New Bedford 2020 - VHB.com

A City Master Plan New Bedford 2020established for a household of one or more persons whose maximum income does not exceed 80% of the areamedian income, adjusted for household size, and that there are restrictions in place to ensure that the sellingprice or rent remains affordable. The goal is to ensure that no more than 30% of household income isdedicated to a mortgage or rent payment.While New Bedford currently exceeds the 40B threshold of 10%, there are two significant issues that the Citymust consider as housing policy is developed to meet future needs. First, there may be projects in the SHI thathave units that may soon lose the restricted pricing due to an expiring use. The City must monitor thoseprojects where affordable units may resort to market prices at the end of its original restriction, which istypically 30 years (the statutory minimum). Identification of relevant projects and renegotiation of thoserestrictions could extend the restrictions, which are now typically a minimum of 99 years and frequently inperpetuity. Secondly, with the new data expected after the 2010 Census, the number of total housing unitsupon which the percentage of affordable housing units is based is likely to increase. This may reduce thepercentage of affordable housing units from the current 12.5%.Housing Stock and Code EnforcementRecent demographic changes, coupled with a downturn in the economy, have left New Bedford and manycommunities across the country in a difficult situation when it comes to property maintenance and quality oflife issues. As a city, we face some of the highest foreclosure and unemployment rates in the state. Thesefactors have combined to create a stark picture for code enforcement officers: a higher number of propertiesthat are currently in-between owners due to foreclosure, business owners who do not have the capital toperform regular maintenance and upkeep on their properties, and citizens who have no sense of ownership orconnection to the area. This was evident throughout the civic engagement process in which numerouscomments were raised regarding the need to address neighborhood appearances degraded by litter, nuisances,blight, and vacant lots.Effective code enforcement fosters improved living conditions, quality of life, and helps to establish andmaintain the desired character of New Bedford’s neighborhoods. During times of high vacancy and deferredmaintenance to properties, it is up to the municipality to make the switch from a complaint-driven, reactivecode enforcement program to a program that places an emphasis on proactive approaches to identify and abatecode violations more efficiently. In order to carry out this new approach, code enforcement must become moreaggressive to ensure the community understands what constitutes a violation. The municipality must take astronger stance with enforcement and follow through on all violations, even to the dissatisfaction of affectedproperty owners, in order to ensure quality for residents and well-maintained neighborhoods.With 3,300 dwellings considered vacant (8% vacancy rate) 3 , the City has increased its effort to become moreproactive and has codified two important tools that may be used in code enforcement. First, the Commissionerof Inspectional Services is explicitly empowered to act upon and investigate complaints. The City may requirethat corrective actions be taken if needed and may also file a complaint in court for failure to comply. Moreover,if there is a failure to address the violation, the City has the right to undertake the necessary repairs and recoverthe cost for doing so. Second, the City has adopted the non-criminal disposition provisions under MGL, whichallows police officers and other designated City officials to issue tickets and levy fines for violations as analternative to instituting criminal proceedings. Additionally, the City has instituted a comprehensiveAbandoned Property and Foreclosure Strategy, which focuses on legal action, enforcement and inspection,foreclosure prevention, and redevelopment efforts; and a Property Review Team to discuss problematicproperties and take immediate corrective action, as necessary.3 Source: 2000 US Census (census.gov).Neighborhoods and Housing6-6