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Dear CenterState CEO Member:
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The Otisca Brewery building, one of Syracuse’s North Side architectural landmarks, is slated for demolition. For more than twenty years, activists, political leaders and developers tried to save this tax delinquent structure, but the city had no organization capable of seizing and addressing the structure. The Greater Syracuse Property Development Corporation now has the ability to prevent this from happening in the future, making it possible to save buildings and rehabilitate them in accordance with the community’s goals. |
A powerful tool has been unleashed to combat major obstacles to revitalizing our region’s abandoned and tax delinquent properties. Governor Cuomo announced yesterday that Syracuse and Onondaga County are among the first communities in the state to receive approval to create an intermunicpal land bank.
A land bank stands to have a dramatic impact on our urban core by providing a vehicle to address blighted structures, improve property values in our neighborhoods, and lead to new economic development projects.
With yesterday’s final approval, the newly created Greater Syracuse Property Development Corp., established in March through an agreement approved by the Syracuse Common Council and Onondaga County Legislature, can begin operation to:
- Acquire and develop vacant, blighted, and tax delinquent properties and put them back into the market and onto the tax rolls. More than 3,000 properties in the City of Syracuse alone are eligible.
- Act in accordance with local planning efforts and community input. Neighborhoods, towns and villages across Onondaga County will now be able to play a more active role in the development of the most challenging properties in their respective communities.
- Collect delinquent taxes. In a typical year, millions of dollars in property taxes within the City of Syracuse go unpaid. With the power to threaten foreclosure, the Greater Syracuse Property Development Corp. will force many delinquent property owners to pay their taxes, thus increasing revenues for the city.
CenterState CEO has long been an advocate for land banks, helping lead the statewide advocacy effort to enact land bank enabling legislation in New York, which was signed into law in July 2011. Since then, CEO has worked side-by-side with City of Syracuse and Onondaga County leaders and the Center for Community Progress (a national expert on land banks), providing technical and financial assistance to make a land bank a reality.
I commend Governor Cuomo, ESD Regional President Sam Hoyt, Senator David Valesky, Assemblyman William Magnarelli, Mayor Stephanie Miner, County Executive Joanie Mahoney, and Syracuse United Neighbors for their leadership and commitment to this issue. I am confident that this land bank will help us create more vibrant, stable neighborhoods, and more prosperous communities
Sincerely,
Robert M. Simpson
President & CEO
