(The Center Square) — Many residents came forward voicing their concerns over the rising issue of blight in the area at a recent Shreveport City Council Administrative conference on Monday.
The Highlands and other areas are experiencing issues with fires on vacant property and landlords not taking proper care of their properties, noted Councilwoman Tabitha Taylor.
“When you have blighted properties then they’re a haven for a number of crimes. I had that happen in the Lakeside area where a property was used for sex trafficking,” said Taylor.
The question arose as to whether signage is required for arrests to be made by the Shreveport Police Department when it comes to trespassers on vacant properties. According to the council, there does need to be clarification to assist the police department in being able to make arrests and remove people who are trespassing and/or violating private property.
Jeremy Taylor, who has voiced his concerns on blight at other council meetings, noted just how many blighted buildings there are around Shreveport. According to the Shreveport resident, two of his buildings got knocked down in the mayor’s fight to address the blight issue.
“If we are going to fight blight, we need to fight it evenly across the board,” Taylor said.
Funds have been allocated to the Property Standards Department, but historically, according to the council, this department has been underfunded and would get cut if cuts were needed in departments. The Property Standards Department was fully funded under the Perkins administration for the first time.
The council is working with legislators to change laws that are currently landlord-friendly, to be more tenant-friendly. A big concern apart from blight is also not having vacant lots. So, the option of exploring redevelopment of these vacant properties is being discussed as well.
“This is a major concern because if you don’t feel safe in your neighborhood, then that’s a problem,” said Taylor.
Residents have voiced concern over the issue in previous meetings with city officials as well.
In a recent Caddo Parish Commission meeting, after hearing citizen concerns, the commission voted to appropriate $100,000 from the Riverboat Gaming Fund to battle blight in Shreveport. It is not determined yet how the money will be spent.
A Property Standards meeting is in the works for March 10 or earlier, so this issue can be addressed in greater detail.
