Merrillville residents push for vacant property registration program to get ahead of potential blight issues

Merillville, IN: City Council approved and seem likely to offer final approval for the creation of a vacant property registration program in order to prevent property decline.

The new ordinance would require owners to notify and register any property that had been vacant or for abandoned 90 or more days. A $300 annual fee has been proposed, with $500 uptick in cost for structures zoned as non-residential or residential structures that include three or more units; both numbers remain unset.

Along with registration, contact information for someone that lives within 50 miles of the property and is authorized to make decision involving the property must be listed, as well as an explanation of the plans for bringing the property back to code or maintaining the property with code.

Weekly or monthly inspections and other associated measures remain under discussion until final approval of the plan.

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