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Detroit
Home
Owners:
$100
Could
Buy You
a Vacant
Lot
By Karen
Hudson
Samuels/Tell
Us
Detroit
DETROIT,
MI (Tell
Us Det)
- If
there is
a vacant
lot
directly
to the
side of
your
property
you may
be able
to
purchase
it for
$100.
Mayor
Mike
Duggan
appeared
with a
homeowner
Wednesday
afternoon
news
conference
to
announce
details
of the
first
Detroit
Side Lot
Sales
Fair.
Betty
lives on
Lewerenz
Street
with a
vacant
lot next
to her
home for
the last
four or
five
years.
She is
delighted
with the
chance
to
purchase
the
property
and says
she may
use the
land to
grow
Christmas
trees.
Residents
interested
in
buying a
side lot
must be
current
on their
property
taxes or
have a
payment
plan
arrangement
with the
Wayne
County
Treasurer.
The city
has
7,000
side
lots and
like
many
U.S.
cities,
Detroit
has
wrestled
with
what to
do with
its
growing
number
of
vacant
properties.
The
first
step in
solving
the
program
was
making
the
thousands
of lots
available
for
purchase
though
the
Detroit
Land
Bank at
a Side
Lot
Sales
Fair.
Mayor
Duggan
said
homeowners
attending
the
fairs
can
complete
the
purchase
and
receive
a deed
to the
property
on the
same
day.
A
process
that
used to
take
months,
even
years in
some
cases
has been
streamlined
since
the
Detroit
City
Council
transferred
some the
city’s
vacant
lots to
the
Detroit
Land
Bank
Authority.
Eligible
homeowners
interested
in
buying
empty
property
next to
their
home
need to
attend a
Side Lot
Sales
Fair.
The
first
two
fairs
are
scheduled
for
December
6th at
two
locations,
one in
Southwest
Detroit
and the
other on
the
city’s
West
Side.
For
District
6
residents
the fair
will be
held
from
10AM to
1PM at
La
Terraza
restaurant
at 8445
W.
Vernor.
The
second
location,
in
District
7, is at
the Don
Bosco
Hall,
19321
West
Chicago
and will
run from
2PM to
5PM.
To
assist
residents
in
making
their
purchase
there
will be
representatives
at the
fair
from the
Land
Bank,
the
Wayne
County
Treasurers’
office
and the
Wayne
County
Register
of
Deeds.
During
the
press
conference,
scheduled
for 1
p.m.,
Duggan
will
reveal
details
of "side
lot
sales
fairs"
in
District's
6 and 7,
located
mostly
on the
city's
southwest
and west
sides.
we may
be able
to sell
it to
you.
So
Chicago
officials
and
community
development
advocates
hope the
vacant
lot
program
can help
spark a
renewal
in some
of the
city's
most
blighted
areas.
How many
vacant
lots
does the
city own
overall
and in
this
District?
Are
there
any
additional
costs
Steps to
ownership
Any
restrictions
on what
the lots
can be
used
for?
Requirements:
• Lots
for
purchase
for $1
must be
located
in 15th
Aldermanic
District
• You
must own
and live
in the
property
that
directly
borders
the
vacant
lot and
the lot
must
border
the long
side of
your
property
line
• You
must be
current
on all
taxes
and
water
and
sewer
bills
and not
have any
outstanding
code
violations
for any
property
you own
in the
City of
Milwaukee
Additional
costs:
• $40
recording
fee with
Milwaukee
County
Register
of Deeds
•
Additional
property
taxes
that
will be
assessed
with the
addition
of the
extra
lot
Steps to
ownership:
• Submit
the
online
form
below
(or
manually
complete
and
return
the $1
Vacant
Lot
Application
Form)
• The
City
will
determine
whether
or not
the
vacant
lot you
request
is
available
and
eligible
• The
City
will
certify
that you
are in
good
standing
with the
City of
Milwaukee
Vacant
side
lots may
be used
for:
•
Garden,
side
yard or
landscaped
open
space
• Houses
may not
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