Augusta residents learned about the proposed blight ordinance during a Thursday night public hearing.
Carla Delaney, deputy director of Augusta Planning and Development, said the proposed ordinance has three main goals: to reduce blight, to improve the quality of life and to improve health, safety and welfare.
Delaney said, “This is a tool in a toolbox. It’s part of a process we’re pushing to help with the eradication of blight.”
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She said it can take as much as two years to repair or demolish have a blighted property. The ordinance speeds up the process.
When a code enforcement officer determines a property has been in a blighted condition for 30 days, a written notice is sent to the owner. The owner then has 30 days to make repairs necessary to bring it up to code.
If repairs are not made, the next step is to file a complaint with Magistrate Court, and a hearing will be scheduled. If the judge agrees that the property is in a blighted condition, the property owner faces an increased property tax.
Delaney called the ad valorem tax the “teeth” of the ordinance. It increases the property tax millage rate by seven.
For an example, she used a property with a fair market value of $55,000 and an assessed value of $22,000. The current property tax is $726.68. Once a blight determination is made, the tax jumps to $2,655.47.
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The blight designation and increased annual property tax remain in effect until the owner makes repairs, the property is inspected and the determination removed.
Delaney said if the ordinance is approved, the initial targets will only be unoccupied structures that have fallen into disrepair.
Dana Lynn McIntyre is a Staff Reporter with The Augusta Press. You can reach her at dana@theaugustapress.com.
