2000115-Strengthening-Communities-with-Neighborhood-Data

Using Data for Neighborhood Improvement 217
is extremely low. 8 As a result, these properties continue to sit vacant,
further deteriorating and contributing to community blight. To counteract
this problem, staff from NPI and VAPAC began working with the
county’s fiscal office to secure the list of tax-delinquent properties before
lien certificates for them were sold. After the list is uploaded to NEO
CANDO, any property flagged as vacant or condemned or of interest to
the land bank, a CDC, or a municipality is excluded from the group of
tax liens sold to the investment firms. These exclusions allow the joined
groups an opportunity to get vulnerable properties into the hands of
those who will take actions on the property that reduce further deterioration,
both to the home itself and to the immediate neighborhood.
Without the up-to-date property information housed in one location,
it would be difficult to identify whether the tax-delinquent property is
vacant or has been condemned. Also, geographic identifiers in the system
are essential in tagging the property’s location, which can then be shared
with the appropriate CDC or municipality or the land bank if the property
is in a location of interest.
Kamla Lewis, the director of neighborhood revitalization for Shaker
Heights and a VAPAC member, credits NEO CANDO with promoting
a more regional approach to addressing fallout from the housing crisis.
Having a data system such as NEO CANDO in place has “allowed us
to see our shared similarities—not just our differences—which is the
fundamental basis of building partnerships and developing solutions.”
Conclusion
By design, the NEO CANDO system puts data into the hands of those
who can take action. As the system has evolved over the past 20 years, it
has become essential to the work of many organizations throughout the
county. It has been used to identify emerging issues, document trends,
inform decisionmaking, and facilitate partnerships. The interaction
between the users, developers, data providers, and funders of the NEO
CANDO–NST web app has helped prioritize data needs, improve system
usability, and increase the understanding of and ability to address challenges
within neighborhoods throughout the county. As a member of
VAPAC and longtime supporter of NEO CANDO said, “Today, we have
what we need. Without reliable, up-to-date information, we are walking
in the dark.”