Del Paso Boulevard business leaders banding together to fix abandoned building problem
SACRAMENTO — Business leaders on Del Paso Boulevard are banding together to solve the abandoned building problem on their street.
The corridor's sidewalks have their own high school clean-up team.
Candace Brooks is the owner of a Del Paso Boulevard entertainment venue called 1913. She is concerned about the impact abandoned buildings are having on businesses that are fighting to stay open.
"I'm a business owner on the boulevard," Brooks said. "The plea is: let's work together to do something with your property."
The Del Paso Business Improvement District held a town hall, singling out thirteen vacant properties.
"It's just the lack of life," Del Paso Heights resident Stephen Walton said.
Daniel Savala is the executive director of the Del Paso Boulevard Partnership.
"We're looking at a tougher vacant building ordinance," Savala said.
Sacramento city code does not allow a building to stay vacant for more than 30 days, with some exceptions. Fines start at $1,000 and can reach up to $10,000 per violation.
Savala wants the code more strictly enforced and wants the city to offer matching grants from federal funds to building owners who need to make tenant improvements.
"None of them are turnkey, ready for a tenant," Savala said. "You're talking five, 10, even 20 years vacant, with no one looking to move in or not on the market for lease or for sale or anything."
Seeking a space to celebrate this community's proud history, these Del Paso Boulevard business owners want to bring their vibrant past back.
"Vacant buildings, blighted buildings makes my job ten times harder to bring people to the boulevard," Brooks said.
The business improvement district plans to formally ask the city council for several million dollars in matching funds for improvements to the abandoned buildings and for more enforcement.