Vacant and problem properties are a pervasive and far-reaching problem, and local governments, from the smallest town to the largest city, find themselves on the front lines, addressing their effects. Any municipality, community organization, developer, or private citizen who wants to tackle the problem property issue must understand the complex legal landscape in which those properties exist. This invaluable practical resource provides a thorough introduction to the legal and policy issues associated with vacant and problem properties, how to take action to revitalize them, and how to frame effective and defensible local ordinances and regulations. It also addresses the benefits and challenges of creating land banks, the regulatory issues involved with dealing with brownfield properties, the importance of developing sound demolition strategies, and the value of greening or nondevelopment reuse strategies.The book is written for practicing attorneys, including those working for local governments; those representing property owners, community-based organizations, and developers; and those involved in property transactions or redevelopment. It is also of great value to planners and other public officials and to professionals of all backgrounds working with housing developers, community development corporations, and other neighborhood-based organizations.
About the Author: Alan Mallach is a senior fellow with the Center for Community Progress in Washington, D.C., where his work focuses on urban revival, social equity, and neighborhood change. He teaches in the Graduate City Planning program at Pratt Institute in New York; has served as the director of housing and economic development for the city of Trenton, New Jersey; and is the author of many law journal articles and other scholarly and general audience publications. His most recent book, The Divided City: Poverty and Prosperity in Urban America, appeared in June 2018. Jessica A. Bacher as executive director of the Land Use Law Center, Ms. Bacher's responsibilities include development and implementation of projects relating to local land use practice, distressed property remediation, energy siting, transit-oriented development, sustainable communities, land use responses to sea level rise, and code enforcement, as well as providing strategic assistance to numerous municipalities. She also manages the academic programs of the center and guides student research projects. Most recently, Ms. Bacher led the city of Newburgh, New York, in the development of a distressed property remediation implementation plan that focuses on land banking and code enforcement. Additionally, Ms. Bacher serves as a principal trainer for the center's award-winning Land Use Leadership Alliance Training Program that has educated over 3,500 local leaders in land use strategies, consensus building, and regional stewardship. She is a clinic lecturer at Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, where she manages the school's Land Use Clinic. Ms. Bacher was selected by the American Bar Association to receive the Jefferson B. Fordham Award, an award presented to a young practitioner who has shown great promise through his or her contributions to the field. She received her J.D., summa cum laude, from Pace Law School in 2003, along with a certificate in environmental law.Meg Byerly Williams is an associate at Skeo Solutions, Inc. in Charlottesville, Virginia, where she works as a sustainable development consultant on projects promoting distressed property remediation, renewable energy, and neighborhood development, among other sustainable development initiatives. Ms. Williams also manages Skeo's state and local government contracts and assists with the company's compliance program. Previously, she worked as a staff attorney at Pace Law School's Land Use Law Center in White Plains, New York, where she authored center reports and manuals, administered academic seminars, managed student research projects, and wrote for legal publications on various sustainable development topics. She holds a J.D. from Pace Law School, an M.E.M. from Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, and an M.S. in wildlife and fisheries sciences from Texas A&M University. Ms. Williams is a member of the Virginia State Bar.