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66 Groups to Maintain 3,500 Vacant Properties 2024

One Community Update
April 19, 2024

Source: The Flint Courier News

The Genesee County Land Bank Authority is set to kick off the 20th season of Clean & Green this Saturday! Each year community groups work together to combat blight across the city of Flint, cleaning and clearing thousands of vacant properties each season. Countless stories over the years have really shown the positive impacts that Clean & Green work has within neighborhoods. Neighborhoods today feel safe, warm and inviting when years ago they were overgrown and unmaintained.

This year, from April to September, 66 community-based groups will clean and green 3,500 vacant properties in and around the City of Flint every three weeks. Block-clubs, schools, churches, neighborhood associations, and local non-profits are some of the 66 community-based groups participating in the 2024 Clean & Green program.

Each group receives a stipend for maintaining at least 25 properties every three weeks. Six new groups were selected to participate this season and 60 returning groups. Most of the groups include neighborhood youth, who then create change in their own neighborhoods.

Community groups will receive their materials for the program this Saturday April 20, 2024 at an in person material distribution event. Groups will receive Clean & Green T-shirts, custom yard signs, trash grabbers, program guides and service area maps to assist in their cleaning and greening work.

Clean & Green will officially kick off the season at their digital kick-off event via Zoom on Friday, April 26, 2024. Representatives from each of the Clean & Green groups will gather together virtually to review program information, guidelines and resources.

Residents can anticipate seeing an impact as Clean Green volunteers clean, clear and beautify neighborhoods across the city of Flint. Groups often start with an area wide clean up to prep for regular mowing. Residents are encouraged to connect with local Clean & Green volunteers to support the fight against blight efforts.

Clean & Green work has positive ripple effects within the neighborhoods they work in. making them safer. According to research by the University of Michigan, Youth Violence Prevention Center, Clean & Green maintenance significantly reduces crime. Clean & Green engaged areas compared to street segments with vacant, abandoned lots without Clean & Green activities have: 30 percent fewer assaults, 40 percent fewer violent crimes overall, lower rates of child maltreatment and lower rates of youth gun violence.

 

For full report, please click the source link above.

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CEO

Alan Jaffa

Alan Jaffa is the Chief Executive Officer for Safeguard Properties, steering the company as the mortgage field services industry leader. He also serves on the board of advisors for SCG Partners, a middle-market private equity fund focused on diversifying and expanding Safeguard Properties’ business model into complimentary markets.

Alan joined Safeguard in 1995, learning the business from the ground up. He was promoted to Chief Operating Officer in 2002, and was named CEO in May 2010. His hands-on experience has given him unique insights as a leader to innovate, improve and strengthen Safeguard’s processes to assure that the company adheres to the highest standards of quality and customer service.

Under Alan’s leadership, Safeguard has grown significantly with strategies that have included new and expanded services, technology investments that deliver higher quality and greater efficiency to clients, and strategic acquisitions. He takes a team approach to process improvement, involving staff at all levels of the organization to address issues, brainstorm solutions, and identify new and better ways to serve clients.

In 2008, Alan was recognized by Crain’s Cleveland Business in its annual “40-Under-40” profile of young leaders. He also was named a NEO Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year® Award finalist in 2013.

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Esq., General Counsel and EVP

Linda Erkkila

Linda Erkkila is the General Counsel and Executive Vice President for Safeguard Properties, with oversight of legal, human resources, training, and compliance. Linda’s broad scope of oversight covers regulatory issues that impact Safeguard’s operations, risk mitigation, strategic planning, human resources and training initiatives, compliance, insurance, litigation and claims management, and counsel related to mergers, acquisition and joint ventures.

Linda assures that Safeguard’s strategic initiatives align with its resources, leverage opportunities across the company, and contemplate compliance mandates. She has practiced law for 25 years and her experience, both as outside and in-house counsel, covers a wide range of corporate matters, including regulatory disclosure, corporate governance compliance, risk assessment, compensation and benefits, litigation management, and mergers and acquisitions.

Linda earned her JD at Cleveland-Marshall College of Law. She holds a degree in economics from Miami University and an MBA. Linda was previously named as both a “Woman of Influence” by HousingWire and as a “Leading Lady” by MReport.

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COO

Michael Greenbaum

Michael Greenbaum is the Chief Operating Officer of Safeguard Properties, where he has played a pivotal role since joining the company in July 2010. Initially brought on as Vice President of REO, Mike’s exceptional leadership and strategic vision quickly propelled him to Vice President of Operations in 2013, and ultimately to COO in 2015. Over his 14-year tenure at Safeguard, Mike has been instrumental in driving change and fostering innovation within the Property Preservation sector, consistently delivering excellence and becoming a trusted partner to clients and investors.

A distinguished graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, Mike earned a degree in Quantitative Economics. Following his graduation, he served in the U.S. Army’s Ordnance Branch, where he specialized in supply chain management. Before his tenure at Safeguard, Mike honed his expertise by managing global supply chains for 13 years, leveraging his military and civilian experience to lead with precision and efficacy.

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CFO

Joe Iafigliola

Joe Iafigliola is the Chief Financial Officer for Safeguard Properties. Joe is responsible for the Control, Quality Assurance, Business Development, Marketing, Accounting, and Information Security departments. At the core of his responsibilities is the drive to ensure that Safeguard’s focus remains rooted in Customer Service = Resolution. Through his executive leadership role, he actively supports SGPNOW.com, an on-demand service geared towards real estate and property management professionals as well as individual home owners in need of inspection and property preservation services. Joe is also an integral force behind Compliance Connections, a branch of Safeguard Properties that allows code enforcement professionals to report violations at properties that can then be addressed by the Safeguard vendor network. Compliance Connections also researches and shares vacant property ordinance information with Safeguard clients.

Joe has an MBA from The Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University, is a Certified Management Accountant (CMA), and holds a bachelor’s degree from The Ohio State University’s Honors Accounting program.

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Business Development

Carrie Tackett

Business Development Safeguard Properties