One Community Update
April 18, 2024

Source: casey.senate.gov

U.S. Senators Bob Casey (D-PA) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) introduced the Neighborhood Revitalization and Land Banking Act to help public land banks acquire blighted properties which can then be repurposed for commercial, residential, or recreational use that improves the quality of living in communities and local economies across the United States. This bill would additionally invest in increasing expertise and research in the field of land banking through the Blighted Property Remediation Fellowship Program.

“Land banks help turn blighted properties into community assets by stepping in to acquire and repurpose the vacant or deteriorating properties that too often stand in the way of neighborhood revitalization,” said Senator Casey. “The Neighborhood Revitalization and Land Banking Act will invest in the land banks dedicating their services to rehabilitating blighted and vacant land, making it easier for communities to maximize their potential while creating a cleaner, safer place to live.”

“Removal of blighted, vacant, and abandoned properties is an important step in community revitalization efforts, and land banks serve a critical role in acquiring and encouraging reuse and redevelopment of these properties,” Senator Capito said. “I’m proud to introduce the Neighborhood Revitalization and Land Banking Act, which will play a key role in helping continue the success of land banks in West Virginia.”

“We thank Senator Casey and Senator Capito for recognizing the unique and varied challenges that vacant, abandoned, and deteriorated properties pose to communities in rural, urban, and suburban communities, for acknowledging the critical role of land banks serving these communities, and for developing targeted federal solutions through this important federal legislation,” said Kathleen J. Guillaume-Delemar, President and CEO of the Center for Community Progress, the only national nonprofit organization dedicated to addressing widespread vacancy and abandonment. “The Neighborhood Revitalization and Land Banking Act will support and scale up the innovative and impactful work that land banks around the country are already doing despite scarce resources, and will drive further innovation, expand critical data gathering, and build capacity in disinvested communities most in need of revitalization. It is particularly powerful that the champions of this bill are from Pennsylvania and West Virginia, two states with growing land bank movements making positive change possible across rural communities, small cities, and large metro areas alike.”