FDL City Council Discusses Blight Elimination Funding

The Fond du Lac City Council discussed possible options
for funding to support blight elimination in the city at their meeting last
week. Blight refers to the deteriorated condition of a property or building,
and as City Manager Joe Moore tells us, can be a tricky word, as some property
owners might not feel their property should be considered “blight”. Moore says
the council’s discussions centered around expediting the process to help with
dealing with blight in the city. “If there’s an interest in improving
properties, we’re talking about how we might be able to facilitate that,” he
said. “Now, we’re already involved in that, this is conversation about taking
it maybe to a more expedited process or a higher level.” The City currently
partners with places like Advocap and Habitat for Humanity to rebuild and
restore properties in the city, and Moore says the discussion last week focused
on continuing those partnership – and seeing how it would be possible to fund efforts
to eliminate blight in old commercial properties in the city.