Nobody Home?

Dear Community Members:

The County of Sacramento has recently passed an ordinance related to vacant, open and accessible properties (VOA’s). This ordinance was passed as an urgency measure, due to the large number of homes have recently gone into foreclosure or otherwise been abandoned by their owners.

The County is aware that these vacant houses could become blights on neighborhoods, potentially attracting crime and negatively impacting the property values on surrounding homes.

We are asking you, your neighbors, and members of your neighborhood association to be the eyes and ears of your neighborhood and notify us of abandoned homes in your neighborhood so appropriate action can be taken. Indicators are open garage doors, graffiti, lawns that are more than 12 inches long or dead, and an accumulation of garbage, mail, or newspapers.

Once a home has been broken into or illegally occupied, that property becomes host to criminal activity. Such properties are priority Code Enforcement cases and need to be reported instantly.

Report abandoned houses at www.nuisance.saccounty.net or by calling 875-5656.

If you don’t have a Neighborhood Association, and would like help forming one, call the Department of Neighborhood Services at 874-5611 or visit our website at www.dns.saccounty.net and click on neighborhood associations.

We are asking neighborhood associations to assist with monitoring neighborhood vacant homes before they become an eyesore or pose a greater danger to nearby residents.

Respectfully,

Mark Manoff, AICP

Service Area Manager, NorthCounty

Department of Neighborhood Services

[email protected]