JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Jacksonville’s Historic Preservation Commission has released the findings from a special task force reviewing the city’s abandoned and neglected buildings.
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The Task force on Demolition by Neglect released 19 different recommendations for the city to follow, all with the goal of having fewer historic buildings be demolished.
Back in September of last year, Jacksonville’s Historic Preservation Commission announced the creation of the Task Force on Demolition by Neglect due to the number of historic properties coming up for demolition review due to neglect.
“Right now, we’re averaging about one request per month, give or take,” said Bill Hoff, Chair of the Task Force on Demolition by Neglect,
The results of the task force were revealed to the Historic Preservation Commission last week. The report divides its 19 recommendations into categories labeled priority, medium-term, and long-term.
One of the priority recommendations is to have the city is to “Create and maintain a list of properties which have fines/liens related to maintenance deficiencies…and which are located in a designated historic district.”
One medium-term recommendation worth noting states that the “COJ will establish a process to add nuisance and demolition liens to the non-ad valorem tax assessment rolls. This will close loopholes that allow negligent property owners to reduce their liens and will require timely payment for property neglect.”
Bill Hoff is the chair of the task force on demolition by neglect. He says the end goal of the task force is to see fewer historic buildings neglected to the point of demolition.
“It’s something that’s unique to Jacksonville that provides economic return on investment and the preservation of these is important,” said Hoff.
Hoff tells ANJ that the task force plans to meet with city staff members to determine the best next steps.
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