For Immediate Release: February 19, 2010 Contact: Dave Murphy
(781) 961-0911
Town Partners with Attorney General to Address Property Maintenance
The Town of Randolph has established a partnership with Attorney General Martha Coakley’s office to address residential properties that have fallen into neglect or disrepair. Working together with the Attorney General, the Town will assist with the Attorney General’s receivership program to get chronically dilapidated and potentially dangerous properties secured, fixed up, and improved.
“A neglected property can have a significant adverse impact on an entire neighborhood,” said Town Manager Dave Murphy. “Working with Attorney General Coakley’s office, we finally have a mechanism to address properties that have been long-standing problems. We commend the Attorney General’s Office for their work in helping cities and towns address a significant issue.”
“As the foreclosure crisis continues to ravage communities in Massachusetts, abandoned properties continue to be a serious problem for many cities and towns across the Commonwealth. These properties can create public safety risks as well as decrease the value of other properties in these neighborhoods, “Attorney General Martha Coakley said. “Our staff on the Abandoned Housing Initiative looks forward to working with Town Manager David Murphy and other dedicated town officials in Randolph. It is our hope that this partnership can help bring these properties back to full use resulting in a safer community for all.”
The Town of Randolph formed a Code Management Task Force in 2008 to address neglected properties. Town Meeting passed a new bylaw that required abandoned or foreclosed homes to register with the Town and identify a property maintenance contact. Fines associated with the program have likely led to a significant reduction in visibly abandoned property in Randolph.
Added Murphy, “We have been working to improve our aesthetics in town and this is one aspect of a larger plan. There are so many people who do a great job maintaining their homes and properties. They should not be punished by having an abandoned property go without proper maintenance for months. We have made great strides and will continue to work to eliminate this problem.”
Under the Receivership program, the Attorney General could petition the Court to place a property in receivership if a lack of maintenance led to public safety concerns. The Court could assign a receiver to repair the property and place a lien on that property to pay for the cost of the repairs.
“During the foreclosure crisis, many homes were left abandoned and property maintenance at these locations suffered,” said Randolph Health Commissioner John McVeigh. “Working with the Attorney General we now have a very effective tool that we did not have in the past. I believe that this program will help us address those chronically blighted properties.”
The first property petitioned in Randolph was a chronically unmaintained home on Lafayette Street. The Attorney General has begun the receivership process. The Town hopes that repairs to the property will take place in the late-Winter.
Added McVeigh, “We’ve received numerous calls about this property and have been stymied by the current systems inability to force real improvement. The new receivership program will give us the right tools to show real results to our residents. I’m hoping that many of the traditional problem properties will be cleaned up this year.”
If you know of a chronically abandoned property in disrepair, please call the Randolph Health Department at (781) 961-0924.
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