Chris Berry On The Net

If you’re not already familiar with the Miller’s Hill redevelopment effort on the 400 block of Day Avenue, please check out my previous post to get up to speed on the basic facts. I’ve been in contact with a couple of Miller’s Hill homeowners since that article appeared, and I had the chance to spend some time with them earlier this week. Their concern at this point is not when, but if the project will ever be completed.

The Redevelopment & Housing Authority has blamed the slowdown in the housing market for the work stoppage, and they have continued to insist that work will start again as soon as the existing inventory of completed homes is sold. The problem is that they started without the resources necessary to finance the project, and now they are entirely dependent on the sale proceeds from one house to pay for the renovations on the next one. This leaves the homeowners who have already bought into the project trapped in an impossible situation. Unfortunately, it is a situation that the city can simply walk away from while the homeowners are left holding the bag.

The project consists of 17 houses, five of which have already been completed and sold, and there are two other finished houses available for sale. The building permits for the other 10 houses in the project have expired, and no work has taken place on the site since December of 2007. For all intents and purposes, the effort has been abandoned by the RRHA.

There are two fundamental issues that will prevent the project from ever moving forward unless the city is willing to take a dramatically different course. Without a firm commitment to complete the project in a reasonable period of time, no buyer in their right mind is going to be willing to purchase either of the remaining finished houses. The more serious problem is that even if someone were foolish enough to want one of these homes, no mortgage lender is going to take a chance. The uncertainty surrounding the completion of project means that the homes have essentially no collateral value. Without willing lenders, the project will never move forward.

There are several ways that the city could rectify the problem and get the project moving again. One would be to provide the RRHA with the funds necessary to complete the remaining 10 homes, and the city could recoup the investment once the houses are sold. Another option would be to simply give the remaining properties to a private developer with the resources to complete the project in strict accordance with the original plans. If no developer is willing to take on the entire project, the properties could be given on an individual basis to qualified homeowners willing to abide by the project specifications. In this case, the city would also need to provide loan guarantees to ensure that mortgage lenders would be willing to participate in the project.

The 10 unrestored houses have been stripped of their protective vinyl siding, and their condition is continuing to deteriorate. The longer the city waits to take action, the more it will ultimately cost to bring these homes back to life. Any of the above actions would result in a satisfactory outcome for the current homeowners, and would provide the kind of catalyst for neighborhood revitalization that was the original purpose of the project. Failure to do anything would constitute an act of fraud.