Along with stakeholders throughout Ohio, Greater Ohio Policy Center was pleased to see House Bill 313, the bill that would extend county land bank tools to an additional 28 counties in Ohio, pass the Ohio House this week with overwhelming bipartisan support. Co-sponsored by Representatives Peter Ujvagi (D-Toledo) and Roland Winburn (D-Dayton), this bill will allow local governments another powerful tool to use in addressing the aftermath of the foreclosure pandemic that has swept the state along with the growing number of vacant and abandoned properties. The Bill will next got the Ohio Senate, which has already held two hearings on the companion bill Senate Bill 188 cosponsored by Senators Mark Wagoner (R-Toledo) and Teresa Fedor (D-Toledo). Greater Ohio urges you to contact your state senator to encourage for the speedy passage of the county land bank bill in the Senate. It is critical that they hear from you over the coming weeks. With the wide array of issues facing the state, if they do not hear directly from you at the local level, they will assume there is not a pressing need and they will move onto other legislative items. Your calls are needed now.
Land Bank Movement
Yesterday, the House Local Government Committee passed the county land bank bill (HB 313) out of committee on a 10-1 vote. The bill will expand the current county land bank authority to an additional 28 counties and will next go before the full House for a vote. This movement is very positive but we need your help to keep momentum going. If you have influence or know someone that has influence with members of the General Assembly, please contact them about the potential merits of a countywide land bank and how this could help in your community. Telling the local story is something we at Greater Ohio cannot do!
Land Bank Progress
A Land Bank is a useful tool to tackle Ohio’s problem with vacant and abandoned properties. A land bank is set up to hold vacant, abandoned, or tax delinquent properties with the goal of returning these properties back into productive use. House Bill 313 (Sponsored by Representative Ujvagi of Toledo) would take the existing land bank structure and lower the population threshold to allow more counties the option to form a land bank. HB 313 is making progress in the General Assembly. Last week witnesses testified in favor of the land bank legislation in the House and Senate.
Greater Ohio’s Co-Director Lavea Brachman testified in support of the bill in both House and Senate Committees. Brachman said that Ohio “can no longer afford to operate under a series of systems that were designed to address an entirely different reality in the issues of foreclosure, vacancy and abandonment.” She called HB313 the “right fix” for the problem.
Other proponents include Frank Alexander, professor of law at Emory University School of Law; Eric Schertzing, Ingham County treasurer; Aaron Sorrell, housing and neighborhood development manager of Dayton; and Chris Eilerman, special projects coordinator for the city manager’s office in Cincinnati.
Frank Alexander praised the bill as “a model for the country” in terms of land banks and focus on surplus public property, “below water” properties, abandoned properties and tax delinquent properties. He said the goals of the bill are to eliminate blight, maximize short- and long-term revenue, create affordable housing and stabilize neighborhoods.
If you support the Land Bank legislation, please contact your Representative and Senator and let them know!
Ohio Commission on Local Government Reform and Collaboration Cleveland Hearing Tomorrow
The Ohio Commission on Local Government Reform and Collaboration will hold a meeting and public hearing on Friday, December 4, 2009 at 10:30 am. The meeting will be held in the Louis Stokes Wing Auditorium of the Cleveland Public Library located at 325 Superior Avenue NE, Cleveland, OH 44114. Ample parking is available in surface or garages located around the facility. Testimony and input is being requested in three main areas:
1.) Recommendations that will encourage and incentivize local governments to collaborate
2.) Identification of local and state tax structure changes which would encourage collaboration or improve service effectiveness
3.) Identification of current/alternative service delivery models
If you are in the Northeast Ohio region and are concerned with the issue of local government efficiency we strongly encourage you to make the short drive to ensure that your voice is heard. If you cannot attend this meeting you might also consider preparing written testimony.
Greater Ohio, and its partner the Brooking Institution, have identified governance reform as an important issue to be considered as we work to restore prosperity back to Ohio. Governance reform falls within our larger agenda that is charged with increasing Ohio’s economic competitiveness and quality of life by focusing on the four drivers of prosperity in the 21st century economy: innovation; human capital; infrastructure; and quality of place. Again, we ask you to voice your opinion if you feel, as we at Greater Ohio do, that regional collaboration and efficient governance are critical to building a more competitive and prosperous Ohio.
The Local Government Reform Commission is legislatively created and consists of 15 members ranging from local officials to business people. It is charged with researching and writing a report that recommends reform and collaboration measures in order to improve local government operations and service delivery to create cost savings for taxpayers
For more information about the Commission visit its website at www.ohioreformandcollaboration.org.
Don’t forget about Greater Ohio’s FREE upcoming event!
Greater Ohio would like to invite those who share in our interest of revitalizing core urban areas and first ring suburbs to join us for the screening of The New Metropolis and subsequent panel discussion. The FREE screening will take place on Tuesday, November 24 at 7:30 pm at the Drexel Theater, located at 2254 E. Main Street, Bexley. Following the screening, there will be a panel discussion moderated by Lavea Brachman, Co-Director, Greater Ohio & Non-resident Senior Fellow, Brookings Institution.
The panel discussion will focus on the effects that sprawl has on first ring suburbs and what communities are doing to address these issues in Ohio.
For information about The New Metropolis, visit www.thenewmetropolis.com or contact Torrice Productions at 513-751-7050. If you have any questions about this special presentation, please contact us directly at 614-258-6200.
We hope that you will spread the word and join us for this exciting evening!
Check out this great article about the city of Norwood, Ohio!
In 1987, General Motors(GM) closed its doors and left 4,000 people without jobs and a 3 million sq. ft. vacant plant in this small community. The city realized that in order to survive, they needed to attract new businesses and create jobs but how with this vacant, useless plant. The city decided to fight back and after 10 years, GM tore down the plant at the city’s request, absorbing the site costs. The city was able to turn this now vacant lot into high density office space and retail space. They were able to attract 80 businesses and create more than 1,000 jobs. But something else happened; this project transformed the city from a blue-collar, factory-driven area to a city with elegant workspaces. The complete story: Rust to Diamonds Source: National Real Estate Investor, October 1, 2009
Greater Ohio to host the Columbus International Film Festival screening of The New Metropolis
Greater Ohio would like to invite those who share in our interest of revitalizing core urban areas and first ring suburbs to join us for the screening of The New Metropolis and subsequent panel discussion. The screening will take place on Tuesday, November 24 at 7:30 pm at the Drexel Theater, located at 2254 E. Main Street, Bexley. Following the screening, there will be a panel discussion moderated by Lavea Brachman, Co-Director, Greater Ohio & Non-resident Senior Fellow, Brookings Institution.
Ohio’s First Suburbs are highlighted in “The New Metropolis," a groundbreaking two-part documentary on the rise, fall and revitalization of America’s first suburbs. Produced by award-winning filmmaker Andrea Torrice, this is the first public examination devoted to the issues facing many suburban towns. Considered embodiments of the American dream, the first suburbs blossomed after World War II, bolstered by economic prosperity and government support. Now, many struggle with the same challenges as urban centers -- growing poverty, white flight, crumbling infrastructure, abandonment and the continual lure of newer communities further from the cities. The two 25 minute films are broken down as follows:
Episode 1, "A Crack in the Pavement," narrated by actor Peter Coyote, follows the story of two Cincinnati area public officials and their efforts to keep their towns stable and healthy despite difficult times to repair and improve infrastructure and lure businesses.
Episode 2, "The New Neighbors," narrated by actress Ruby Dee, focuses on two ordinary people, one black and one white, who made racial integration the centerpiece of revitalizing Pennsauken, New Jersey.
The panel discussion will focus on the effects that sprawl has on first ring suburbs and what communities are doing to address these issues in Ohio.
The panel will consist of the follow people: Lavea Brachman, Greater Ohio, Moderator Andrea Torrice, Torrice Productions & Director of The New Metropolis Kim Gibson, former Director of the First Ring Suburbs Consortium of Ohio and interviewed in Crack in the Pavement Ginny Barney, Upper Arlington City Manager
For information about The New Metropolis, visit www.thenewmetropolis.com or contact Torrice Productions at 513-751-7050. If you have any questions about this special presentation, please contact us directly at 614-258-6200.
We hope that you will spread the word and join us for this exciting evening!
The Clean Ohio Report is now available!
The report, released by the Ohio EPA and the Departments of Development, Agriculture, Natural Resources and the Ohio Public Works Commission, documents the success from the first $400 million invested into the Clean Ohio Fund. The Report summarizes the funds granted and highlights projects completed through the Clean Ohio Brownfield Revitalization Program, the Clean Ohio Agricultural Easement Purchase Program, the Clean Ohio Green Space Conservation Program and the Clean Ohio Trails Fund. Greater Ohio is supportive of the Clean Ohio Fund’s efforts to revitalize old industrial properties in our urban cores. The program provides tangible examples that showcase the success of a state program that invests money in a very targeted, place-based way.
To access the Clean Ohio Report, go to: http://clean.ohio.gov/Documents/CleanOhio_Report.pdf
Lavea Brachman Participates in Panel Discussion about First Ring Suburbs
Last week, Greater Ohio’s Lavea Brachman was a guest panelist on a CET Connect (Cincinnati Public Television) panel discussion about first ring suburbs. The discussion followed the airing of Crack in the Pavement, the first in a two-part documentary, that follows the story of two public officials and their efforts to keep their towns stable and healthy despite difficult times to repair and improve infrastructure and lure businesses. The New Metropolis, a two-part documentary, produced by award-winning filmmaker Andrea Torrice, is the first public examination devoted to the issues facing many suburban towns. Considered embodiments of the American dream, the first suburbs blossomed after World War II, bolstered by economic prosperity and government support. Now, many struggle with the same challenges as urban centers -- growing poverty, white flight, crumbling infrastructure, abandonment and the continual lure of newer communities further from the cities.
We encourage you to check out the discussion and hear about some of the things that are being done throughout Ohio to rebuild first ring suburbs.
What Ohio can Learn from Europe
Post by: Lavea Brachman I just finished a week’s Study Tour of Berlin, Leipzig and Hamburg sponsored by the German Marshall Fund. Leipzig, a medieval city located in the former GDR (East Germany), hemorrhaged people and jobs from 1970 until 2005. Sound familiar? However, Leipzig is now growing its population and moving forward in recovery. One major historical difference that Ohio has not had to deal with is the dramatic drop-off in population and erosion of the business sector that occurred following the 1989 reunification of East and West, when the Berlin Wall fell and hundreds of thousands of people fled to the West seeking jobs and opportunity. But, like our Ohio cities, Leipzig had a strong industrial past and its industrial sector was steadily eroding under communist rule and continued to decline following reunification -- experiencing a loss of 80% of manufacturing jobs -- when industries moved to the West.
While the reasons for depopulation may differ between Ohio cities and Leipzig, the impact and implications for re-growth strategies are similar. During a phenomenally instructive visit with Leipzig’s director of planning, we heard that parts of Leipzig experienced up to 50% vacancy rates, but the city has been working to turn itself around with many of the practices that we have been touting for Ohio’s shrinking cities. And, more importantly, they have been successful! Working from a master plan developed in the early 1990’s for citywide redevelopment, Leipzig’s planner led a sustained and targeted physical rehabilitation strategy done on a neighborhood-by-neighborhood basis, while tying physical reconstruction to job creation. They used a combination of neighborhood strategies: on the one hand, encouraging “urban homesteading” by artists and others to stabilize historic buildings and, on the other hand, undertaking extensive demolition of unattractive communist “pre-fab” buildings. The plan also:
• Created “pocket parks,” transforming side, vacant lots to “green” areas; • Invested in infrastructure which led to attracting new industry; • Remediated brownfields in key places; and • Leveraged their historic buildings with a walkable city centre.
The city's population has stabilized and is now attracting or generating 21st century business clusters. For instance, it is one of the leading photovoltaic producer in the world -- a natural outgrowth of the glass industry of the region. (Toledo, take note!)
Leipzig still has challenges though, and cities throughout Germany, including Leipzig, put up with much higher unemployment rates than we do in the States. (For instance, Leipzig’s unemployment rate currently hovers around 20% which is slightly above average for Germany.) However, the city is definitely on the upswing, and can be a lesson to Ohio as we draw immediate parallels from our common starting points – places with inherent place-based assets, including historic buildings, waterfronts and universities.