There's a surprising amount of vacancies and blight in the nation's capital, and District officials aren't doing everything in their power to address the challenge.
"The District could be losing millions in revenue from taxes and fines every year because of its failure to crack down on vacant and blighted properties," reports Peter Jamison.
That news come via a D.C. auditor's report released this week on the enforcement performance of the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs (DCRA). "D.C. Auditor Kathleen Patterson, found that the city agency in charge of code enforcement did not strictly regulate unoccupied or derelict buildings, and frequently granted exemptions from those rules that did not appear to be justified," according to Jamison. The article includes a lot more of the detail of the auditor's report, and the causes and consequences of the DCRA's performance.
Add the problems at DCRA with the District's ongoing problem of "how to deal with decrepit buildings owned by foreign governments in the nation’s capital." A separate article by Jenna Portnoy details that only-in-D.C. blight challenge.
FULL STORY: cs D.C. failing to crack down on abandoned buildings, report finds
$160 Million in Bond Funding for Demolitions on the Ballot in Detroit
Proposal N, on the ballot for Detroit voters next week, will provide $160 million in bond funding for demolitions and $90 million to mothball homes for future rehab, but, according to this opinion, it won't solve the city's blight challenges.
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The city of Detroit said it would halt a demolition program after a report revealed the amount of lead released by demolitions into the environment, risking the health of children and other local residents.
Demolitions Can't Keep Pace With Vacancies in Baltimore
As the city of Baltimore grapples with a declining population, it faces obstinate challenges in controlling the problems associated with vacant buildings, including the "vicious cycle" of vacancies causing more vacancies.
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