CITY of ALBUQUERQUE
TWENTY SECOND COUNCIL
COUNCIL BILL NO.
R-17-230 ENACTMENT NO. ________________________
SPONSORED BY: Diane G. Gibson
RESOLUTION
title
Creating A Task Force To Explore Options And Make Recommendations For Addressing Vacant And Abandoned Houses In The City (Gibson)
body
CREATING A TASK FORCE TO EXPLORE OPTIONS AND MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR ADDRESSING VACANT AND ABANDONED HOUSES IN THE CITY.
WHEREAS, the City presently administers several local ordinances aimed toward enforcement of minimum health and safety requirements for vacant or abandoned residential properties; and
WHEREAS, the City's enforcement agencies are presently monitoring over 600 properties across the City that already are, or are in danger of becoming, public nuisances; and
WHEREAS, these hundreds of vacant or abandoned houses across the City impact the home values in their respective neighborhoods and the resale opportunities for Albuquerque families; can disrupt quality of life in our city's neighborhoods; and can present safety threats because of dilapidation and attraction of illicit activities; and
WHEREAS, because of the property rights and other issues involved the City's process for enforcement and nuisance abatement enforcement against these properties can take several months to years and be very resource intensive; and
WHEREAS, given the intensive nature of enforcement efforts the sheer volume of these properties overwhelms the City's resources such that City staff can focus on only a handful of problem properties at a time on this list of hundreds; and
WHEREAS, while nuisance abatement and zoning enforcement is and will remain a key mechanism to address these properties, other more proactive methods of dealing with this issue may be available; and
WHEREAS, exploring ways to address this issue in a well-reasoned and methodical way could help address the problems associated with vacant and abandoned houses in the city, help re...
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