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Residents and board members debate whether redevelopment powers create moral hazard for landlords
Summary
Testimony included concern that redevelopment designation could create incentives for landlords to defer maintenance to trigger blight-based incentives; others said the designation is a tool to address underinvestment and underutilization.
During the public hearing several residents and a planning board member warned that designation under the local redevelopment law could create a perverse incentive for property owners to let buildings deteriorate so they qualify for redevelopment tools and public incentives. One commenter said the process "perverts" the statute and cautioned against using redevelopment powers where privately remedial issues exist.
Board members and the planning attorney pushed back on broad claims that the law would automatically transfer public assets or improperly reward neglect, noting that the designation is the first step in a multi‑step process and that many controls — including council decisions on pilot agreements, design and inclusion of public assets — remain in place. Several speakers called for code enforcement and inspections as an alternative remedy for explicitly unsafe or unsanitary conditions.
