Neighborhood Revitalization Programs

• A strict code-enforcement program requiring the inspection of rental homes (1987).

• An upon-sale inspection of single-family homes requiring compliance with building codes (1987).

• Creating tax increment finance authority districts (TIFA) in 1991 to fund improvements, including property acquisition and investments in parks and streets.

• Eliminating substandard housing and non-conforming land uses by purchasing property with TIFA funds (early 1990s).

• Redeveloping "Brownfield" sites in the 1990s by utilizing funding from local, state and federal resources. The sites were often in the middle of existing residential neighborhoods. A Brownfield Redevelopment Authority was established in 1997.

• The "Buck for a Basement" program where the City would sell a lot for $1 dollar in exchange for a higher quality home with a basement instead of a  home on a cement slab. Instead of selling a lot for $3,000, the City would sell at a lower price as an incentive to encourage basement construction. Eight lots were sold this way in 1989-90.

• The Neighborhood Enterprise Zone Program. The NEZ program began in 1992, when the City established three zones (see map). The zones were created in neighborhoods consisting of inexpensive homes built in the early 1900s to house workers for the industries in the area.

Neighborhood Enterprise Zone Map

349 Plum Street

Before                                                                  After     

Results

Monroe Bank and Trust Downriver Headquarters.


"Before" Photo of MBT Downriver Site: former industrial building at 467 Eureka and 5th Street

Results (continued)

• On a citywide basis, the NEZ program and other revitalization programs have had a dramatic effect.