Land Banks as Instruments of Equitable Growth: CLiME’s Recommendations to the City of Newark

Katharine Nelson, Senior Research Fellow, and David Troutt, CLiME Director

14 October, 2020

Land banks are government-created institutions whose mission is to return vacant, abandoned and tax-delinquent properties into productive use. Land banks are empowered to acquire land, eliminate back taxes and tax liens attached to a property in order to create a clean title, maintain the land in compliance with local and state ordinances, and convey the property back into active use. As a mechanism for expediting the disposition of city-owned and/or abandoned properties, land banks can be a significant local government tool either for equitable growth or for more conventional economic development. The land bank’s purpose follows the priorities of local decision makers, and equity is not a legislative requirement. However, land banks can be a key instrument of equitable governance because they allow cities more centralized authority to direct public resources for community planning, wealth creation, and housing stability where they are most needed. Equitable governance carries the potential to stimulate local community markets hobbled by underinvestment, spread resources to resource-poor areas, and ensure greater fairness for disadvantaged community members. Land banks used in combination with other tools of equitable development can have even greater impact.

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Land Banks as Instruments of Equitable Growth: CLiME’s Recommendations to the City of Newark