Baldwin City Council is working up an Urban Redevelopment Plan (URP) for most land in town. It opens the door to state funding to fix up rundown homes and businesses, create jobs and improve utilities. Leaders agree it’ll be good for the city but the first step is tough – council must officially declare most of Baldwin is a “slum.”
“What’s the effect on these property owners when we go in and, all of a sudden, say their property is blighted?” asks Council Member Joe Elam.
City Planner Diana Werling says “slum” is just the word the state uses for areas that are so rundown as to be dangerous or impair economic development. “It’s just dated language,” she says. “You’re doing what you have to do to access funds that will help your community.”
The State of Georgia defines “slum” –An area in which there is a predominance of buildings or improvements, whether residential or nonresidential, which by reason of dilapidation, deterioration, age or obsolescence is conducive to ill health, transmission of disease, infant mortality, juvenile delinquency or crime and is detrimental to the public health, safety, morals or welfare.
State lawmakers, recognizing how difficult the word “slum” has become, moved to soften the language this year. They passed House Bill 174 replacing the word “slum” with “pockets of blight” but the kinder, gentler wording hasn’t yet trickled down to the application process.
House Bill 174 defines “Pockets of Blight” – An area in which there is a predominance of buildings or improvements, whether residential or nonresidential, which by reason of dilapidation, deterioration, age, or obsolescence; inadequate provision for ventilation, light, air, sanitation, or open spaces; high density of population and overcrowding; existence of conditions which endanger life or property by fire and other causes; or any combination of such factors, are conducive to ill health, transmission of disease, infant mortality, juvenile delinquency, or crime and detrimental to the public health, safety, morals, or welfare.
Baldwin Mayor Jerry Neace says the council’s declaration won’t come as a surprise to most property owners. “Just looking at map and parcel and property values, they already know,” he says. “They know they need help with their property. This is the government’s way of saying, ‘Here’s you some help.’”
Werling points out that the URP designation doesn’t mean that all the properties in a given area are bad, “Not every parcel may be blighted. You’re not necessarily pointing fingers.”
Opportunity Zone
The creation of an Urban Redevelopment Plan is a required step for the city to apply for Opportunity Zone (OZ) status from the Georgia Department of Community Affairs (DCA). It would give new and existing businesses access to tax credits, up to $3500, for creating jobs.
The zones are specifically designed for “rural areas with sluggish economies and blighted commercial, industrial, and adjoining residential areas.” Werling says Baldwin should qualify, “They (DCA) visited several years ago and thought this area would be good for an opportunity zone.” There is no guarantee though. The state of Georgia currently gives out very few OZ designations so it is a very competitive application process according to Werling, “The (DCA) coordinator told me they would approve between 3 and 5 applications (statewide) this year.”
Werling and her associates at Engineering Management Inc are currently refining the map for the Baldwin Urban Redevelopment Plan. They expect to have a draft ready for City Council to look at next month. The city is also asking a representative from DCA to do a site visit in order to get a first-hand look at some of the areas in need. If that happens soon enough, the final URP and the Opportunity Zone application could be ready for a public hearing in August.
