Thanks to the passage of Ohio Senate Bill 172 (SB 172) in June of 2014, local government agencies now have the option to conduct important environmental surveys before they acquire a vacant property that has been forfeited to the State of Ohio.
SB 172, co-written by Cuyahoga Land Bank President Gus Frangos and Cuyahoga Land Bank Staff Attorney Doug Sawyer. It helps local government agencies remove and repurpose blighted, vacant and abandoned properties more efficiently.
The Cuyahoga Land Bank was able to practice the new legislation recently on a property with the Village of Glenwillow that is being planned for a new park trail and a park service center to the community.
“Under SB 172, Glenwillow was able to conduct environmental testing before they acquired the property through the Cuyahoga Land Bank,” said Sawyer. “It’s gratifying to see the Village easily re-purpose once vacant land for its residents.”
Together, Glenwillow and the Cuyahoga Land Bank successfully acquired a ten acre site that had been forfeited to the State of Ohio, and then transferred it to Glenwillow. The property will enhance Glenwillow’s park system through the potential addition of a trailhead for a proposed multi-purpose trail along Tinkers Creek and allow for a Service Department building to house park maintenance equipment and vehicles.
“Even though both of these exciting projects are still in the planning stages, the acquisition of this property gave us the incentive to move forward on these improvements for our community,” said Mayor Mark Cegelka. “We are grateful for the professional assistance and cooperation from the staff at the Cuyahoga Land Bank in seeing this project to fruition.”