Mike DeWine is Ohio’s attorney general. The mortgage foreclosure crisis has affected many Ohio cities and towns, leaving behind the blight from desolate and deteriorating houses, which hinder their economic growth and recovery. To help affected communities, my office… Read more ›

The renovation of distressed properties is no longer the realm of the professional rehabber. Welcome a new player in the renaissance of Greater Cleveland real estate: the handy-dandy homeowner. “Of the 400 homes that have been rehabbed, 40 percent of… Read more ›

The 2.3-acre site of a former school in Old Brooklyn that has been fallow since it was torn down in 2008 will once again be used for educational purposes. This time, however, it will be used to teach adults with… Read more ›

Koinonia Homes, Inc. – the largest private provider of services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in Cuyahoga County – started with a vision. The organization wanted to expand a small farm they had on one of their properties… Read more ›

Life is a circle. And so it was that earlier this week a vacant lot, once the site of an elementary school, returned to its roots with a fresh take on what constitutes the traditional classroom. More than simply turning… Read more ›

Tony Brancatelli and I are sitting in a Tremont coffee joint, talking about the Skunk House, a zombie property on East 57th Street that we’d visited in February. Back then, the stench of the striped nocturnal omnivores complemented an interior… Read more ›

CLEVELAND – The Cuyahoga Land Bank has launched an Owner Occupant Buyer Advantage Program designed to make it easier for individuals and families interested in getting a great deal on a property to own and live in. The new initiative… Read more ›

Ground will be broken this week in Cleveland for a farm that will give people with developmental disabilities job training, and provide fresh food for city residents. Koinonia Homes is a private Northeast Ohio service provider for developmentally disabled people.… Read more ›

Cuyahoga Land Bank, a nonprofit that works to deal with the foreclosure mess in Cuyahoga County on a house-by-house basis, has launched a program giving prospective homeowners who are handy an edge over other buyers for certain properties. alling it… Read more ›

Gus Frangos is president and general counsel of the Cuyahoga County Land Reutilization Corp., more commonly called the Cuyahoga Land Bank. Many believe it is a county agency. In fact, it is a nonprofit community improvement corp., which he describes… Read more ›

It’s a sticky problem for men who have been incarcerated: they are expected to work and support their families, yet relatively few are trained in jobs that pay beyond minimum wage. Now, thanks to a new collaboration between the Cuyahoga… Read more ›

At a recent meeting Gadola tried to distance the County Commissioners from the land bank. In fact four commissioners sit on the Land bank board of directors and the commissioners select the other board members. The GCLB has amassed more… Read more ›

Cuyahoga Land Bank President Gus Frangos worked diligently to assist Koinonia Homes, Inc. – the largest private provider of services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in Cuyahoga County – in the fulfillment of their vision to create a… Read more ›

BEREA — The city will obtain a 1.4-acre parcel with a vacant building in the city’s north end for less than $75. City Council met in special session Monday and approved the transaction between the Cuyahoga County Land Reutilization Corporation,… Read more ›

At the Cuyahoga Land Bank, we believe that by approaching demolition of vacant, abandoned properties strategically, we can make a positive impact on our community and its future. We recently worked with Benedictine High School to tear down an eyesore… Read more ›

BEREA — City Council will meet at 7:30 tonight in a special session. Mayor Cyril M. Kleem requested the meeting to discuss acquiring property at 818 Thacker Street from the Cuyahoga County Land Reutilization Authority. The property of more than… Read more ›

  CLEVELAND (AP) — Twelve Cleveland suburbs will share $1 million in grants to demolish abandoned houses. The grants were allocated by the Cuyahoga County prosecutor as part of program to tear down dilapidated houses. Local grants eventually will match… Read more ›

Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Bill Mason announced Aug. 1 that Cleveland Heights and Shaker Heights received $100,000 each to demolish blighted properties, and are part of a group of 12 cities that received a total of $1 million. On June 7,… Read more ›

NORTH OLMSTED — The city will receive $50,000 in funds earmarked for demolition and removal of blight. The money was made available through the Cuyahoga County Land Reutilization Corp. as part of a large mortgage fraud settlement won by Ohio… Read more ›

Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Bill Mason announced Aug. 1 that Cleveland Heights and Shaker Heights received $100,000 each to demolish blighted properties, and are part of a group of 12 cities that received a total of $1 million. On June 7,… Read more ›

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Cuyahoga County communities will soon begin razing some of their most blighted properties using funds from a statewide mortgage fraud settlement and money provided by Prosecutor Bill Mason and the Cuyahoga County land bank. The settlement will… Read more ›