News

By Pascal Sabino, Block Club Chicago  |  April 7th, 2021   (Click here for Original Article)

GARFIELD PARK — The owners of a West Side clothing brand were thrilled to finally open a brick-and-mortar store in 2018 after five years in business.

But the brand has faced challenges since then: The entrepreneurs’ dreams were nearly crushed when their landlord’s unpaid property taxes almost forced them to close. In a last-minute twist, the brand ended up being able to buy the property and keep their business. Now, they’re looking forward to many more years on the West Side.

The flagship Fort Maner shop opened in 2018 at 2819 W. Harrison St., just two blocks from where cofounder Tyshaun Hunter was raised. Hunter and his business partner, Aiyana Kendall, poured themselves into rehabbing the formerly vacant building they were renting, installing a new floor, replacing the roof, getting a new furnace and fixing up the walls.

“It wasn’t easy. But I wanted to make it like home. I didn’t want to open up a store in a messed-up place,” Hunter said.

But after all that work, they almost lost the business altogether in 2019. Their landlord was three years behind on property taxes and a new owner was primed to take over the building, which meant Hunter and Kendall could have been evicted or seen their rent skyrocket.

“We offered to buy the property from the landlord since he was going to lose it. But he acted like nothing was wrong,” Kendall said. “We were frightened. We didn’t know what was going to happen.”

“I was furious,” Hunter said. “I finally got a business in the neighborhood where I live, helping people get jobs in the community. And in the blink of an eye, it was going to be taken from me.”

By coincidence, another effort to buy the building helped save Hunter and Kendall’s business.

Cook County records show property taxes on the building weren’t paid in 2019 or 2020, racking up $22,480.50 in taxes and interest. Taxes also are marked “delinquent” for 2018.

The Cook County Land Bank Authority, a government organization that seeks out vacant land to put it back into use, had begun the process of buying up the back taxes and acquiring the property at a 2017 scavenger sale.

A scavenger sale is the county’s last resort to collect taxes that haven’t been paid in at least three years. When a buyer purchases the taxes on a property, the original property owner has a redemption period to pay the back taxes. If they don’t pay, the entity buying up the taxes can get a tax deed from the courts, which makes them the new owner of the property.

“What normally happens, if we don’t buy it, then the next tax buyer will acquire the store and put [tenants] out,” said Elisha Sanders, an acquisition specialist for the Land Bank.

When Sanders purchased the taxes for the Land Bank at the scavenger sale in 2017, the property was vacant. A year into the process of acquiring the land, Sanders learned Hunter and Kendall had rented and overhauled the space.

“In our initial inspection, the property was vacant. Further down the line … it’s operating as a full store, fully rehabbed,” Sanders said.

It’s not uncommon for landowners who are behind on their property taxes to keep tenants “in the dark until the sheriff shows up” to evict them, Sanders said.

“You see a lot of local businesses in this situation. They don’t know until it’s too late,” she said.

The Cook County Land Bank Authority typically only buys “vacant and distressed” properties so they can be used by neighborhood organizations and residents for purposes that benefit the community. Since they had unwittingly acquired a building that was already in use, Sanders reached out to Kendall and Hunter to ask if they would want to buy the building themselves.

“That was just the best news ever. We told them, yeah, absolutely,” Kendall said.

The scavenger sale process is a long one, Sanders said. The original owner has 30 months to pay their back taxes before the property is turned over in a complex legal process. The Land Bank makes it easier for residents, organizations and businesses like Fort Maner to acquire a property “without all the red tape,” Sanders said.

Now, almost two years after Sanders reached out to the small business owners, Hunter and Kendall have finally closed on the property. Hunter said he takes tremendous pride in not only running a business in his own community, but also owning the land his business is built on.

Owning the property gives Fort Maner much more stability, and the owners won’t have to worry about rising rents or issues with a landlord. It also gives the entrepreneurs more opportunity to build out the store since they’ll be investing in their own building, rather than one that belongs to somebody else, Hunter said.

“I can do what I want. I can make my place bigger. I can hire more people from the community,” Hunter said. “It means the world to me.”

CBS Chicago  |  April 10th, 2021   (Click here for video of the event)

CHICAGO — Declaring it time to put an end to a system that perpetuates redlining and the growth of vacant properties, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle today announced she is joining the Cook County Land Bank Authority, Cook County Clerk Karen Yarbrough, and Cook County Commissioner Bridget Gainer in calling for reform of the Cook County Scavenger Sale, a limit on interest rates charged to homeowners under a county lien, and a new strategic plan to recover and revitalize blighted communities. 

“The county has a responsibility and should have the power to help communities with abandoned properties,” Preckwinkle said. “We can do this at scale and faster than the antiquated system that serves short term profits over sustainable community growth and affordable housing. We need a simple change in the law to allow us to harness the creativity from partnering with the city, local communities and local developers.”

Preckwinkle joined other city and suburban leaders to support the systemic reforms proposed in the “Homeowner Relief and Community Recovery Act.”  The bill will empower communities and local governments to transform vacant properties into homes and put them back on the tax rolls while helping residents stay in their homes by reducing predatory interest rates.

They announced their support for the proposal at the ribbon cutting for a newly renovated, multi-unit apartment building that had languished vacant for 15 years, harboring illegal activity and dragging down surrounding property values in Chicago’s Englewood neighborhood. The Land Bank and a local developer transformed 6429 S. Stewart Ave. into 42 units of affordable housing.
“A recent University of Chicago study concluded the Scavenger Sale is failing at the goal of returning tax delinquent properties to the tax rolls,” Gainer said. “Today’s ribbon cutting shows the promise of reform to the system. The rehab of this building created jobs and economic opportunity for the city and county and will create affordable housing for Englewood. But it should not have taken 15 years and endless state-mandated bureaucracy. Neighborhoods need this legislative reform, and we look forward to working to achieve the Land Bank’s and President Preckwinkle’s vision for revitalizing communities at scale.”

Along with lobbying for passage of the reform bill, Preckwinkle announced the Cook County Bureau of Economic Development, through its Community Recovery Initiative, will make rapid revitalization of blighted Cook County communities a top priority and work with the Land Bank and Yarbrough.  Future reforms could also consider a bill that would end the state requirement for a biennial sale and instead put it at the discretion of the Cook County Treasurer.

Across the state, residents have been hit hard by the pandemic. As residents struggle to keep up, State law is putting some residents at risk of losing their homes. But the Homeowner Relief and Community Recovery (HRCR) Act creates protections for homeowners and helps municipalities and affordable housing entities rescue abandoned properties and remove the blight that disproportionately impacts communities of color.

“The Stewart building is an example of how the cycle of disinvestment and blight hurts communities, but it also demonstrates the positive impact on neighborhoods when we reduce vacancy and redevelop properties to addresses community needs,” State Rep. Lakesia Collins said. “That’s why I am sponsoring the HRCR Act, with State Sen. Steve Stadelman. The HRCR Act will reduce the number of vacant and abandoned properties by making it easier to reclaim homes for homeowners, and it will give local governments the tools to salvage properties like the Stewart building.”

When homeowners in Illinois fall behind on property taxes, the penalties and interest – up to 18%, assessed every 6 months – can make it almost impossible for them to catch up on missed payments. Tax delinquency and escalating fines often drive vacancy and abandonment. Abandoned, tax delinquent properties like the Stewart building can take years to reclaim – even when all parties agree and no owner claims the property. These vacant buildings create blight and depress the tax base.

The HRCR Act attacks the cycle of abandonment and disinvestment in key ways. It changes tax penalties from a predatory rate, making it easier for homeowners to pay delinquent tax bills; and it helps municipalities save abandoned properties more quickly, stopping the cycle of vacancy, blight, crime and disinvestment as exemplified by the Stewart building.

“This legislation also allows municipalities and counties to partner with another government agency to manage properties that threaten public health, safety and welfare,” said Yarbrough. “As a committed leader of Maywood and the county clerk, I know how important that is.”

Cook County Land Bank Executive Director Rob Rose called for lawmakers to pass the HRCR bill.

“We are thrilled to work with WPD Management and the City of Chicago’s Troubled Buildings Initiative to turn the Stewart building into affordable homes,” Rose said. “And we hope that legislators will give homeowners a fighting chance to pay their tax bills and allow municipalities to transform more abandoned buildings into viable homes and businesses. Every vacant home was once someone’s treasure, and this legislation will revitalize more of our treasured neighborhoods, help homeowners and stabilize Illinois communities.”

About the Cook County Land Bank Authority

The Cook County Land Bank Authority, an independent agency of Cook County, was founded by the Cook County Board of Commissioners in 2013 to address residents and communities hit hard by the mortgage crisis. CCLBA gives local developers, community groups and potential homeowners the tools to transform their own communities from within.

The Land Bank acquires properties that have sat tax‐delinquent, abandoned and vacant for years and sells them at below‐market rates to qualified community‐based developers, who then rehab the properties. This approach not only keeps revenue and jobs in the community, but it also helps local developers grow their businesses. Learn more about the Cook County Land Bank Authority at http://www.cookcountylandbank.org or call 312-603-8015.

By Pascal Sabino, Block Club Chicago  |  February 18th, 2021   (Click here for Original Article)

AUSTIN — Neighborhood groups want to transform vacant lots on the West Side into community facilities that will provide housing, health and career services for children and families.

The project is part of the ASPIRE Initiative, an effort to invest in local assets so Austin residents of all ages will have access to education and economic opportunities. The initiative, which aims to create a cradle-to-career pipeline in the area, implements several of the strategies outlined in the Austin Quality-of-Life Plan for achieving resident-driven improvements to the neighborhood.

The planned transformation of the vacant lots is a collaboration among By the Hand, the Cook County Land Bank and neighborhood groups Austin Coming Together and Westside Health Authority. Organizers want to build affordable housing, a community health center, and an early childhood development campus over the next two to three years.

Most of the lots have already been acquired for the project with support from the Cook County Land Bank.

The project will address “the housing needs, the employment needs and the health needs” that many working class people are currently struggling with Austin, said Morris Reed, Westside Health Authority executive director.

Many residents have left the West Side in recent years to find better opportunities, Reed said.

“Our goal is to not only retain them, but also attract more professional and working-class African American families to build their wealth and see opportunities for economic growth here on the West Side,” Reed said. “We don’t want to see the neighborhood gentrify. We want to see the neighborhood grow with the residents we have.”

Westside Health Authority’s 100 Men 100 Homes program, which employs young men and trains them with the skills to restore their own community, will help build 30 affordable homes.

Construction will “involve local contractors and young men [who will be] mentored while they work on construction sites,” Reed said.

The housing component will promote homeownership among legacy Austin residents so they will have more pathways toward generational wealth.

“What we’re excited about with the housing is putting quality housing stock into hands prepared for homeownership. Not renting, homeownership. Wealth creation,” said Donnita Travis, founder of By the Hand Club for Kids.

The early childhood center will have programs for children up to age 4 so neighborhood kids will be able to hit the ground running when they get to kindergarten, Travis said. It will also have facilities designated for after-school programs and for social-emotional learning, Travis said.

The ASPIRE Initiative also involves redeveloping Emmet Elementary School, closed by the city in 2013, into a center for workforce development, job training and vocational education. Other parts of the project would invest more resources into Austin College and Career Academy.

Each component of the project is designed to have a catalytic effect by supporting other parts. The childhood center will create a continuum of support that will magnify the impact of the initiative’s investments in job readiness, Travis said.

“That’s important not only to improve educational opportunities within the neighborhood, but also, parents who want to go to work or want to go over to Emmett for job training, they obviously need high-quality child care,” Travis said.

The proposed health center will include exercise rooms and recreation areas that can be used for after-school programs, Travis said. The facility will benefit all residents in the area to “really allow people to age in place and have a healthy life,” she said.

“A healthy life means, a healthy education, a healthy body, a healthy home, a healthy job and, you know, to make sure that people can do that right there in Austin and not have to move somewhere else to do it,” Travis said.

By Jamie Nesbitt Golden, Block Club Chicago  |  December 23rd, 2020   (Click here for Original Article)

Englewood neighbors can get a first look at a new house this weekend, the product of a community initiative seeking to help more residents become homeowners.

The virtual community reveal is 10:30 a.m.-noon Sunday.

The red brick two-flat at 6219 S. Bishop Ave. is a two-year-long “buy the block” renovation project spearheaded by the Englewood Development Group, a collective formed by R.A.G.E. Founder Asiaha Butler and E.G. Woode’s Deon Lucas.

Potential buyers would have to live in the home, which will go on the market for $199,000.

In addition to getting a first look at the house, attendees at the virtual event can learn the ins and outs of the home buying process and can ask questions about capital and lending.

Butler is cohosting the virtual unveiling with EXIT Strategy Realtor Cassandra Sneed. There’s still time to register. Englewood residents will be given first priority.

That Sunday’s event falls on the second day of Kwanzaa, Kujichagulia, is apropos, added Butler, as it took two years of grit and self-determination to complete the project.

“Sometimes, people have to see something to believe in it. I wanted to show that this is possible,” Butler said. “The community reveal is an opportunity to learn about the concept, that was really my brainchild, and for first time home buyers looking to take that first step.”

Butler and Lucas originally bought the property from the Cook County Land Bank for $10,000. Renovations cost about $140,000.

By Stacey Sheridan, The Wednesday Journal of Oak Park  |  October 5th, 2020   (Click here for Original Article)

After over 10 arduous years of trying, the Animal Care League (ACL) has successfully purchased the dilapidated building at 1009 Garfield St., which sits directly between three other ACL-owned properties.

Once renovated, the building will serve as an extension of the ACL’s animal adoption and care services.

“It’ll be a part of our whole operation,” said Chatka Ruggiero, longtime ACL board member, who was instrumental in the purchasing process.

ACL will join the fourth building to the others by constructing a covered walkway which will allow people to easily travel between the four buildings without having to go outside – a particularly pleasant attribute during the cold winter months.

The building once served as a daycare center, but the business failed and property taxes went unpaid following the death of the owner, according to Ruggiero. ACL first tried to purchase the building in 2009 in a scavenger sale.

Scavenger sales occur every two years in Cook County. In a scavenger sale, the county sells tax delinquent properties to the highest bidder. In many cases, the highest bidders are large companies.

“They just collect these properties and then see if they can resell them,” said Ruggiero. “They don’t actually get the property title because they don’t pay the full back taxes.”

ACL lost the bidding war over the property’s taxes in the 2009 scavenger sale to a Chicago-based company which offered to sell to ACL for a large profit, according to Ruggiero. The company had two years to pay off the back taxes and acquire the property title but failed to do so. The company ended up forfeiting the property.

The non-profit animal organization tried a second time to purchase the building in the 2013 scavenger hunt but was again outbid – this time by a company based out of California, Ruggiero said.

“The building is getting in worse shape and worse shape by that time,” said Ruggiero.

Like the Chicago-based company before it, the California-based company offered to sell to ACL for much more money than the building was worth, according to Ruggiero. The ACL declined.

The property’s tax debt continued to grow, and the building’s condition worsened, in the four years since its first scavenger sale.

“By then it was in total disrepair and the roof was leaking. There were trees growing up from the roof,” said Ruggiero. “It was a wreck. And inside there was mold all over.”

ACL’s luck brightened in 2015 when 1009 Garfield St. was purchased in yet another scavenger sale by the Cook County Land Bank Authority (CCLBA), a government agency formed in 2013 specifically to identify and acquire distressed properties in the county.

“This is vacant, abandoned, tax delinquent property. We clear the title of the property and then make them available at below market prices to investors, developers, homeowners, business owners and nonprofit organizations,” said CCLBA Executive Director Rob Rose.

CCLBA sells their properties not to the highest bidder, but to the people and organizations looking to rehabilitate the property into a productive end use.

“We want to take the time to make sure we get the right person, the right group into that property because that’s going to lead to long-term sustainability,” said Rose.

At the time CCLBA acquired the property, its tax debt amounted to $364,736. CCLBA then began the lengthy legal process to release the property from its tax lien, so that the person the agency sells the property to is not responsible for the unpaid taxes of the property’s previous owner.

“Another thing the land bank does is they negotiate with you a fair price based on the property’s current value,” said Ruggiero. “That’s a big thing.”

CCLBA sold the property to ACL this past summer, after relieving it of its tax lien – a success for ACL a decade in the making.

“I’m particularly excited since this was a goal 10 years ago and it just finally happened,” said Ruggiero. “No one knew it was going to be this difficult.”

Ruggiero credits CCLBA for saving the Garfield Street property from the continuing cycle of scavenger sales, where it was becoming untenably expensive while simultaneously becoming more dilapidated.

“It’s doing a real service,” said Ruggiero. “I think the land bank is a very worthy organization.”

By Leslie, The Chicago Crusader  |  August 5th, 2020   (Click here for Original Article)