bkibler@altoonamirror.com
City Council on Monday introduced a pair of ordinances intended to make it easier for the Department of Codes & Inspections to deal with blight.
One ordinance makes code condemnations applicable to properties, rather than their owners, so they remain in effect when properties are sold; while the other ordinance creates categories for vacant property registrations, so the city can better dedicate the right kind of resources to them, depending on the severity of the problems they cause, according to codes Director Rebecca Brown.
The ordinance that ties code condemnations to properties, rather than ownership, will eliminate the problem of properties that have been red-tagged, or declared unfit for habitation, being sold at tax sale after which the department now needs to restart the condemnation process “at square one,” solicitor Tom Finn said.
bkibler@altoonamirror.com
The former KNY Family Fitness Center, located at 900 Lexington Ave., Altoona, ceased operations in early 2019 and is scheduled for a March 10 sheriffâs sale. Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski
A major building near downtown is headed for sheriff’s sale.
The old YMCA on the 900 block of Lexington Avenue, which more recently housed the KNY Family Fitness Center that was the subject of a foreclosure complaint by M&T Bank in 2017, ceased operations in early 2019 and is scheduled for sale March 10.
City officials are hoping for a savior for the 97-year-old structure, which was equipped with a full-sized basketball court, a pool and an exercise room.