{"id":73083,"date":"2016-09-15T08:19:19","date_gmt":"2016-09-15T12:19:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/?p=73083"},"modified":"2016-09-14T12:21:27","modified_gmt":"2016-09-14T16:21:27","slug":"schneiderman-this-office-will-help-communities-bring-vacant-properties-back-to-life-and-provide-affordable-rental-homes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/madisoncountycourier.com\/?p=73083","title":{"rendered":"Schneiderman: This Office Will Help Communities Bring Vacant Properties Back To Life And Provide Affordable Rental Homes"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Attorny_General_Eric_T_Schneiderman\"<\/a>Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman announced a new pilot program that will provide New York State land banks with $4 million in subsidies for everyday New Yorkers to take over individual, abandoned properties in their neighborhood \u2013 at little or no cost \u2013 and rehabilitate them into affordable rental housing. Created with affordable housing and community development nonprofit Enterprise Community Partners (Enterprise), the program requires the new housing units to remain affordable for at least 20 years. Funding for the program will come from the Attorney General\u2019s 2014 and 2015 settlements with Citigroup and Bank of America over the banks\u2019 conduct leading up to the 2008 housing crash.<\/p>\n

Neighbors for Neighborhoods builds on the success of New York State\u2019s non-profit land banks. Ten of these lands banks have, with support from the Office of the Attorney General, reclaimed over 1,600 abandoned properties across the state since 2013. Recently, five new land banks have formed and received capacity-building grants from the Office of the Attorney General, and a sixth is in the process of getting certified.<\/p>\n

The initiative was inspired by such successful land bank efforts as 13 Chambers Street in Newburgh. The property, which was acquired by the Newburgh Community Land Bank in 2013, was renovated by a local architect and now provides three families with affordable rental housing.<\/p>\n

\u201cToo many communities across this state are still plagued by the blight of vacant and abandoned properties, while at the same time suffering from a critical shortage of affordable housing,\u201d saidAttorney General Schneiderman. \u201cNeighbors for Neighborhoods helps communities reclaim their neighborhoods from blight and will help generate the affordable housing stock that New York families need. Just as important, it empowers the people who have the most at stake in revitalizing their communities\u2014the community members themselves. This is truly a win-win.\u201d<\/p>\n

The grant program will be administered by Enterprise, which for more than 30 years has created affordable housing opportunities for low- and moderate-income communities across the country, in addition to identifying programmatic solutions and advocating for policies that connect low-income communities to opportunity. In early fall, Enterprise will invite the 16 land banks across the state to submit their qualifications and select those land banks that:<\/p>\n