Macon-Bibb blight proposal hits road bump Tuesday

A Macon-Bibb County blight proposal for demolishing structures hit a snag because of a technicality Tuesday.

The ordinance that would have allowed $450,000 of $9 million in blight funds to be used on condemned properties was sent back to a committee Tuesday. The move came during the County Commission meeting after questions were raised about how properties would be acquired.

County Attorney Judd Drake said the ordinance needed to be more specific on how bond funds will be used for capital projects. The ordinance is open to interpretation that the county could use the money to tear down structures on private properties, Drake said during the pre-commission meeting.

The ordinance needs to detail the foreclosure process involving the Macon-Bibb Land Bank Authority acquiring the properties before tearing them down, Drake said.

“As it presently consists, the project would not be proper,” he said.

The ordinance was recommended by an ad hoc blight committee before it went before the commission’s Operation and Finance Committee on Aug. 25. It was considered a method to allow commissioners to begin some blight work after numerous discussions on how the money would be divvied and how it could be used.

Commissioner Bert Bivins, chairman of the blight committee, said he understood local government couldn’t tear down houses on private property.

“I’m in favor of making sure we do it right,” Bivins said. “I’m hoping we can find something in all districts that we can do in the near future.”

It could take five to six months to complete the foreclosures on a property, Drake said.

Commissioner Gary Bechtel said in some cases it could be a shorter process if property owners delinquent on their taxes are willing to sell to the Land Bank Authority. Those owners would then get a break on their late taxes, he said.

Commissioner Mallory Jones said he wanted Macon-Bibb residents to understand that county leaders are not trying to hold up the process.

“It must involve a capital improvement, and that’s where we’re restricted,” Jones said during the regular commission meeting.

Commissioners approved a resolution that will have the Middle Georgia Regional Commission use data models to identify blight projects that the county could tackle.

The Regional Commission’s list will be included in the updated Urban Development Plan.

Discussions among Macon-Bibb leaders about how to use $10 million in blight funds has been ongoing for months. The commission voted in July to allocate $1 million apiece to the nine commissioners for blight projects. It rejected Mayor Robert Reichert’s proposal of spending the money on four specific projects.

The remaining $1 million from the total will be spent on waste disposal and community engagement.

BASKETBALL LEAGUE

The commission designated $25,000 for the Operation Cease Fire Midnight Basketball League that would take place at various recreation centers throughout Macon-Bibb.

The program would combine basketball with an educational component. Participants would be required to attend workshops on subjects such as financial literacy.

The $25,000 will cover some of the basketball related costs that will be led by the Macon-Bibb County Recreation Department.

There will be additional money needed for the educational component and other areas of the league.

The league would have goals such as enrolling a certain number of players into a GED program and having 90 percent of them take the Georgia Work Ready Test.

To contact writer Stanley Dunlap, call 744-4623.

This story was originally published September 1, 2015 at 8:21 PM with the headline "Macon-Bibb blight proposal hits road bump Tuesday ."