Blight

Planting Parks to Remedy Blight

"Redfields to Greenfields," a project currently being developed at Georgia Tech in partnership with City Parks Alliance advocacy group, would convert empty commercial sites into parks, writes Nate Berg for The Atlantic Cities.
3 November 2011 - 7:00am
The Atlantic Cities

Slumlords Summoned to "Blight Court"

For years, absentee owners of Philadelphia eyesores avoided penalties from Licenses and Inspections, often because citations and warnings were sent to vacant properties. Now, commissioner Fran Burns can summon those owners back to the city.
27 October 2011 - 8:00am
Philadelphia Daily News

Dilapidated Properties and Delinquent Taxes Plague Philadelphia

Delinquent properties are scattered throughout Philadelphia, and they collectively owe nearly $500 million in taxes. This is a major problem for the city, and new legislation is hoping to tackle it.
17 August 2011 - 8:00am
The Philadelphia Inquirer

Drug War Leaves Wake of Empty Homes

The border city of Juarez, Mexico, has been a flashpoint in the drug-fueled violence that has plagued many parts of Mexico. Recent figures show that nearly 25% of the homes there have been abandoned.
26 May 2011 - 5:00am
El Paso Times

Trying To Reclaim and Reuse Abandoned Land in Philadelphia

Community groups in Philadelphia are trying to remake blighted vacant properties into community gardens and neighborhood amenities.
13 May 2011 - 12:00pm
The Philadelphia Inquirer

Funds to Demolish Abandoned Buildings Grow

The city of Youngstown, Ohio, is heavily reliant on funding from grants and outside sources to help pay for the clearing of abandoned properties. Those funds have grown since last year.
15 April 2011 - 6:00am
Vindy

Redevelopment Agencies' Debt Overshadows Revenue

California's redevelopment agencies have almost as much if not more debt than what they pull in from tax revenues, according to this investigation by The Wall Street Journal.
12 April 2011 - 6:00am
The Wall Street Journal

Fighting Blight in the Bronx

A New York man who has watched a Bronx neighborhood fall into despair over decades is hoping to help un-blight the troubled area.
10 January 2011 - 5:00am
The New York Times

Quantifying the Impact of Abandoned Properties in Philly

A new study suggests that Philadelphia's 40,000 vacant buildings reduce home values by as much as $8,000 and cost the city $20 million per year in maintenance.
17 November 2010 - 6:00am
Philadelphia Daily News

Transit Transformation in New Orleans

Jonna McKone asks, "How can transportation and urban development—from housing to public spaces to landscaping—repair a blighted American city?"
11 November 2010 - 7:00am
TheCityFix

Humongous Tree Irks Neighbors

The front yard of a home in suburban Plymouth, England is completely enveloped by a leylandii tree. Neighbors say it's an eyesore, the owner says he's being unfairly targeted.
7 September 2010 - 1:00pm
The Guardian U.K.

Blight Camouflage?

The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports that the city has begun covering the broken windows and doors of abandoned homes with plywood painted to look like functioning doors and windows as part of a program to fight blight.
3 September 2010 - 2:00pm
The Cleveland Plain Dealer

Kelo Redux: Struggling Malls

The eminent domain case of Kelo vs. New London is seeing new relevance in cities across the country, as empty malls are being classified by locals as blight.
18 August 2010 - 6:00am
Retail Traffic

When Does a Failing Mall Become "Blighted"?

In Westminster, Colorado, the city's economic development department is attempting to have the Westminster Mall blighted and thus up for seizing through eminent domain.
12 August 2010 - 6:00am
Retail Traffic Magazine

Redefining Blight

From New London to the Atlantic Yards, the last month has seen a flood of news around the issue of eminent domain. Diana Lind wonders if we need a new definition of 'blighted.'
4 December 2009 - 9:00am
Next American City

Blight into Beauty in San Francisco

At a time when developers are having trouble getting loans to build, San Francisco is taking steps to improve empty lots with art, retail, and other temporary investments in neighborhood vitality until construction can resume.
7 September 2009 - 9:00am
San Francisco Chronicle

A Little Too Tough on Blight?

The City of Chula Vista has a highly successful anti-blight ordinance- so successful that some critics say they may actually be delaying the recovery of the local real estate market.
8 July 2009 - 10:00am
San Diego Union-Tribune

Friday Funny: Elected to the House, But Abandoned Her Own

Congresswoman Laura Richardson has gotten on the nerves of her Sacramento neighbors, mainly because she's never around. As a result, her home has gone untended and turned into a blight on the neighborhood.
12 June 2009 - 2:00pm
Los Angeles Times

Whither Vacant Buildings?

Officials in Fort Worth, Texas, are searching for ways to deal with buildings left vacant by businesses struggling during the recession. Other cities and the state of Texas are also addressing the issue.
7 April 2009 - 11:00am
Fort Worth Star Telegram

The Planetizen News Brief - 3/19/09


4:15 minutes (3.9 MB)

Florida cans growth management, floundering retail leaves cities high and dry, and advertising takes over public spaces -- all on this week's Planetizen News Brief, airing every week on the nationally-syndicated radio program "Smart City". Read, listen or download.

19 March 2009 - 5:00am
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