First ‘Fight on Blight’ report released by City of Elmira, what to know

ELMIRA, N.Y. (WETM) — The City of Elmira released its first ‘Fight on Blight’ report on Tuesday, nine days after the scheduled deadline for the report’s monthly release.

As previously reported in early September, the Elmira City Council unanimously voted to end the ‘Fight on Blight’ list that held the names and addresses of property owners who own buildings with ordinance violations.

That list was voted out on Sept. 9, with the new system being a monthly report by City Manager, Mike Collins. The report states that each month’s report will come out on or before the 15th of every month to include information on programs, partnerships, grants, and enforcement actions.

As of Sept. 24, the city manager’s office obtained judgments totaling $10,000 in fines, and two civil cases are pending.

Manager Collins announced in the report that the City of Elmira has been certified as a ProHousing Community by the New York State Homes and Community Renewal. The report adds that since 2018, 416 units of housing have been created in the city, both market rate and affordable.

The city is continuing to work on housing solutions for the community as three representatives from the city traveled to Albany recently to meet with eight other municipalities to learn about solutions for mid-sized cities in upstate New York.

18 News will continue to follow the ‘Fight on Blight’ and report on the information presented in October’s report.

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