Crowd-Sourced Code Enforcement

A new law known as the “Community Bill of Rights” has just gone into effect in Baltimore City, empowering community organizations to sue absentee landowners for code violations on their properties. My inquiries suggest that the new law will have little impact for those of us doing greening in the city, but does add to the arsenal of options communities have to  take back their neighborhoods from blight and decay. Ideally, the city itself should be enforcing its own codes against owners of derelict buildings and trash-strewn lots, but absent some sudden transformation in the way things get done in this town, the new rule at least gives citizens the ability to crowd-source that enforcement.

Many people in the greening movement are perhaps unaware that they already have the right to take over vacant lots through the self-help nuisance abatement process.

Here’s the alert from the Community Law Center regarding the new legislation:

Effective Today: Revised Community Bill of Rights Law Allows Community Associations to Sue Owners of Nuisance Properties!Community Law Center invites neighborhoods to take advantage of the revised law to tackle nuisance properties!

Baltimore, MD (October 1, 2012) – Owners of abandoned properties in Baltimore City should start bringing their properties up to code, or the local community association might sue them to do just that. Today, the revised law, known as the Community Bill of Rights, goes into effect. This amended legislation makes it easier for community organizations to use the law that has been unused but on the books for 15 years. The revised law allows for community organizations to pursue code enforcement violations to reduce nuisances in their own neighborhoods. Community associations are empowered to address problem properties by filing a private legal action against the property owner. Owners could be forced by a Circuit Court order to correct the problems with their properties that are causing a nuisance in the neighborhood. Community organizations interested in taking advantage of this new legislation should apply for free legal assistance from Community Law Center online atwww.communitylaw.org/apply-for-services or by calling Ingrid Hitchens at 410-366-0922 x 13. Community Law Center, Inc. is a nonprofit law firm that provides legal representation to nonprofits and community associations in Maryland to create stronger nonprofits and more vibrant neighborhoods. This email is for informational purposes only and shall not be construed as legal advice. Legal advice must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case and laws are constantly changing. You should seek the assistance of competent legal counsel for specific legal advice.