[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Altoona 10-10-2018 by Ord. No. 5726. Amendments noted where applicable.]
The Council of the City of Altoona finds and declares that:
A.
The social and economic vitality of the City of Altoona is adversely
affected by vacant, abandoned, and tax-delinquent properties.
B.
These properties continuously impose significant costs on residents,
taxpayers and neighborhoods throughout the City by lowering property
values, decreasing tax revenues, increasing fire and police protection
costs, and diminishing quality of life.
C.
There is an overriding public need to confront the problems caused
by vacant, abandoned and tax delinquent properties by using all available
and appropriate tools to return these problem properties to productive
use, thereby revitalizing neighborhoods and strengthening the City's
tax base.
D.
A land bank is a proven tool for local governments to systematically
remove problem properties from an endless cycle of vacancy, abandonment
and tax foreclosure, and return them to productive use.
E.
Extensive grassroots community planning, including the report of
the City of Altoona Blight Task Force, has recommended the use of
a land bank to support blight removal and strategic redevelopment
in the City of Altoona.
G.
Designating the City of Altoona Redevelopment Authority to act as
a land bank will confer the powers and duties of a land bank on the
Redevelopment Authority and the benefits of a land bank on the City
of Altoona without the need to establish a separate entity, thereby
saving administrative costs and promoting governmental efficiency.
A.
It is the purpose and intent of this chapter to designate the City
of Altoona Redevelopment Authority to act as a land bank for the City
of Altoona as authorized by Act 33 of 2018, P.L. 221, an enactment
of the Pennsylvania General Assembly signed by the Governor on June
19, 2018, amending the Pennsylvania Land Bank Law, 68 Pa.C.S.A. §§ 2101
through 2120.
B.
By designating the Redevelopment Authority to act as a land bank
for the City of Altoona, the Council of the City of Altoona intends
to facilitate the return of vacant, abandoned, tax delinquent and
blighted properties to productive use, combat community deterioration,
improve the quality of neighborhoods, foster economic growth, and
spur reinvestment.
C.
When acting as a land bank, the City of Altoona Redevelopment Authority
will acquire, hold and transfer interests in real property throughout
the City, as approved by the Authority's Board of Directors,
to prevent and mitigate blight and to facilitate the redevelopment
and reuse of vacant, abandoned and tax delinquent properties in accordance
with locally determined goals and priorities and the policies to be
adopted pursuant to this chapter and state law.
This chapter is adopted in accordance with Act 33 of 2018, P.L.
221, an enactment of the Pennsylvania General Assembly signed by the
Governor on June 19, 2018, amending the Pennsylvania Land Bank Law,
68 Pa.C.S. § 2101-2120.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
following meanings:
The act of June 19, 2018, P.L. 221, No. 33, codified at 68
Pa.C.S. § 2104(h).
The Redevelopment Authority of the City of Altoona.
The Authority when acting pursuant to its designation as
land bank under this chapter and the Land Bank Law.
The Board of Directors of the Redevelopment Authority of
the City of Altoona.
Any and all actions, activities, and operations undertaken
by the Authority pursuant to this chapter and the Land Bank Law.
The act of October 24, 2012, P.L. 1239, No. 153, codified
at 68 Pa.C.S. §§ 2101 through 2120, as it exists on
the effective date, and as it may be hereafter amended or replaced.
Policies adopted by the Authority pursuant to this chapter
and the Land Bank Law.
As defined in the Land Bank Law, a natural person with a
legal or equitable ownership interest in the property which was the
primary residence of the person for at least three consecutive months
at any point in the year preceding the date of initial delinquency.
An individual, authority, limited-liability company, partnership,
firm, corporation, organization, association, joint venture, trust,
governmental entity or other legal entity.
As defined in the Land Bank Law, land and all structures,
fixtures thereon and all estates and interests in land, including
easements, covenants, and leaseholders.
The Authority is hereby designated as the land bank for the
City of Altoona as authorized by Act 33 of 2018 and Section 2104(h)(1)
of the Land Bank Law, 68 Pa.C.S. § 2104(h)(1).
A.
Upon a vacancy or expiration of the term of a Board member occurring
after the adoption of this chapter, the Mayor shall appoint a replacement
to the Board to ensure that at least one of the Board members: is
a resident of the City of Altoona; is not a public official or municipal
employee; and maintains a membership with a recognized civic organization
in the City of Altoona. As used in this subsection, "public official"
means an individual who is elected to a municipal office.
A.
The Authority as land bank shall only acquire, hold and dispose of
property in accordance with the Land Bank Law.
A.
Land bank activities shall be managed and administered by the management
and staff of the Authority. The Authority may also arrange for staff
in conjunction with the City of Altoona or other partnering public
entities.
B.
Unless otherwise prohibited by law, the Authority may enter into
a contract or memorandum of understanding or intergovernmental cooperation
agreement with a municipality for:
A.
The Authority as land bank is authorized to acquire real property
through donation, gift, purchase, or any other legal means, including
tax sale or by transfer from the Blair County Tax Claim Bureau. The
Authority shall hold in its own name all real property it acquires
as land bank.
B.
Owner-occupied homes: When the Authority as land bank acquires residential
properties that are occupied by the owners at the time of acquisition,
it shall be the policy of the Authority to show a preference for keeping
the former owner occupants in their homes, whenever feasible.
C.
Any individual or organization may submit recommendations to the
Board or Authority staff for real property that could be acquired
by the Authority as land bank, and the purpose for which such properties
could be developed.
The Authority shall maintain and make publicly accessible on
its website and at its offices during normal business hours the following
information:
A.
The Authority is authorized to discharge liens and other municipal
claims, charges, or fines of the City of Altoona against the properties
it acquires.
B.
The Authority may seek to enter into agreements with the County of
Blair, the Altoona Area School District and any other party for the
discharge of liens, claims, charges and other fines against the properties
it acquires.
C.
For the duration of the time a property is held by the Authority,
the Authority is authorized to abate all real estate taxes and other
municipal charges by the City of Altoona and, to the extent necessary,
may seek abatement or nontaxable status from other applicable government
entities.
A.
The Authority as land bank may convey, exchange, sell, transfer,
lease, grant, or mortgage interests in real property in the form and
by the method determined to be in the best interest of the Authority
through any means authorized under Section 2110 of the Land Bank Law,
except where expressly limited in this section.
B.
The Board may delegate this disposition authority to the staff of
the Authority except in the following circumstances in which the Board
itself must review and approve transfers of real property at a public
meeting:
C.
The Board shall determine and state in the Authority's land
bank policies the general terms and conditions for consideration to
be received by the Authority for the transfer of real property acquired
or held by the Authority as land bank.
D.
Requirements which may be applicable to the disposition of real property
by the City of Altoona shall not be applicable to the disposition
of real property by the Authority pursuant to Section 2110(d)(2) of
the Land Bank Law.
E.
The Authority shall be guided by such hierarchical ranking of priorities
for the use of real property conveyed by the Authority as land bank
as the City of Altoona may establish, including use for:
F.
The Authority shall consider all duly adopted land use plans and
make reasonable efforts to coordinate the disposition of real property
with such land use plans.
A.
Market value shall be determined by up-to-date data, and by using
the valuation method that the Authority or its staff has determined
is most appropriate given the particular conditions of the property
and surrounding market.
B.
Nominal or reduced price disposition shall be an option for any property
owned by the Authority.
C.
In calculating a reduced sales price, the discount shall take into
account the benefit provided by the proposed use, and the amount of
discount needed to make the project both initially financially feasible
and continually sustainable.
D.
For housing projects servicing households at a mix of income levels,
the Authority may count the number of low- and moderate-income households
served and provide proportionate discounting.
E.
The Authority shall make available an appeals process wherein a potential
purchaser may submit evidence relevant to the value of the real property.
F.
The Authority shall enforce any provisions agreed upon as conditions
of sale between the transferee and the Authority through legally binding
mechanisms, including but not limited to deed restrictions, covenants,
and mortgages.
A.
The Authority shall develop policies consistent with the provisions
of this chapter and the Land Bank Law.
B.
The Authority's land bank policies shall initially be adopted
and thereafter reviewed at least every other year by the Board, with
opportunity for public input and comment. Policies shall be published
on the Authority's website.
C.
As part of its land bank policies, the Authority shall adopt strict
ethical guidelines for Board members and employees, and promulgate
rules addressing and protecting against potential conflicts of interest.
These guidelines and rules shall supplement any applicable state and
local laws.
D.
Residents shall have the following means of supplying input into
the Authority's land bank decision making process:
(1)
Any individual or organization may submit recommendations for Board
membership to the Mayor for consideration in making appointments to
the Board.
(2)
Any individual or organization may submit recommendations to the
Board or staff for real property that could be acquired by the Authority
as land bank, and the purposes for which such properties could be
developed.
The designation of the Authority as land bank may be revoked
in the same manner as the dissolution of a land bank under Section
2114 of the Land Bank Law.
Upon adoption of this chapter, the Chief Clerk shall file a
copy of the ordinance with the Pennsylvania Department of State and
provide a copy to the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic
Development.
All ordinances or resolutions or parts of ordinances or resolutions
insofar as they are inconsistent herewith are hereby repealed and
rescinded.
In the event any provision, section, sentence, clause or part
of this chapter shall be held to be invalid, such invalidity shall
not affect or impair any of the remaining provisions, sections, sentences,
clauses or parts of this chapter; it being the intent of the City
of Altoona that the remainder of the chapter shall be and shall remain
in full force and effect.
