Wilmington City Council advances land bank proposal

Wilmington City Council will consider an ordinance next month to create a land bank that officials hope will reduce the number of vacant and abandoned properties in the city.

The legislation creating the Wilmington Neighborhood Conservancy Land Bank Corp. took a step forward Monday evening as it was unanimously voted out of The Committee of the Whole and will be put on the floor for a final vote on Nov. 19.

A land bank acquires tax delinquent properties and packages them for sale. The corporation can hold properties free of tax and liens, making them more desirable to developers. Similar programs have been put in place throughout the country including in Philadelphia.

Some questions arose from councilmembers and from the public worried that the community wouldn’t be involved in the land bank’s process of selecting parcels to stabilize and redevelop or raze.

“I would feel more comfortable seeing community-based organizations on the board,” said Councilwoman Maria Cabrera, before voting in favor of the ordinance. “I think that will make it more transparent.”

Jeff Goddess, a Wilmington attorney, said his concern is that the land bank wouldn’t be subject to public records laws and therefore wouldn’t be subject to let the community or press into its records or deals. Goddess suggested a mechanism should be created so that the work of the land bank is made public.

Council President Theo Gregory said the intent of the land bank is not to shield anything from the public.

“I don’t think that the spirit or intent is to do what is indicated, but it is possible,” Gregory said.

Councilwoman Hanifa Shabazz said she worked with the committee when drafting the proposal for the organization, to ensure that community organizations would be involved in the land bank as part of an advisory board. She said that is important because they know these neighborhoods best.

Councilwoman Sherry Dorsey Walker said if the community is going to buy into the proposal, they will need to know that it will work and work quickly.

Dorsey Walker seemed not to accept an answer from consultant Lee Huang, who advised the city on creation of the land bank, that the timeline in each project is dependent on the circumstances. Some properties are already slated for specific projects or uses and can be released from the land bank quickly, while others will be held for an unknown amount of time while the right use is lined up, Huang said.

“I am standing in front of my constituents and they are going to want to know,” Dorsey Walker said. “Eighteen months? Twenty-four?”

Though councilmembers have questions, the majority have said they will support the ordinance when it comes up for a vote.

If the ordinance creating the land bank passes in November, Huang said the city could determine which parcels will be offered to the land bank, establish the organization and appoint the initial board members, who would then establish their by-laws and apply for nonprofit status. Then the land bank could begin soliciting donations and funds from private entities, including businesses located in Wilmington, and philanthropic agencies.

The city has put $1.2 million to support the creation of the land bank, but Councilman Bud Freel, who chairs the finance committee, said it will need to be determined how much funding the city would allocate annually toward the land bank's operations. Huang said that investment is necessary and could be offset through an investment in non-cash contributions, like city staff time and office or meeting space.

The organization could begin projects by spring or summer 2016, Huang said.

Contact Jenna Pizzi at jpizzi@delawareonline.com or (302) 324-2837. Follow her on Twitter @JennaPizzi.