Steps are being taken to take advantage of a state law passed last year to form a County Land Reutilization Corporation (CLRC), or "Land Bank" in Hamilton County. A CLRC helps communities recover from foreclosure and blight that negatively impact property values, raise insurance costs, and decrease tax revenue. If implemented, it could help stem the repercussions from foreclosures in Hamilton County that increased 168% between 1999 and 2010. To accomplish this it will first require some cooperation amongst the county's 49 villages, townships, and cities.
According to Ohio HB 113, a CLRC could assist the county acquire vacant and abandoned properties through tax foreclosures from lenders, banks or even on the open market. After clearing title and any liens against the properties, a CLRC can redistribute them or enter into negotiations and contracts for purchase and development.
"The purpose of the land bank is to take properties that the private sector sees no value in touching and clearing title, extinguishing liens [and] place them back into a situation where the private marketplace can do what it does best - develop," said Assistant Hamilton County Administrator Jeff Aluotto, who is overseeing this project.
Funding is one of the first issues that must be addressed, so county administrators are reaching out to local governments to explain the benefits of establishing a CLRC. The creation and annual operation of a CLRC would add 5% to the amount collected through the County's Delinquent Tax and Assessment Collection Fund (DTAC). Delinquent taxes are collected by the County on real property, personal property, and manufactured and mobile homes. Hamilton County currently receives 5% of all delinquent taxes collected countywide which is evenly divided between the Treasurer and Prosecutor for use in connection with the collection of these delinquencies. The creation of a CLRC would enable the county to collect an additional 5% of delinquent tax revenue, or a projected $379,735.60 from the City of Cincinnati, and the county's villages and townships, according to data supplied by the Hamilton County Planning Partnership.
Aluotto said there are several administrative steps which must be taken first in order to legally establish a CLRC including creating a Board. He anticipates resolutions will be prepared for County action later this summer, formally creating the entity that will oversee the process. That Board will be given latitude about whether it pursues foreclosed properties alone, or accepts property donations or even purchases properties. Alutto said that the Port Authority of Cincinnati could be tapped to manage the CLRC.
"Leveraging the economic development powers of the Port is certainly high on the county's agenda and it appears to be so at the city as well. Any opportunity we can take to participate jointly with the city on this is very important," Aluotto said.
And while countywide 'buy in' isn't technically needed for creating a CLRC, Aluotto says these communities are necessary in order for it to be successful, and in many cases, may be the first to benefit from its work.
"The demand for the establishment of the land bank has come primarily from many of these communities which are really on the front line of battling the problems of blight and abandoned properties spurred in part by the foreclosure crisis."
Writer: Sean Rhiney
Sources: Assistant Hamilton County Administrator Jeff Aluotto, Catalina Landivar-Simon, AICP, Hamilton County Planning Commission
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