The cities of College Park and South Fulton are among twelve cities across four states that have been selected to send a delegation to the 2022 Vacant Property Leadership Institute, a training program focused on equipping leaders with the skills to address vacant, abandoned, and deteriorated properties for the benefit of their communities, according to a press release.
Made possible through the support of the Wells Fargo Foundation, VPLI is a joint initiative of the Center for Community Progress (Community Progress) and National League of Cities.
In addition delegations from Perry, Ga., Chicago, Decatur, IL; Kankakee, IL; Peoria, IL; Rockford, IL; Louisville, KY; Winchester, KY; Milwaukee, WI; and Racine, WI were selected through a competitive, two-round application process.
All the selected cities face similar challenges such as faulty mortgage foreclosure processes, tax delinquency, ineffective property maintenance systems, and other property issues.
VPLI sessions will address how to operationalize equitable development practices to remedy vacancy, abandonment, and deterioration (VAD) and return buildings and land to productive use. Some of the strategies to be explored include data and market analysis, delinquent tax enforcement reform, strategic code enforcement, land banking, and more.
The institute will serve as a unique opportunity for the participating cities to learn sustainable strategies that are centered in racial equity and contribute to the eradication of inequities within local infrastructure.
