeated throughout the State of Ohio, especially in our core cities and its' surrounding communities. I commend the County Executive for taking this bold step."

Cuyahoga County is also partnering with County Prosecutor Tim McGinty to ensure effective coordination of all county resources during this effort. The county expects to deliver a national model for others to follow, just as it previously did by creating the nation's most effective Land Bank.

"The ground-breaking study Thriving Communities Institute recently released shows the problem of blighted properties affects everyone in the county: not just those who live with vacant properties on their streets, but even those in the outer suburbs," said Ford. "As blighted properties in Cleveland have caused home values to plummet in the urban core, taxpayers in the outer suburbs are having to pick up a greater share of the county's tax burden. In a true sense, everyone is paying for this problem one way or another and everyone gains if these blighted properties are addressed. The sooner we can address this blight, the sooner home values can recover."