Label
Demolition by Neglect Study Request
Councilmember Gadus
Title
Submitting to the Toledo Plan Commission a Request to Study Demolition by Neglect; and Declaring an Emergency
Summary
Body
SUMMARY & BACKGROUND
"Demolition by Neglect" is the term used to describe a situation in which a property owner intentionally allows a historic property to suffer severe deterioration, potentially beyond the point of repair. By deferring maintenance and saving money in the short-term, property owners slowly let buildings of historical, cultural, and aesthetic value fall into disuse and disrepair, becoming a blight on their neighborhood and a public nuisance. Property owners may use this kind of long-term neglect to circumvent historic preservation regulations and provide the rationale for a single remediation option: demolition.
Demolition of historic buildings has several negative effects on a city, including the loss of cultural identity and educational value, the risk of environmental contamination, depreciation of artistic or aesthetic character in old neighborhoods, and the loss of opportunity for reuse and redevelopment.
According to the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the most important tool for controlling demolition by neglect is a carefully drafted provision in the local preservation ordinance requiring affirmative maintenance and ensuring that the local historic commission and building inspection or code compliance is equipped with adequate remedies and enforcement authority. This resolution aims to begin this process by thoughtfully studying demolition by neglect in Toledo and the factors that influence historic preservation, which should yield explicit recommendations for the City as well as key stakeholders like the owners of historic buildings in Toledo. This resolution will set the clear intention of the Toledo City Council that demolition by neglect is not to be permitted, and a more rigorous system of historic preservation must be enshrine...
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