The Cuyahoga Land Bank enjoys a symbiotic relationship with the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office, working closely in tax foreclosures of abandoned, tax-delinquent properties. In summer of 2011, the Prosecutor endorsed the Land Bank’s vital role in removing blight and assisting cities throughout the county by granting the organization $200,000 for demolitions.
Moving on tax foreclosures is a straightforward process: “We file suit against the [delinquent] owners on behalf of the Cuyahoga County Treasurer,” says Colleen Majeski, chief foreclosure prosecutor. Monies collected from those suits are deposited into a fund known as the Delinquent Tax Assessment Collection, or D-TAC, and divided between the Prosecutor’s and Treasurer’s Offices to pay for the tax foreclosure and delinquent tax collection processes. It was D-TAC money that funded the $200,000 grant supporting the Land Bank’s work.
“Now, with all of these offices recognizing their common goal, the work of clearing away abandoned, condemned houses is more expedient,” Majeski says. “That’s good news for everyone involved. It helps eliminates blight, changes those properties in a positive way, and because it happens more quickly than in the past, it means a substantial savings to taxpayers.”