Posts by Community Progress
National Reclaiming Vacant Properties Conference comes to Baltimore in 2016!
We are pleased to announce that the seventh national Reclaiming Vacant Properties (RVP) Conference will come to Baltimore, Maryland, next year on September 28-30, 2016! The conference will be held at the Hilton Baltimore and is expected to draw approximately 1,000 professionals to the city. Learn more about RVP on our website or view the…
Read More#RVP2015: Hearing your voices at the Reclaiming Vacant Properties Conference
At the Reclaiming Vacant Properties Conference held last week in Detroit, more than 1,100 attendees engaged in meaningful conversations about causes and solutions for vacancy and abandonment. But those conversations weren’t just taking place in meetings rooms. Using #RVP2015 and #RVPMovement, thousands of tweets covered a range of topics, including those highlighted below: Land Banking & Code Enforcement; Arts and Placemaking; Social Equity, Fairness,…
Read MoreImmigration in the Motor City: Explore at the Reclaiming Vacant Properties Conference
Post-industrial cities throughout the Rust Belt have experienced significant population loss over the last fifty years, leading to unprecedented numbers of vacant and abandoned properties. Immigrants can breathe new life into neighborhoods that have seen disinvestment and abandonment. At the 2015 Reclaiming Vacant Properties Conference, participants will have the opportunity to explore immigration and community development in Detroit through a…
Read MoreWhat does it take to eliminate blight? New framework offers a model
The City of Flint Planning Commission recently adopted Beyond Blight: City of Flint Blight Elimination Framework. With a five-year implementation timeline, the Framework uses an in-depth, data-driven approach that brings increased transparency and clarity to the City’s work — and, in so doing, it offers a model other cities can learn from. News release >> Framework summary…
Read MoreSouth Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg: “We’re part of a movement”
Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Indiana, hit the nail on the head when he shared with us his thoughts on the value of the Reclaiming Vacant Properties Conference: it’s a chance learn from each other but, perhaps just as importantly, it is an opportunity to remember that we aren’t alone in this work. Together, we’re part of…
Read More#LoveThatLot: Your Valentines for formerly vacant lots
Parcel by parcel, on blocks across the country, transformations are underway: local champions are turning vacant, abandoned lots into local gems. These projects are changing neighborhoods and touching lives but, too often, they’re known only to those who are lucky enough to live nearby. Last week, we issued a call for Valentines to shine some light on these special spots and you responded without…
Read MoreSeven Cities Selected for Community Progress Leadership Institute
Delegations from seven cities across three states have been selected to attend the 2015 Community Progress Leadership Institute (CPLI), a training program focused on equipping leaders with the skills to address large inventories of blighted and vacant properties for the benefit of their communities. The cities that will be sending delegations of up to six…
Read MoreDallas, Detroit, Gary and Trenton awarded technical assistance scholarships
Community Progress launched the competitive Technical Assistance Scholarship Program (TASP) in 2014, to help us find and support today’s pioneers in the work to reclaim and revitalize problem properties. TASP seeks out “changemakers” who are improving the field of practice, and it helps those leaders effect positive change on the ground. Today, we’re pleased to…
Read MoreJustin Godard comes on board with the National Leadership and Education team
We are pleased to welcome Justin Godard as a program associate on the National Leadership and Education team at Community Progress. Here’s what he has to say about coming on board: How did you first become interested in the community development and urban planning fields? I feel as though the story behind how I got into community development…
Read MoreNew York’s land banks report statewide progress
Today, the New York Land Bank Association (NYLBA) released New York State Land Banks: Combating Blight and Vacancy in New York Communities, a report on the early accomplishments of the state’s first nine land banks over the last two years. It’s the first publication to be released by NYLBA, a statewide network of the nine land…
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