Portman urges Kasich to pursue all options to aid Ohio communities threatened by abandoned properties

U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-Ohio) today sent a letter to Ohio Governor John Kasich urging him to aggressively pursue all options that would enable Ohio to tap into additional funds to demolish vacant structures, which pose a growing threat to the public safety and economic well-being of our communities.

The State of Michigan recently reached a landmark agreement with the U.S. Department of the Treasury to allow the Michigan State Housing Development Authority to create a blight elimination program for demolition purposes using Michigan’s Hardest Hit Fund allotment.

“Ohio cities need more resources to demolish abandoned homes that dot the streets of too many communities," Portman said. "The Obama Administration recently reached a landmark agreement with the State of Michigan to open the Hardest Hit Fund for demolition purposes, and I urge the State of Ohio to reach a similar agreement. But given the uncertainty in this process, I will also continue to lead a legislative effort to permanently allow these funds to be used for demolition.”

In the letter, Portman presses Kasich “to work aggressively with the Treasury Department to establish a similar agreement to allow Ohio’s allotment to also be used for demolition purposes.”

In addition, he pushes the Governor “to request as large of an amount as possible to be used for demolition purposes.”

Last week, Portman introduced the Neighborhood Safety Act, which simply states that any amounts of assistance that have been allocated through the Hardest Hit Fund program may be used to demolish blighted structures.

The legislation has since been endorsed by the Mayors of Lima, Mansfield, Middletown, Warren, and Youngstown, as well as the Health Commissioner of the City of Portsmouth, the Western Reserve Land Conservancy, and the Port of Greater Cincinnati Development Authority.

Over $7 billion of Hardest Hit Funds have been appropriated, but are not presently allowed to be used for demolition in states such as Ohio.

States that experienced the sharpest decline in home prices during the economic downturn received these funds to help struggling homeowners refinance.

Ohio has nearly 100,000 vacant properties awaiting demolition, posing a significant risk to public safety and drastically decreasing the value of surrounding properties. Municipalities and local land banks have worked collaboratively to demolish vacant properties, but with municipal budgets already stretched, there is little money available to tackle this problem.

A companion bill was introduced in the House of Representatives earlier this year by Representatives David Joyce (R-OH-14), Marcy Kaptur (D-OH-9) and Marcia Fudge (D-OH-11).