Council President Clarke Op-Ed: A Call to Action for the Philadelphia Land Bank

Philadelphia City Council President Darrell L. Clarke took to the pages of the Philadelphia Inquirer to write an op-ed on the state of the Philadelphia Land Bank. The opening paragraph sets the stage for a call to action:

Three years after the creation of the Philadelphia Land Bank, fewer than 50 vacant tax-delinquent properties have been acquired for reuse - out of thousands of eligible lots that depress neighborhoods and burden taxpayers.

The call to action follows:

It is past time to remove all lingering impediments and adhere to policies and procedures that expedite the assembly of land to improve neighborhoods and strengthen the tax base.

Clarke calls on the state to support the Land Bank with legislation, suggests reforms for the operation of the Land Bank, and also calls out Mayor Jim Kenney, in office for a year, for a lack of action. Then Clarke lists a Land Bank-related to-do list:

When City Council reconvenes on Thursday, I plan to introduce a resolution calling for a moratorium on lien and sheriff sales of vacant, tax-delinquent land and a review of Revenue Department and Office of Property Assessment procedures, including inconsistencies in their data. The resolution will also authorize public hearings on the Land Bank and strategies to better support balanced and equitable neighborhood growth.