DeKalb County officials demolish long-blighted property, pledge faster abatements and lien sales

DeKalb County CEO Lorraine Cochran Johnson joined county commissioners and staff at the site behind them to mark the demolition of a long-blighted structure and to outline a more aggressive approach to removing derelict properties.

"No longer will we tolerate blight in DeKalb County," Johnson said, announcing that the county has demolished 181 properties since 2019 and that "today, I am proud to say this is property number 182." She said the county has abated 257 additional properties, for a combined total of 438 units now addressed through demolition or abatement actions.

Johnson framed the demolition at 2624 Old Wesley Chapel Road as both "true progress" and a promise kept to South DeKalb residents. She said the county is changing its code-compliance model from reactive to proactive, extending enforcement hours to reach violations that occur after hours,…