The real estate crisis of 2007 brought widespread abandonment, neighborhood blight, and plummeting home values. A collaborative group of minds, including then Cuyahoga County Treasurer Jim Rokakis, current Land Bank President and General Counsel Gus Frangos, Senators Tim Grendel, Bob Spada and chief legislative sponsor Tom Patton, State Representative Matt Dolan, select Cleveland Council Members and members of the county’s non-profit and academic community set out to overcome these enormous obstacles. Their efforts resulted in innovative approaches and policies and the formation of the Cuyahoga Land Bank.
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Innovative Thought in Action
Since 2009, the Cuyahoga Land Bank has demolished thousands of abandoned and blighted properties and is the largest facilitator of home renovations throughout the county. Blighted commercial structures have been repurposed into economic development triumphs, public nuisance properties have been turned into community green spaces, and vacant lots turned into side yards for homeowners and community gardens.
Our efforts continue to place hundreds of formerly abandoned homes back onto the tax rolls and into the hands of proud new homeowners. And we designed programs with many partners geared to helping veterans, low and moderate-income citizens, refugees and other underserved populations achieve the dream of living in safe, affordable housing. We have also demolished more than 9,000 abandoned blighted properties (as of June 2021) to improve neighborhood safety, desirability, and property values and to clear a path for redevelopment.
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812 Huron Road E, Suite 800 Cleveland, OH 44115
Proud Member of the Ohio Land Bank Association