Beginning in 2012 and continuing into 2013, the city of Owensboro, Ky., plowed through a complicated process that led to a mass foreclosure action against 21 problem properties, most of them residential. Several broken down houses were eventually demolished and the lots made available for new homes. Back due taxes and overdue property maintenance fines were paid.
Most of the properties ended up in the hands of new owners. Several had been abandoned, or had fallen into severe neglect. Some buildings had been condemned before the foreclosure initiative. In some cases, the city had buildings demolished for safety reasons and the city sought reimbursement for those demolition costs.
The whole process took about a year and involved an outside legal firm doing much of the work.
Now, the city has its sights on another set of similar problem properties for foreclosure.
"We are currently in the process of preparing for another mass foreclosure action as we did in 2012/2013 against properties for which the city has incurred expenses for demolition, mowing and other clean up," Assistant City Attorney Steve Lynn said. "There are a number of properties that we are aware of that have back taxes and other property maintenance liens, most of which the owners are deceased or their whereabouts are unknown."
The process has begun with the mailing of notices to owners, Lynn said.
"We recently sent out letters to some of the record owners of the properties, but received no responses," he said. "Normally, we pick the 20 properties for which the greatest amount is owed."
If this latest foreclosure program goes like the last, the city could end up buying lots for a pittance. In 2013, toward the end of the process, the city purchased seven residential lots, six of them for a total of $9, at the foreclosure sale. Members of the public bought six lots. Seven other property owners paid the past due taxes and/or property fines levied against the properties before the Aug. 19 sale took place at the Daviess County Courthouse.
The other property subject to the city's foreclosure was Gabe's Tower, which had been purchased earlier by a private investment group that paid all city property maintenance fees assessed against the former hotel, thus removing it from the foreclosure auction.
In the end, the city bought three lots for just $1 each, at 1020 E. 20th St., 1416 E. Ninth St and 1410 Jackson St., and bought three lots for $2 each, at 1507 W. Ninth St, 920 Sutherland Ave. and 1912 McCulloch Ave. A property at 2604 Cravens Ave. was purchased for $7,000. The Cravens lot was purchased because the city needed it as part of the Mechanicsville Neighborhood Redevelopment project.
The public bought six lots for a total of about $38,000. Back taxes totaling $27,577.59 was paid on seven properties before the sale, causing them to be removed from the sale.
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