County Task Force Created to Address Foreclosure Crisis

The Abandoned and Vacant Property Task Force has been created by leaders of Summit County, Ohio to address growing problems in its neighborhoods and communities caused by foreclosures and job losses.

The task force is responsible for monitoring the number of abandoned properties in Summit County. The group will also identify policies and programs that could lead to reducing the number of abandoned properties.

County officials have unveiled an initiative designed to improve and stabilize neighborhoods by purchasing foreclosed and abandoned properties. The county will use the $3.7 million federal grant provided under the 2008 Housing and Economic Recovery Act to finance the initiative.

Under the initiative, the county will buy abandoned houses, rehabilitate and resell them. Or it could demolish the abandoned properties and use the land for other development.

County officials have identified 25 neighborhoods hardest hit by foreclosures, 15 in Barbeton and 6 in Springfield Township. Meanwhile, the remaining four are located in the neighborhoods of Copley Township, Norton, Twinsburg Township and Lakemore.

Akron city, which is set to receive about $8.5 million grant, is not part of the county program.

Members of the task force include about 15 officials from the private and public sector. The group will study the market problem for 6 months and will then issue a report containing recommendations to address the crisis.

Ohio foreclosures are growing overtime. Data from Policy Matters Ohio showed that six properties per 1,000 people were put on the market in 2007.

Greater Ohio co-director Gene Krebs said that one major hindrance to understanding the extent of the Ohio foreclosure problem is the difficulty of determining the number of abandoned properties in the area.

A Rebuild Ohio-commissioned study estimated that over 25,000 abandoned properties in Columbus, Cleveland, Ironton, Dayton, Springfield, Toledo, Zanesville and Lima cost these communities about $63 million in tax revenue and services.