Buffalo Rising Online

Feb 25th 2007, 4:26am By Anna Miller

The City is teaming with community activists to find some consensus and relief, on both parts, in the process of housing inspections. Addressing the fact that it is the neighbors who know which vacant and blighted properties are causing the most trouble in their community, residents will have the opportunity to prioritize the list of inspections undertaken in each district.

The program, which is spearheaded by the Good Neighbors Planning Alliance, will in theory help City Hall manage their resources more efficiently (we all know there are scores more vacant houses in this city than inspectors can reasonably handle) while simultaneously addressing the concerns of neighborhood activists.

“It helps us if people in the neighborhoods are telling us which house is the most serious concern,” said Rich Tobe, head of strategic planning for the city. “And we’re perfectly prepared to report back to them on the status once the inspection is completed.”

Through a series of talks, Tobe and members of the GNPA came up with a process that says that each GNPA will every two weeks generate 10 properties for the inspectors to focus on. The properties will be discussed and decided upon at GNPA meetings in each of the districts.

“It really does help the city to prioritize limited resources,” said Harvey Garrett, a West side GNPA co-chair who spearheaded the effort. “If we can all agree the properties that are bad, then we can address the ones that are causing the biggest problems. Anyone who wants to prioritize a property can come to the GNPA meeting and make their case.”

Harvey said this process will also be good for the planning alliances because it will likely bring more community members into the meetings, who will in turn learn of other community issues that need to be addressed. “I you want people to be involved, you have to give them a reason to come,” he said. “Something like this will have a direct impact on their community right now, not later. And once they get involved, they can have an impact on bigger community plans as well.”

Tobe said the prioritization process has been in existence to some extent since the summer, but building efforts and support are revitalizing the program and making it more useful. Harvey recently undertook a fight to save 109 Norwood (above) from a cruel fate by finding a potential buyer and prioritizing its inspection. (Stay tuned to BRO for more details on this pending deal as they develop). Plans are in effect to create a website so people can keep up to date on which properties are being addressed and, if they don’t like the way things are working, come to the GNPA meetings and help prioritize their own concerns.