The Housing Alliance has several publications and other resources that provide a comprehensive approach to combating blight specific to Pennsylvania’s state laws and the enabling legislation given to its municipalities.
From Blight to Bright is the comprehensive toolkit for combating blight in Pennsylvania. It provides tools to prevent blight, eliminate blight, keep properties up to code, and how to address long-term vacant and abandoned properties. There is also an update from April 2018 regarding changes in laws used to prevent, remediate, and redevelop blight.
We Can Do This: A Five Step, Fast-Track Blight Plan (2016)
This publication walks you through five basic steps for developing a community or countywide blight strategy. “The Five-Step, Fast-Track Blight Plan” publication describes a systematic, proven, and inexpensive way for municipalities and counties to develop a comprehensive strategy to address blight,” according to Chris Gulotta, author of the publication. “It is a customized, stakeholder-driven process that develops a team approach for tackling blight.”
Quick Guide: New Tools to Address Blight and Abandonment (2012)
The Quick Guide provides a comprehensive list of tools and authorities by level of government that were granted as of 2012, and recommendations for new tools as of that time. This publication succinctly and clearly breaks down 26 laws for combating blight and their applicability by government level, many of which are still in effect today as written in 2012.
Pennsylvania Communities Comprehensive Blight Strategy Plans
Communities across Pennsylvania are developing strategic plans to combat and redevelop blight in their communities. A few examples follow.
- City of Altoona Blight Task Force (March 2018), “Comprehensive Blight Strategy Plan”
- Borough of Braddock Blighted Property Task Force (October 2017), “Executive Summary: Borough of Braddock Blight Strategy”
- Borough of Braddock Blighted Property Task Force (October 2017), “Borough of Braddock: Comprehensive Blight Strategy Plan”
- City of New Castle Blighted Property Task Force (October 2017), “City of New Castle: Comprehensive Blight Strategy Plan”