Moving ohio forward grant program for demolition funding

Moving Ohio Forward Grant Program for Demolition Funding

WorkshopColumbus, OH

June 8, 2012

GREATER OHIO POLICY CENTER STAFF

Lavea BrachmanExecutive Director

Alison D. GoebelAssociate Director

Samantha SpergelResearch Associate

Greater Ohio Policy Center

• Mission: Advance public policy and local projects that grow Ohio’s economy and improve the quality of life through intelligent land use.

• Support redevelopment of existing communities, strengthen regional cooperation and protect the countryside and Ohio's natural resources.

• Non-partisan, non-profit, primarily foundation-funded


• Conduct and commission research

• Use research to advocate for practical policy

solutions at the state and federal level

• Play an advisory role to state level officials,

General Assembly and local officials

• Project-based work with local partners

Overview of Moving Ohio Forward Grant Program

The Ohio Attorney General has allocated a total of $75 Million to all 88 counties in Ohio to demolish vacant, abandoned and blighted properties

Moving Ohio Forward Required Attachments

• Attachment 1-Application Summary Document• Attachment 2-Authorizing Resolution or Ordinance• Attachment 3-Strategic Plan• Attachment 4-Sources and Uses of Funds

(complete the fillable portion of the application)• Attachment 5-Match Supporting Documentation• Attachment 6-Remedial Action Plan• Attachment 7-Project Assumptions/Cost Estimate

Moving Ohio Forward Required Attachments

• Attachment 8- Reimbursement Request Report is a cover page required to be submitted with each payment request.

• Attachment 9-Final Performance Report is required to be submitted after the conclusion of the grant program and no later than December 31, 2014.


The Office of Attorney General Mike DeWine has contracted with GOPC to advise communities on their Strategic Plan (Application Attachment 3) and Site Eligibility.

GOPC assistance involves:

• 2 workshops• Email & Phone consultation• In person, as needed

Important Due Dates to Moving Ohio Forward Grant Program

Application Submission Deadline: June 30, 2012-5:00pmGrant Award Date: August 1, 2012Project Completion Date: December 31, 2013Final Drawdown Date: January 31, 2014Final Performance Report Due Date: December 31, 2014

Overview of Presentation

• Site Eligibility• Strategic Demolition – Defining strategic demolition – five guiding principles– Targeted Areas

• Completing Attachment 3– Conditions of Buildings– Failed Market Conditions– Engaging Stakeholders– Selecting Contractors– Land Reuse Options

Site Eligibility: Residential “anti-blight”

“Residential” means a structure is:• land zoned for residential use• being used as a residential dwelling• has been used as a residential dwelling• connected to any structure that is

currently used or has previously been properly used as a residential dwelling as mixed use.

Site Eligibility

Moving Ohio Forward Funds cannot be used for: • commercial or industrial projects• maintenance or post-demolition costs• demolition of structure which are not

blighted, vacant or abandoned• property acquisition

Eligibility: Site Acquisition

Acquisition of blighted residential property is anticipated through:• Tax-delinquent foreclosure process• Nuisance abatement• Condemnation• Consent• Other voluntary means of purchase.

Strategic Demolition – Five Guiding Principles

Strategic Demolition maximizes strategic impact of demolition

and help applicants maximize impact of program

funding to improve neighborhoods and property values

Defining Strategic Demolition: Five Guiding Principles

1. Demolition is a step in the process toward neighborhood revitalization.

2. Any community-wide demolition plan should establish rational criteria for selecting neighborhoods to target buildings to demolish and retain.

3. Applicants should get input from a range of stakeholders.4. Demolition does not benefit all neighborhoods equally. 5. A well-thought out post-demolition reuse plan can

prevent newly vacant land from becoming a problem.

1. Demolition is a step in the process toward neighborhood revitalization.

• Demolition is not an end to itself- it is one strategy to stabilizing or revitalizing neighborhoods.

• Connecting demolition activities to other revitalization efforts underway ensures demolition is part of a larger redevelopment strategy.

• Linking demolition to redevelopment ensures a larger Return On Investment.

2. Demolition plans should establish rational criteria.

• Local governments should develop priorities to guide their demolition activities.

• Resources should be coordinated and as comprehensive as possible, and dedicated to stabilizing neighborhoods that are undergoing challenges.

3. Applicants should get input from a range of stakeholders.

Discussions on demolition criteria should include a wide range of interests and viewpoints, both within and outside government.

4. Demolition does not benefit all neighborhoods equally

Severely distressed neighborhoods face so many challenges that demolition may not be enough to overcome the legacy of disinvestment. However, demolition can have outsized impact in certain neighborhoods.

Demolition is most impactful when it:• Stabilizes neighborhood conditions• Stabilizes property values• Create a variety of attainable reuse opportunities

5. Reuses of Land

Demolition will lead to vacant land.

• Good planning, solid community strategy, and clear-eyed understanding of local capacity can ensure that newly created vacant land is used productively, and does not become a problem.

• Local governments may want to prioritize demolition to be used for land that has specific re-use potential.

• Some parcels may remain vacant.

• Local governments and their partners should try to establish protocol for maintaining vacant land.

Value of Strategic Demolition

• A study done by the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland shows that vacant homes can decrease sales prices of nearby homes by 2.2%

• If the home has been tax delinquent, foreclosed and vacant, the sales prices of neighboring homes decreases by 17.8%.

Value of Strategic Demolition

• By demolishing a vacant home, the median sales price of a neighboring home increases by $1,340.

• If the home had been tax delinquent, foreclosed and vacant prior to demolishment the median sales price increased by $15,000.

Determining a Strategic Plan

Priority should be given to areas where removal of individuals buildings is likely to help stabilize neighborhood conditions and property values and create potential reuse opportunities.

Determining a Strategic Plan

Strategic demolition goals are demonstrated by addressing:– A description of the blight and abandonment

conditions– The target area benefits from the demolition– The demolition is linked to potential property

reuse and area-wide revitalization.

Strategic Approaches: Menu of Options

• Wholesale demolition in a target area is part of a larger comprehensive strategy that will positively benefit the neighborhood and surroundings areas.

• Selected demolition• Dispersed demolition

Wholesale Demolition

Wholesale demolition is only appropriate in very select conditions.

Wholesale demolition would be used to create a “clean slate” in a neighborhood that is almost completely disinvested.

Wholesale Demolition

Photo from a block in Detroit where 60 of 66 houses are abandoned or vacant.

Photo courtesy of: http://www.sweet-juniper.com/2009/04/singularity.html

Selective Demolition

Selective demolition acts as extra reinforcement to keep a neighborhood from further degrading. In practice, this may be 1 or 2 houses, on average, per block in an eight block neighborhood.

Selective demolition is often appropriate in neighborhoods that still have vitality and market demand.

Often these neighborhoods are called “tipping point” neighborhoods.

Leveraging the value of selective demolition

• A strong social fabric, reflected in strong neighborhood or civic associations or neighborhood-level institutions

• Active CDC-led stabilization or revitalization activities

• Great market potential, such as distinctive housing stock, or location to a strong anchor intuition

• A significant planned public investment, such as a new school

Selective Demolition

Dispersed Demolition

Dispersed demolition removes isolated problem properties before they start to negatively impact the surrounding area.


In suburban and urban areas, dispersed demolition can be appropriate for single problem properties in otherwise strong market neighborhoods.

Photo courtesy of Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation


In rural areas that do not have widespread vacancies, dispersed demolition can be appropriate for:

• Mitigating health/safety hazards, particularly in small villages

• Harmonizing land use; for example removing an abandoned house near a county industrial park to address aesthetic and safety issues

Targeted Areas

Strategic demolition maximizes benefits for communities.

Identifying targeted areas (assumed in Attachment 3 ) maximizes the ability to be strategic

Identifying “Target Areas”

Prior to answering the five questions outlined in the Moving Ohio Forward Application, local governments need to identify the specific “areas” or neighborhoods they are targeting.

Using Targeted Neighborhood Investment to Identify Target Areas in Cities

• Targeted Neighborhood Investment is a strategy by which local governments choose to devote extra resources to specific communities.

• The TNI strategy matches neighborhoods needs with the right resources to ensure funds are used as effectively as possible.

Youngstown TNI Example

• Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation (YNDC) has focused its resources and energies on three specific neighborhoods which have been “tipping point” neighborhoods with declining housing values, population loss, and increased vacancies.

Youngstown TNI Example

Public, private, and nonprofit investments are targeted to Crandall Park North, Lincoln Park, and Idora because these neighborhoods have:

• Existing community networks and block groups• Majority owner-occupied homes• Access to community amenities • Attractive residences

Attachment 3

Writing Attachment 3

Five Sections of Attachment 3

1. Building Conditions: – Provide a brief description of the dilapidated condition

of buildings(s) selected for demolition with the following criteria as a guide.

2. Failed market conditions – of target area and its relation to the rest of the

surrounding community

3. Stakeholder inclusion4. Contractors selection process5. Proposed land reuse options

Attachment 3

Section 1Of Attachment 3

Building Conditions

– How does the targeted property/area affect neighboring property values, safety, and revitalization activities

– How the building poses a danger to public health or safety

– Likely cost to rehab building substantially outweigh the value

– Description of other criteria that will be used to identify structures for demolition

Building Conditions:How targeted property affects neighboring property values, safety

and revitalization activities?

• Are property values of neighboring homes declining?

• Is the building near a school/library/public park?

• Is the building inhibiting new construction?

• Has the neighborhood begun to see other revitalization activities?

Building Conditions: Danger to public health or safety

• Has crime in the neighborhood increased?

• Does the building pose an environmental concern?

• Does the building fit the “blighted parcel” criteria?

Building Conditions: Cost of Rehab

• Would the cost to rehab to 2X the cost to demolish?

• Is there any substantial market value in rehabbing the home?


Building Conditions: Other criteria

• Does the presence of the building add to the existing neighborhood texture? Would removing a building compromise the texture?

• Does the demolition align with community priorities?

• What are the market and neighborhood conditions?

Building Conditions: Collecting information

• Much of this information has already been identified in a community's Comprehensive Plan or through the work of the Community Development Department.

• Some analysis can be obtained from a simple exterior survey of the building and its surroundings.

Building Conditions Decisions

• Setting neighborhoods priorities will help determine demolition choices.

• Besides emergency demolitions, demolitions should be made through a decision process that takes into account a range of factors.

• Demolition decisions will not be clear-cut.

• Decisions will involve balancing many different factors.

Attachment 3


Failed Market Conditions

– Does the housing stock constitute a present or potential nuisance (i.e. breed crime, negatively affect nearby property values)?

– Are there additional safety concerns? Is the blighted property near a school?

– Does demolition maintain the social fabric and historical nature of the neighborhood?

– Percentage of owner-occupied buildings, absentee owner buildings, vacant buildings and vacant lots, if available.

– Does demolition fit into the local government’s comprehensive plan of redevelopment for the overall community for improving property values, and increasing private investment and redevelopment? If so, how?

Failed Market Conditions:Local Governments look for

– valuable impact on selected neighborhoods.– stabilization impact on select

neighborhood, but surrounding communities as well by assessing the city and regional market and texture. – rooted in current revitalization activities and

goals already outlined by the community.

Failed Market Conditions: Information Collection

• Quantifying conditions can help justify demolition choices.

• Informational data on crime rates, declining property values, median age of property, etc. can be found through:• jurisdiction’s community development department • jurisdiction’s police department • U.S. Census• FBI Crime Reports

Attachment 3


Stakeholder Inclusion

• Identify specific partners and stakeholders:• Nonprofits• Public entities• Community groups• Institutions, like colleges

Identify how stakeholder feedback is solicited:

• Interviews • Public meetings• Surveys

Attachment 3


Selecting Contractors

The application should explain:• The process for selecting contractors for

demolition• Provide a brief time-line to prove

capacity and ability to spend funding in a timely manner.


Attorney General requires contractors to have:– Liability Insurance– Workers Compensation– Checking the Federal and State debarment list– Documenting policy and procedures for barring poor

performing contractors from continuing to participate in the program

– Having policies regarding a Drug Free Workplace and EEO– Knowledgeable of and understand Ohio Ethics and Conflict

of Interest of Laws.


There is no one specified process for selecting contractors. Applicants have a variety of options when choosing contractors including:

– Demolition as competitive bid– Demolition in-house with city crews and equipment– Put out competitive bid packages for multiple

demolitions– Fixed Price or retainer contracts– Negotiated or sole source contracts– Deconstruction contractors

Attachment 3


Land Reuse Options

For Question 5 the application requires applicants to describe proposed plans for land reuse options.

The answer should describe the details forSelective demolition

And/orWholesale demolition

Land Reuse Options: Strategy

Selective and wholesale demolition leads to the creation of vacant land.

• Using established priorities, market and neighborhood conditions and feedback from stakeholders, local governments can develop a strategy for land post-demolition.

Why is Land Re-use Strategy Important?

Improving commercial corridors, streetscapes, parks, and cleaning vacant lots at the same time, have the potential for the greatest impact on struggling neighborhoods.


Home values can increase more than 25% when they are near improvements to streetscapes, such as:

• street tree plantings• container plantings• small pocket parks• parking lot screens and median plantings


Proximity to a neglected vacant lot subtracts 20 percent from the base value from a nearby home

A home near a stabilized lot—one that has been improved through cleaning and greening—increases by approximately 15% the home’s base value

Land Re-Use Strategy

Different demolition methods produce different land reuse options that local governments can undertake.

Selected Demolition example of Land Reuse

Removed house to create green side lot on Brentwood St, Youngstown

Photos courtesy of Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation

Other Selected Demolition

• Other options for selected site demolition include:– Side Lots–Mini-Parks–Park Expansion– Stabilization/minimal treatment–Pathways–Off-street parking

Wholesale Demolition example of Land Reuse

Removed abandoned six-plex and replaced with an urban agriculture site. Youngstown


Other Selected Demolition

• For larger scale demolition some land-reuse options include:– Community gardens– Community orchards– Urban agriculture– Daylighting streams, waterways and floodplains– Greening– Expansive Redevelopment

Other examples of Land Reuse

Demolition can prepare a lot for potential reuse in the future

Attachment 3

Attachment 3 Basics

Moving Ohio Forward Application Basics

• Review Moving Ohio Forward Grant Program Demolition Guidelines before completing application.

• Applications must include all attachments and supporting documentation.

• Pages of the application without fill-in fields shall be typed using font size no smaller than 12 point.

• All pages should be numbered indicating the section, attachment number and page number.

Example of Attachment 3

Example Attachment 3

Available at GOPC’s website: www.greaterohio.org.


Greater Ohio Policy Center is available to advise applicants through:• Email• Phone• In person, as needed

For our assistance, please contact:Samantha Spergel, Research Associate

[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

Moving Ohio Forward Grant Program for Demolition Funding

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Moving ohio forward grant program for demolition funding

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