Greater Ohio is interested in promoting land banks as a way to address vacant and abandoned properties and revitalize communities. While we were pleased with the passage of House Bill 353 in the 127th General Assembly that allows Cuyahoga County to form a county land bank with new powers, we recognize that changes are needed to the existing statute to ensure that counties of all sizes can use land banks to their fullest potential.
Over the past year, we have met with numerous stakeholders throughout the state to get a better understanding of those possible changes. Some of the ideas we have heard include allowing multi-county participation, ensuring that there is sufficient authority for our rural counties to participate and adding provisions to address a situation in which the county treasurer is not interested in pursuing a land bank.
If you have other suggestions for us to consider or would like to share your success with your existing local land bank we would welcome your input.