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Fighting blight and vacancy in Church Hill
05/22/2011 9:54 AM by John M
A look at the impact of the blight and the fight against it in Fighting Blight in Richmond’s Church Hill by Fletcher Babb and Catherine Leth.
See also: 100 vacant houses.
Anybody have any suggestions on the best way to force action from an absentee landlord? My sister just bought a house near a vacant that appears to be owned by a now defunct development corporation (abandoned house at 415 N 32nd Street). The house in question is listed under a company that is based in Fredericksburg but closed a few years back. There are some very old building permits (’07 and ’08) on the house but work appears to have stopped. The front yard is filled with broken glass and the windows are boarded up.
Would greatly appreciate any suggestions on how I can put some heat on the city and/or owner (if they can even be reached) to make this thing get cleaned up.
Have already checked out See Click Fix as an option but it appears that a ticket has been open for a long time on this one and the city’s response is basically just to acknowledge that it is a problem. Given that the company is now defunct, I don’t think that waiting will do much.
Alex you could try calling Housing Code Enforcement at 311. However if it is boarded up, there’s a good chance they are going to tell you they can’t do much. If the grass is over a foot high, they can issue a citation.
You might also check the city tax records and see if the taxes are up to date; maybe you could buy it for back taxes.
You and your sister could also just pick up the broken glass and complain to the Blue Wheeler about their customers ltitering (although I’m not sure that will do any good). Also tell your sister to meet her neighbors – I used to live at 501 just up the street, and maintained contact with several neighbors. It’s a little sketchy but there are some really good folks there, too.
I’ve got two problem houses across from me, Reporting it on SeeClickFix got the doors boarded up, grass cut and a little of the trash removed. I would try uploading some pictures on SeeClickFix if you haven’t, see if that helps the City understand the issues. If not I would consider anything you can do yourself to fix it. I’m probably going to put up barb wire at the house across from me to keep people from going in the back, because although it looks better now, the years of vacancy and neglect still have it known as the local place to piss, take a dump, smoke crack or take your hooker.
The broken glass is from the house, not the Blue Wheeler by-products. Would that help?
Any idea how to see if taxes are unpaid and how I could buy if not? Would that require a foreclosure auction or is there a separate process?
Bret,
Am I running the risk of getting charged with trespassing if I go on their property and start doing clean-up work?
Ideally, I’d prefer to leave the mess there and use it to force action if that is even possible, not because I’m lazy about it but because I’d much rather have the rest of the house improved to some habitable standard rather than continue to rot away. If that is unrealistic to expect, I am willing to do the clean-up to at least make it a little less scary looking.
I’m really frustrated that eminent domain is so popular with politicians when they want to flatten a perfectly fine neighborhood to hook their rich developer friends up with a spot but they won’t lift a finger when some shithead leaves his place rotting and it has serious negative impacts on the surrounding houses. I support property rights but when folks can’t keep their house to a bare minimum standard (like habitability), they are infringing on others rights.
Alex, you should be able to call the city to find out if the taxes are being paid – try the finance dept. at 311. I think there’s a way to find out online but am drawing a blank on how to do so, sorry.
I do know that the subject matter expert in properties for back taxes is Bill Conkle – he lives in Union Hill, posts on here periodically. I think he’s in the phone book, too. Try contacting him for further advice about property taxes. He has bought several properties for back taxes, but you first have to find out if the taxes are being paid. I understand your frustration, vacant blighted properties affect the whole area but particularly the near by properties.