Lawrence city commissioners on Tuesday will consider signing on to a pilot program that would aim to convert blighted, abandoned homes into quality affordable housing.
The program uses the Kansas Abandoned Housing Act, a legal mechanism for nonprofits to petition the court to take control of residential properties. Homes that meet legal requirements related to abandonment, tax delinquency and serious code violations could meet the criteria.
The program aims to improve neighborhoods and increase available housing without relying solely on new construction, according to the meeting agenda.
“The City has identified over 3,200 vacant residential properties, and approximately 35 properties identified as both vacant and blighted,” according to the meeting agenda. “The City anticipates that participation in the pilot will provide additional capacity and expertise to evaluate these properties and determine whether some may be appropriate for action under the Kansas Abandoned Housing Act.”
Don’t miss a beat … Click here to sign up for our email newsletters
Click here to learn more about our newsletters first
Through the pilot, Neighborhood Legal Support, a Kansas City, Missouri-based nonprofit legal firm, would assist with litigation and legal work to pursue properties.
Please support
The Lawrence Times!
Subscribe here.
Lawrence nonprofits Habitat for Humanity and Tenants to Homeowners would evaluate properties, complete and coordinate rehabilitation, identify potential buyers and place rehabbed properties into affordable homeownership.
The city would assist with finding blighted properties, use available resources to find areas of town that may be appropriate for the pilot program, and help partners find public, philanthropic and other funding resources.
The city would also coordinate with partner organizations and NLS as properties are identified, according to the agenda.
There is no immediate cost or funding commitment for the city to participate, according to the agenda. Future funding requests would be considered through the city’s affordable housing incentive application and would require approval from the commission.
Meeting info
The commission’s meeting will start at 5:45 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 20 at City Hall, 6 E. Sixth St.
See the complete meeting agenda at this link. See the abandoned housing meeting agenda item at this link.
The commission accepts written public comment emailed to [email protected] until noon the day of meetings. The commission also hears live public comment during meetings, both in person and virtually.
City commission meetings are no longer livestreamed on YouTube. In order to watch the meeting online remotely, attendees must join via Zoom at this link, which also allows participants to provide public comment virtually. Meeting recordings are uploaded to the city’s YouTube channel the next day.
If local news matters to you, please help us keep doing this work.
Don’t miss a beat — get the latest news from the Times delivered to your inbox:
Click here to learn more about our newsletters first
Mackenzie Clark (she/her), reporter/founder of The Lawrence Times, can be reached at [email protected]. Read more of her work for the Times here. Check out her staff bio here.
