Blight Initiative

The Neighborhood Re-Investment Group has taken on a Blight Initiative on behalf of the City of Waterbury. The goal of this initiative is to enhance neighborhood vitality through the removal of debris and overgrown vegetation, securing structurally sound buildings and demolishing those that are not. Cleaner neighborhoods will instill pride and foster reinvestment throughout the City of Waterbury.

The Neighborhood Re-Investment Group works with the City of Waterbury Citizens Service Center in an effort to address blight complaints using reasoning, sound judgment, and the resources provided by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) through its Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and Neighborhood Initiative programs.

All Complaints are registered with the Citizens Service Center by calling (203) 597-3444.

Cleanup -

When the Neighborhood Re-Investment Group receives complaints not involving private property they are addressed immediately. For complaints made regarding private property, the property owner must first be located before any action is taken. When the property owner is found, the following steps are followed:

• Police Department or WDC issues verbal warning
• Clean-up letter is issued, on-sight or mailed
• Litter ticket is issued with a $100 fine; the ticket may be appealed in writing to the Litter Commission
• The police department issues a summons with a court date within 7-14 days from time of issuance. A Summons is issued under the City Litter Ordinance, Chapter 131 of the City Charter and under the State Statute 7-148. Housing Court occurs each Wednesday at 10:00am at Superior Court, 300 Grand Street.
• The Police Officer and WDC Staff are expected to testify in Housing Court, providing any applicable evidence of littering and/or illegal dumping to the Court.
• If the owner is not found or does not appear in court, a Clean and Lien notice is issued and the owner has 30 days to clean and remove blight. If the owner does not clean the property, the WDC Hot Team, in conjunction with the City of Waterbury, will clean and lien the property for all costs.

In 2005 there were: 7 Clean and Lien projects where approximately 50 tons of debris and overgrown vegetation were removed; 1,095 street visits, which filled 760 thirty gallon bags of litter and removed over 100 tons of debris; and approximately 40 tons of brush were cleared.

Securing -

Staff from the Neighborhood Re-Investment Group identifies vacant properties that seem structurally sound, but not secured. In these cases, the Building Inspector sends the property owner an Order to secure the building. If the owner does not comply in a timely fashion (within 72 hours) the Mayor will issue a letter for WDC to proceed with limited securing of the property, and the police department issues a summons to the owner to appear in Housing Court.

In 2005 there were 34 vacant structures secured.

Demolition -

Staff from the Neighborhood Re-Investment Group identifies vacant properties that seem structurally unsound, or sound but beyond rehabilitation. Those properties that are in danger of collapse are considered an Emergency Demolition, as determined by the Building Official or the Director of Health. Emergency Demolitions are completed using a list of demolition contractors pre-approved by the City Purchasing Director. For those properties that are not in danger of collapse, the following steps are taken:

Work with the City to prioritize list of properties in order of safety, density and future plans for the property

• Notify owners as to their responsibility to demolish the properties
• If owners prove their inability to pay for these costs, then they are asked to sign a release for demolition. If owners are not located, refuse to sign a release, or are able to afford the demolition but choose not to, the Building Official or Health Director may condemn the properties. The City may also take the property through eminent domain.
• Properties are sent out to bid and awarded by the City Director of Purchasing. They are then demolished by that contract through our office.
• Liens are placed on the properties unless eminent domain is used, in which case the City will assure the proper reuse of those properties.

In 2005 there were two rounds of demolition started on a total of 5 properties.

Information -

For more information, please contact Michael Gilmore, Re-Investment Specialist, at (203) 346-2607 x111 or email gilmore@wdconline.org.