Camden abandoned-homes initiative expands Courier-Post courierpostonline.com
Jun 19, 2011
Written by JIM WALSH
CAMDEN — A grassroots initiative to turn abandoned houses into occupied homes is moving to three more city neighborhoods.
Camden officials in recent weeks have listed 102 crumbling properties in Cramer Hill that could be taken over and rehabbed by a community development group. That list soon will add about 80 derelict houses in the Lanning Square, Liberty Park and Waterfront South areas, said City Attorney Marc Riondino.
"This is development coming from the community," said Riondino, who announced the expansion at a meeting Friday of a civic group that's pushed hard for the program in Cramer Hill.
"This is not a top-down approach."
Riondino and other speakers said abandoned houses can pull down a neighborhood by providing a haven for the drug trade, vandalism and other crimes, as well as for vermin.
"You know it. You live it," Riondino told members of the Cramer Hill chapter of Camden Churches Organized for People (CCOP). "You don't deserve it."
Buildings on the list can be acquired by the city through eminent domain based upon a finding of "spot blight." The six-month condemnation process is part of a 2004 state law that Camden Mayor Dana Redd has been utilizing since April.
The issue of abandoned properties has become more urgent after two recent fires that started in vacant factories -- a 12-alarm inferno in the Gateway neighborhood on June 9 and an eight-alarm blaze in Waterfront South two days later. Together, those fires damaged or destroyed 20 occupied homes and displaced 70 people.
"Hearing the news of these horrible fires means it's important right now, more than ever, to come up with a solution for abandoned properties," said Esau Guerrero of Camden, a CCOP member who led Friday's meeting. "It's not only a problem with housing values but a problem with safety and the health of our people."
"No one died last week . . . but they could have," added Pastor Kent Walmsley of Hope Memorial Baptist Church in Cramer Hill. He said the owners of vacant factories across the city "have a moral obligation to tear them down."
An estimated 3,000 houses are vacant in Camden, according to Riondino. But it's not known how many meet the legal description of an abandoned house -- one that hasn't been legally occupied for at least six months -- and that needs repairs, is considered a nuisance or is behind on its taxes.
CCOP members identified 154 abandoned homes in Cramer Hill, but not all made the city's list. Some candidates were removed when owners submitted plans for repairs or challenged the designation, said Riondino.
So far, the list contains only houses. But, the city attorney said, "It applies to commercial buildings as well."
Under the program, property owners have a month to challenge the city's claim that their property is considered abandoned. Because owners can't always be found, the notice is made in part through an orange sticker posted on the building.
The program also allows the city to offset an abandoned building's appraised value with the cost of renovations, Riondino said. As a result, the payment to an owner "could be zero," he observed.
To acquire properties, community development groups would pay "only minor administrative fees" and reimburse the city for its eminent domain expenses, said Riondino.
But even those costs will mount up for the small nonprofits, so the program is expected to address just a fraction of the city's problem houses. In Cramer Hill, for instance, 20 houses are to be rehabbed over the next year.
Norma Bell says the program will remove the dilapidated house that adjoins her tidy home in the 2800 block of Hayes Avenue. Where Bell's house is well-maintained and has a colorful flower garden, the building next door has a rotting roof, peeling strips of vinyl siding and boarded-over windows and doors.
"It's my evil twin," said Bell, noting she recently heard burglars ripping out copper pipes inside the neighboring home. "People have no idea what you go through living next to an abandoned house."
Reach Jim Walsh at (856) 486-2646 or jwalsh@gannett.com
Jun 19, 2011
Written by JIM WALSH
CAMDEN — A grassroots initiative to turn abandoned houses into occupied homes is moving to three more city neighborhoods.
Camden officials in recent weeks have listed 102 crumbling properties in Cramer Hill that could be taken over and rehabbed by a community development group. That list soon will add about 80 derelict houses in the Lanning Square, Liberty Park and Waterfront South areas, said City Attorney Marc Riondino.
"This is development coming from the community," said Riondino, who announced the expansion at a meeting Friday of a civic group that's pushed hard for the program in Cramer Hill.
"This is not a top-down approach."
Riondino and other speakers said abandoned houses can pull down a neighborhood by providing a haven for the drug trade, vandalism and other crimes, as well as for vermin.
"You know it. You live it," Riondino told members of the Cramer Hill chapter of Camden Churches Organized for People (CCOP). "You don't deserve it."
Buildings on the list can be acquired by the city through eminent domain based upon a finding of "spot blight." The six-month condemnation process is part of a 2004 state law that Camden Mayor Dana Redd has been utilizing since April.
The issue of abandoned properties has become more urgent after two recent fires that started in vacant factories -- a 12-alarm inferno in the Gateway neighborhood on June 9 and an eight-alarm blaze in Waterfront South two days later. Together, those fires damaged or destroyed 20 occupied homes and displaced 70 people.
"Hearing the news of these horrible fires means it's important right now, more than ever, to come up with a solution for abandoned properties," said Esau Guerrero of Camden, a CCOP member who led Friday's meeting. "It's not only a problem with housing values but a problem with safety and the health of our people."
"No one died last week . . . but they could have," added Pastor Kent Walmsley of Hope Memorial Baptist Church in Cramer Hill. He said the owners of vacant factories across the city "have a moral obligation to tear them down."
An estimated 3,000 houses are vacant in Camden, according to Riondino. But it's not known how many meet the legal description of an abandoned house -- one that hasn't been legally occupied for at least six months -- and that needs repairs, is considered a nuisance or is behind on its taxes.
CCOP members identified 154 abandoned homes in Cramer Hill, but not all made the city's list. Some candidates were removed when owners submitted plans for repairs or challenged the designation, said Riondino.
So far, the list contains only houses. But, the city attorney said, "It applies to commercial buildings as well."
Under the program, property owners have a month to challenge the city's claim that their property is considered abandoned. Because owners can't always be found, the notice is made in part through an orange sticker posted on the building.
The program also allows the city to offset an abandoned building's appraised value with the cost of renovations, Riondino said. As a result, the payment to an owner "could be zero," he observed.
To acquire properties, community development groups would pay "only minor administrative fees" and reimburse the city for its eminent domain expenses, said Riondino.
But even those costs will mount up for the small nonprofits, so the program is expected to address just a fraction of the city's problem houses. In Cramer Hill, for instance, 20 houses are to be rehabbed over the next year.
Norma Bell says the program will remove the dilapidated house that adjoins her tidy home in the 2800 block of Hayes Avenue. Where Bell's house is well-maintained and has a colorful flower garden, the building next door has a rotting roof, peeling strips of vinyl siding and boarded-over windows and doors.
"It's my evil twin," said Bell, noting she recently heard burglars ripping out copper pipes inside the neighboring home. "People have no idea what you go through living next to an abandoned house."
Reach Jim Walsh at (856) 486-2646 or jwalsh@gannett.com
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