Altoona

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Comprehensive Blight Strategy Plan for the City of Altoona

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Executive Summary and Task Force Composition

The City of Altoona assembled a Blight Task Force to develop a comprehensive plan for implementing effective strategies to address blight and promote community investment. The Task Force includes representatives from City government, residents, businesses, institutions, and nonprofit organizations.

Key Members Include:

  • Mayor Matt Pacifico (City of Altoona)
  • Lori Bechtel-Wherry (Penn State Altoona)
  • Rebecca Brown (Codes & Inspections, CoA)
  • Sergio Carmona (Blair County Community Action Agency)
  • Christopher Cook (Local Resident)
  • Mitchell Cooper (Local Resident)
  • Rob Dennis (Codes Officer, CoA)
  • Shawna Hoover (Operation Our Town)
  • Joe Hurd (Chamber of Commerce)
  • Cheryl Johns (Altoona Housing Authority)
  • Mary Johnson (CDBG Manager, CoA)
  • Robert Lynn (ReMax Realtor)
  • Marla Marcinko (City Manager, CoA)
  • Steve McKnight (Altoona Blair County Development Corp. )
  • Pam Mitchell (Landlord Representative)
  • Jerry Murray (UPMC Altoona)
  • Michelle Peterson (Improved Dwellings for Altoona, Inc. )
  • Lee Slusser (Director, Community Development, CoA)

Priority Strategies Recommended

The Blight Task Force reached a consensus on the following priority strategies for implementation:

  1. Establish a land bank.
  2. Expand home repair and rental rehabilitation assistance.
  3. Expand implementation of Act 90 of 2010: This allows the City to revoke permits and lien personal and real estate assets of owners.
  4. Encourage criminal charges: The Blair County District Attorney is encouraged to charge repeat code violators with a criminal misdemeanor.
  5. Hall of Shame program: Publicize and shame owners who fail to bring their property up to codes.
  6. Acquire vacant lots: Acquire lots encumbered by demolition liens through foreclosure and convey them to pre-qualified adjacent owners.
  7. Engage with Magisterial District Judges: Specifically regarding incoming judges.
  8. Expand financial resources: Pursue state grants for the demolition of properties.

Sample Action Plan Details

The document outlines a "Sample Action Plan" (Step 5) detailing specific strategies, tasks, and resource requirements.

Strategy 1: Property Maintenance Codes

  • Goal: Encourage municipalities to adopt comprehensive property maintenance codes.
  • Lead Organization: Planning Commission.
  • Success Metric: Four communities adopt a property maintenance code within 12 months.
  • Tasks & Resources:
    • Identify municipalities without codes (Due: Jun 30, Cost: None).
    • Reach out to municipalities to gauge interest (Due: Sept 30, Cost: None).
    • Retain a consultant to draft an appropriate ordinance (Due: Dec 31, Cost: $7,500).

Strategy 2: Conservatorship Process

  • Goal: Use the conservatorship process to deal with long-time blighted properties.
  • Lead Organization: Redevelopment Authority.
  • Success Metric: Three conservatorship actions filed within 12 months.
  • Tasks & Resources:
    • Identify properties appropriate for conservatorship action (Due: Mar 31, Cost: None).
    • Develop a pool of funds for rehab or demolition (Due: Sept 30, Cost: $100,000).
    • Retain legal services to file conservatorship actions (Due: Sept 30, Cost: $10,000).
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