DETROIT (WXYZ) — Blight is one of the biggest issues in the city of Detroit. For years, properties have sat vacant and deteriorating without remedy.
So today I talked to a Detroit homeowner about her own eyesore next door and learned what city leaders are doing to try to bring change throughout the city.
Bernice Gray called to tell me about the problem property next door. So, I went to her house on the west side of Detroit to see it for myself.
“I’m thinking how sad it is because it used to be a house that people lived in,” Grey says about the house next door.
She estimates for the last 15 years she’s watched it crumble.
“If you look up in there, you can see that the upstairs is downstairs. And look at the roof,” she says. “You know, it was a very nice place to live. And now it’s just destroyed. It’s destroyed.”
Bernice says she’s called everyone she can think of to fix the problem.
“It’s just a nuisance. And I’ve called the ombudsman, and he came out. But I heard nothing from him,” she says. “They tell me that someone is paying taxes there. Well, if you’re paying taxes there, aren’t you at least supposed to keep the property contained?”
The listed property owner did not answer my calls.
Some houses on the street do appear to be investment properties.
However, for this home, the tax records just list the property owner as TAXPAYER and the taxes have not been paid for the past three years.
“I pay taxes here. Why should I have to live next to this? Why won’t they come and do something?” she says.
“Have you heard about a plan from the city, it’s called the Land Value Tax Plan? Basically, people who own properties who are not taking care of them pay more in taxes so that other property owners have to pay less. Have you heard about this?” I asked her.
“No, I haven’t heard about that. But I would like to hear that,” she says.
The Land Value Tax Plan was proposed by Mayor Mike Duggan earlier this year.
The Michigan state legislature must first authorize it before the Detroit City Council votes on the plan.
I reached out to Detroit Deputy Mayor Todd Bettison to explain it to me.
“It’s really a tax shift,” Jettison says.
He says it would cut homeowners taxes by an average of 17%. But…
“If you own a lot of land and it’s blighted and things of that nature, you’re going to get a 50% tax hike,” Jettison says. “So, with the land value tax, we want to incentivize it by raising their taxes to cause them to develop on it. If they develop on it, then they don’t get the tax raise.”
It’s unclear if the property next to Bernice Gray would be affected but…
“I can tell you we’re going to throw everything and the kitchen sink to give her some relief. So, I’m sending our building safety engineering department to address some of the issues with the property,” Jettison says.
And fortunately, I was able to tell Bernice about all of this before I left.
“That’s a blessing, thank you so much,” she says.
The city tells me they are writing new violations of over $1,200 for that house today.
They also told me they’re inspecting the property, and it could potentially be demolished if they deem it necessary.
