Discuss Detroit » Archives - Beginning July 2006 » Wayne County Creates Land Bank. Detroit to follow? « Previous Next »
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Lowell
Board Administrator
Username: Lowell

Post Number: 2728
Registered: 10-2003
Posted From: 66.167.210.44
Posted on Wednesday, June 21, 2006 - 3:07 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Finally!

quote:

The Wayne County Board of Commissioners on Thursday approved plans to create a county land bank.

The commission voted 8-6 to create an intergovernmental agreement with the Michigan State Land Bank Fast Track Authority for a five-member county land bank authority. Disagreement over governance has been the sticking point on the issue.

Land banks promote reinvestment by taking control of tax-foreclosed properties, then clearing title and holding the sites. The banks negotiate a sale to the party that brings the best redevelopment ideas. Land banks also can receive land through donations or purchases. Sites are brownfield-eligible and held as tax-exempt while in the land bank.

The Wayne County Land Bank Authority will consist of three members appointed by County Executive Robert Ficano, one county commissioner and county Treasurer Raymond Wojtowicz.

Ficano announced Thursday two of the three he names will be Detroit residents because the majority of abandoned and blighted parcels are in the city...


Full ariticle at Crains.
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Detroiternthemist
Member
Username: Detroiternthemist

Post Number: 61
Registered: 01-2006
Posted From: 64.118.149.50
Posted on Wednesday, June 21, 2006 - 4:47 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I believe the Wayne County land bank includes Detroit.
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Lowell
Board Administrator
Username: Lowell

Post Number: 2734
Registered: 10-2003
Posted From: 66.167.210.44
Posted on Wednesday, June 21, 2006 - 4:58 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

FTI, From the same article

"...a separate city of Detroit land bank will work from an inventory of parcels the city has held for years.

Detroit City Council President Kenneth Cockrel said the city’s Planning and Development Department is expected to resubmit its land bank plan to the City Council soon."
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Rrl
Member
Username: Rrl

Post Number: 535
Registered: 12-2003
Posted From: 71.213.228.30
Posted on Wednesday, June 21, 2006 - 5:15 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

May be a silly question, but why would both the City AND the county need to have separate land-banks? Seems like a waste of taxpayer money to create and operate two separate offices and bureaucracies to handle essentially the same function.
Am I being too logical here...?
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Jsmyers
Member
Username: Jsmyers

Post Number: 1774
Registered: 12-2003
Posted From: 209.131.7.68
Posted on Wednesday, June 21, 2006 - 5:51 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I don't necessarily agree that they should be separate, but this is my understanding:

(Please correct me if I am mistaken)

The start separate because both the county and city hold property that is in the city. County property goes into the county landbank and city property goes into the city landback.

The city does not want to give its property to be controlled by the county land bank (especially when the county has a lot of existing land in the city, probably more than it can handle).

The city can control the destiny of its land bank and ensure that it is working on the city's behalf, they have no such control over the county landbank.

(Plus we all realize how difficult it is for politicians to give up control, regardless of whether it is a good idea or not.)

My only question is will (and how) they work together. There are bound to be neighboring parcels of land that are in different landbanks. Will their be swaps to get adjacent properties controlled together? Transfers? Cooperation?

FYI - Flint has been greatly helped by their landbank: http://www.thelandbank.org/
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Rrl
Member
Username: Rrl

Post Number: 536
Registered: 12-2003
Posted From: 71.213.228.30
Posted on Wednesday, June 21, 2006 - 6:36 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

What I was suggesting is one landbank that has participation from both the City & County.

Why couldn't they work in parallel on this to minimize dupication of services. Seems to me having them working together out of the same offices will streamline the whole process and help eliminate some of the points Jsmyers brings up regarding neighboring parcels, etc.
Lets face it, sold property with cleared title benefits the both governments and all residents.
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Jasoncw
Member
Username: Jasoncw

Post Number: 187
Registered: 07-2005
Posted From: 67.149.141.170
Posted on Wednesday, June 21, 2006 - 8:35 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

If the county will provide the service, why isn't the city giving it's land over? That way it could cut the land bank program off the budget, but they'd still get at the very least, most of the benifit. I thought the city was trying to slim itself down.
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Gumby
Member
Username: Gumby

Post Number: 1276
Registered: 11-2003
Posted From: 68.60.143.186
Posted on Wednesday, June 21, 2006 - 11:38 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

The Genesee county land bank has done wonders up here in Flint. In fact it seems to think city of Flint forst then the rest of the county. This could be a really good thing for Detroit.
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Gumby
Member
Username: Gumby

Post Number: 1277
Registered: 11-2003
Posted From: 68.60.143.186
Posted on Wednesday, June 21, 2006 - 11:42 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I too do not really understand why they need two land banks it seems to me that there could just be a Detroit branch of the Wayne county Land Bank. It would cut down on duplication of positions and cost less money.
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Bvos
Member
Username: Bvos

Post Number: 1587
Registered: 10-2003
Posted From: 66.238.170.50
Posted on Thursday, June 22, 2006 - 9:13 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Jsmeyers has part of the story right, Detroit and Wayne Co. politicians don't want to work together because they see each other as having different and competing goals when they really only have about 1 or 2% difference.

The other part of the story is that the Wayne Co. owned property for the most part has a lot cleaner title than the CoD owned property. Wayne Co. wants to expidite the disposal of their property and get it back on the tax rolls as soon as possible. Adding on the CoD (and dealing with the likely buracracy that would be involved in a cooperative deal) would grind the whole process to a halt.

With the CoD owned property 1. They don't even know everything that they own, 2. A good portion of the land is so cloudy that it will involve some seriously expensive legal work (likely way more work than what the land is worth) and 3. A lot of the land is in areas with no economic viability.

The two land banks could swap land between each other, just like any other entity could.

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