Vacant properties posing a “danger” to the public have been brought to the attention of the Environment Minister through a reporting service designed to help record vacant properties in Jersey.
Deputy Jonathan Renouf was referred to 36 properties for consideration as a result of the Vacant Homes Service. The service now allows Islanders to record the location of homes they believe are vacant by email, phone or online.
The initiative forms part of Deputy Housing Minister David Waugh’s Empty Homes Plan, a 35-page document published last year outlining aims to tackle the problem.
Deputy Secretary General Waugh published a report this week on the service’s initial results, saying it had received a “strong public response” after launching in January, with 260 cases reported in the first six months.
This represents 29% of the 900 homes that Deputy Waugh’s department previously estimated were actually vacant in Jersey.
Of the 260 reported cases, 100 involving 132 individual properties were subject to a “high-level” review to determine what could be done to bring them back into use.
Thirty-six of the homes are believed to be in a condition that “causes serious harm to the nature and quality of the environment” and have been referred to Environment Minister Jonathan Renouf for consideration.
Deputy Waugh said these properties were “spread across the island” and, in addition to being a “blemish on the landscape”, some posed a structural risk and were “dangerous to people passing by”. He explained that it could lead to.
“We are keen to get these assets back into use and, if this is possible through existing regulations, it is important that we work with the Environment Minister to find the best course of action,” he said. added.
“Compulsory purchase is a problem and we must tread very carefully before choosing that path.”
The report also pointed out that an important part of the anti-vacancy plan is to consider the possibility of taxing vacant properties to prevent owners from leaving them vacant for long periods of time.
But Deputy Waugh said: “Taxing people without a strong legal definition of vacant properties is a huge challenge.”
The report also states: “Whilst we remain of the view that the introduction of a vacant properties tax is not effective, initial efforts by the vacant properties service and a thorough analysis of the application of parish rates suggest that further benefits could be expected.”Existing rates Work to evaluate rating systems would be worthwhile. ”