Youngstown, Warren face property vacancies reality

Between them, the cities of Youngstown and Warren have 86,609 parcels of land, of which a significant number are vacant — including 4,574 structures that are empty. That, in a nutshell, is the definition of urban deterioration. There are many reasons for this bleak state of affairs, foremost of which is the loss of population. The aging of Youngstown and Warren is cause for concern. Another major reason is the lack of adequate funding to tear down dilapidated structures and convert vacant land into green space.

And such funding is going to be even harder to secure from the federal and state governments, which are tightening their belts in the face of budget deficits.

Thus, the question confronting city officials in Youngstown and Warren: What should be done to address this growing problem, which is contributing to the decay of the two communities?

The Mahoning Valley Organizing Collaborative, which conducted the citywide vacant property surveys, has made several recommendations, some obvious, such as demolition of dilapidated structures, and some not so obvious, including more publicly accessible property data bases.

For Youngstown, the MVOC, a community organizing agency committed to improving the quality of life in urban centers in Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties, offered the following suggestions: Fix the city’s code enforcement; establish a Mahoning County land bank by July 1; adopt a vacant-property registration ordinance for the city; and, develop a more meaningful and formal partnership between the city and community groups.

For Warren, the MVOC says the rental registration program should be updated to give the public convenient access to the information government has on the 9,000 rental houses and apartments. The collaborative also recommends the development of a targeted demolition program, so scarce funds could be spent in areas of the city that would show the most dramatic improvement. The focus should be on parts of Warren that are in transition.

There even is the suggestion that areas too far gone, such as the Southwest side of the city, should be written off.

Funding uncertainties

What the MVOC vacant-property initiative must address is the uncertainty in funding from Washington and Columbus for programs specifically designed to clean up old urban centers.

If funding is reduced or dries up, how would Youngstown and Warren continue their demolition programs, which the residents cite as their top priority for battling the decay? Indeed, given that the two cities themselves are struggling to make ends meet, what funding sources would be available to continue the campaign on blight?

There is talk in Washington that the next federal budget will reflect a reduction in funding for the Community Development Block Grant program and other programs under the Department of Housing and Urban Development. That would be a major blow to Youngstown and Warren, which have large population of low- and moderate-income residents.

Now that the MVOC has identified the problem, it should work with city officials to develop solutions based on worst-case scenarios.

The problem of deteriorating neighborhoods will simply grow if it isn’t dealt with aggressively.