ALBANY – Halloween is two weeks away, but several municipalities in the Mid-Hudson/Catskill region will receive funds from the state Attorney General’s Office to combat the zombie home problem. Those are vacant and abandoned homes that are not maintained during a prolonged foreclosure proceeding.
The funding is coming from the $3.2 billion settlement agreement with Morgan Stanley, which generated $550 million in cash and consumer relief for New Yorkers.
Among those communities receiving funds to combat zombie homes are:
City of Kingston $150,000
City of Mount Vernon $175,000
City of Newburgh $149,263
City of Peekskill $100,000
City of Poughkeepsie $150,000
City of White Plains $175,000
Town of Carmel $100,000
Town of Newburgh $111,268
Town/Village of Liberty $75,000
Village of Monticello $71,000
Village of Wappingers Falls $75,000
The money will address housing vacancy and blight by bolstering municipalities’ capacity for housing code enforcement, for tracking and monitoring vacant properties, and for legal enforcement capacity to ensure banks and mortgage companies comply with local and state law.
“This, coupled with new New York State legislation effective in December, will boost the city’s effort to address critical blight in our neighborhoods,” said Poughkeepsie Mayor Robert Rolison. He said the initiative will include funds for staffing to address shortfalls in enforcement and abatement of the problem properties.
