CHARLESTON, W.Va. — An aggressive effort to address vacant and abandoned properties is underway in Charleston.
Charleston Mayor Amy Shuler Goodwin, City Attorney Kevin Baker, and a handful of city council members announced two bills on Monday afternoon in North Charleston that will be presented in front of council Monday evening.
Standing in front of a vacant home at 605 21st Street, the administration said one bill creates a Land Reuse Agency and the other strengthens enforcement.
“This was one of the number one complaints we have heard,” Goodwin said of her conversations with residents. “This is a problem that has been going on for decades in the city of Charleston. We believe that yes, some demolitions need to take place and we continue to keep that fund for demolitions, but we have to start building back our communities.”
Land Reuse Agency (LRA) was created in 2014 by the West Virginia Legislature to provide a greater ability to confront the problems caused by vacant, abandoned, and tax-delinquent properties.
“That board will allow the city to look over properties all over the city and try to figure out what property we would like to essentially land bank, hold on to and try to put back into development but a future developer down the line,” Charleston City Attorney Kevin Baker said.
Goodwin emphasized at the presser that Charleston must build up once it is torn down. She said the LRA should encourage owners to find a family that wants to live in a property or give it to the agency to figure out.
The release from the city said the LRA would help manage blighted properties throughout Charleston, and while demolitions would continue, it would also encourage the rehabilitation of dilapidated buildings.
“Long gone are the days that these are easy answers,” Goodwin said. “These are complex answers, really complex questions. That’s why we decided to put these bills forth in front of city council.”
“If you want to have a thriving and vibrant community, you can’t do it this way. You have to be creative and that’s what we’ve done.”
The second bill increases the city’s already put-in place enforcement on vacant properties.
“This is going to put teeth into it to make sure properties get on their registry quicker, fines go up a little faster and hopefully will motivate some people to take care of their property a little better or sell their property to someone that wants to live in the neighborhood,” Baker said.
The bills will be introduced and referred to committees at the Monday council meeting.
Goodwin said the time is now to act.
“It hurts the values of all of the homes around these properties, it hurts morale within a community,” she said.