Vacant Property Reform in Detroit
In a city inundated with tens of thousands of vacant properties, advocates in the Detroit region have long pushed for a land bank program to redevelop vacant land and revitalize neighborhoods. Working with MOSES (a Gamaliel chapter in Detroit), the Institute provided extensive assistance to aid the land bank advocacy efforts in the Detroit region. After several years of extensive effort by advocacy organizations, both Wayne County, MI and the City of Detroit have created new land bank programs. These new programs come at a critical juncture in Detroit’s history, with vacant property challenges escalating due to the foreclosure crisis.