Our
Process

A twelve year old boy visiting relatives in the neighborhood was shot to death outside the front steps of 3200 Potter Street. Keyonn (Fall 1998). A prostitute was murdered and her body set on fire in the basement of 3202 Potter Street. An unnamed (Fall 1999). A friend of the simple way who lived in these abandoned houses, Barbara Wallers, was kidnapped and murdered in the summer of 1998.

          Let's go on a journey. At times this might be alternately disturbing, frustrating, confusing, but stay with us. We really believe this is important. Hey, and e-mail us, or check out the FAQ if you're lost or confused.
    The simple way community started looking into abandoned houses after our summer retreat in 1999 (August). On that retreat we talked about how it would be great to grow into an abandoned house in our neighborhood. We were growing people-wise and we didn't want to buy a house in the area because those houses should be available to other people wanting to move in to the neighborhood. (See more reasons in our FAQ.)
    We looked into one house two doors down from us and saw that it was unusable because of fire damage and lack of space. The houses on the other end of our block (3200, 3202) were large and looked repairable. The first time we went inside of them to check them out was in September, 1999. At our next house meeting we decided to pursue getting those properties. The past few years have been one learning experience after another. Now it is Spring 2001 and we have just seen one of them go up for auction and we're beginning the structural work.

The Past Few Years:
   The first thing we had to do was go down to City Hall to get the name of the last owner. Then we tried to contact him. His address had changed many times, phone numbers were disconnected, etc. We did a background check on the properties and found out that a LOT of money was owed on them. In addition to the $16,000 in back taxes, they were also part of two mortgages totaling upwards of $200,000. From that search, we found other properties in his name and visited them, but they were being rented or abandoned. His son was living in one property, but he was less than helpful as we tried to talk to him on many occasions. (How did we know he was the son? He had the same name as his father...)
    Finally, bugging our city council representative (actually his secretary) brought up an address we could contact him at in NJ and a phone number. We really believed in the energy of our neighborhood and a key in our process was getting a petition around in our neighborhood showing support for all of us getting the property. Finally, we made contact with the owner. Working together, we tried the Donor/Taker program. Needless to say, it didn't work because of the money owed on the property and the reluctance of the owner to be "found" by the city. It was a long time before we heard from him again.

Forget Him, Let's Try the City
    Seeing our options limited, we made contact with the RDA (Redevelopment Authority - a "quasi" city program). We talked about ACT94 condemnation but, it wasn't an option (see why). So, we tried to put them up for Sheriff Sale auction ourselves ($800 a piece). We were told it would take two years, or longer for it to go up. When they told us that it might be longer than two years, we thought about what had taken place in these properties over the last two years (set on fire, two murders, countless shoot-ups, break-ins, etc.) and couldn't wait that long. The RDA told us we should go though the Gift Property Program. Gift properties is a RDA program that sends properties through the auction process. In November 2000, 3200 went up for auction. 3202 is still in the computers.

How We Learned; Who We Talked To
    All along the way, we talked with people who knew more than we did. (Sometimes we only thought they knew more than we did.) We sat down with HUD representatives and they told us that we, through all of our learning, now knew more than any ONE other person in the system.
The Mayor's office wasn't any help... they knew even less than we did. Our Mayor showed his incompetence and lack of knowledge about the processes even though it was one of his primary campaign platforms.

Where We're at Now
   Right now, we are beginning to see some of the fruit of our waiting. The RDA entered into a contract with us concerning 3200 Potter Street. It is our responsibility to now fix up the property to livable standards. We have nine months to fix/repair/replace the four major systems (roof, heating, plumbing, electric) as well as put up doors and windows. If we do this (all up to and with the proper codes and permits, of course) in nine months (from February, 2001) we can receive title. See our other web page to see how you can help.