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<p>A new land bank authority will have the ability to use a &#8220;trump bid&#8221; to shut out other prospective buyers and acquire property at Luzerne County back-tax auctions, county officials learned last week.</p><p>Representatives of the North East Pennsylvania Land Bank Authority said the power would be used only for longtime vacant and blighted properties that are hurting other structures around them. Former Pittston mayor Michael Lombardo referred to them as &#8220;dog properties.&#8221;</p><p>But county Councilman Stephen A. Urban questioned the fairness of interfering with the open competition of tax auctions, where properties historically go to the highest bidder.</p><p>&#8220;I think there are reputable, private people out there that want to buy these properties and fix them up, and I think that we ought to let that process go,&#8221; Urban said.</p><p>Councilman Rick Williams praised the authority&#8217;s redevelopment efforts but noted trump bids would prevent bidding competition that could drive up the purchase price. In final stage free-and-clear auctions, the three taxing bodies share proceeds beyond the minimum bid that is required to recoup collection fees and costs.</p><p>The new authority is negotiating a trump bid agreement that may mean it pays no more than the minimum bid.</p><p>The tax-exempt authority also is seeking county council approval to share half the property revenue on properties it acquires for five years after they return to the tax rolls. Authority representatives said the agreement will ensure it can continue its mission to clean up abandoned, eyesore properties and put them back in productive hands.</p><p>Williams described a scenario where a trump bid could be used to acquire a property at a minimum bid of $900 even though a neighbor is willing to bid $1,000 to acquire that property.</p><p>&#8220;So not only do we share the tax revenue for five years, we also forgo this possibility of a higher free-and-clear sale amount,&#8221; Williams said.</p><p>The authority would have the trump bid power for tax auction properties in four municipalities it covers: Pittston, Duryea, Jenkins Township and West Pittston. Avoca and Dupont also are interested in joining this land bank.</p><p>Authority Executive Director Joe Chacke said both the trump bid dollar amounts and percentage of revenue to be shared by the county are negotiable. The authority also would discuss properties it plans to acquire with a designated county representative in advance, allowing county officials to weigh in if they believe a property should be exposed to traditional auction bidding.</p><p>Councilman Harry Haas said some auction buyers acquire dilapidated properties and then walk away when they realize the extent of work that must be done. The county is powerless to list properties for auction again until taxes have been unpaid for two years.</p><p>&#8220;The agenda is to trump bid to trump these speculators, these out-of-town landlords, because when that happens it&#8217;s dead for three years. We keep on seeing this cycle,&#8221; he said, citing a south Wilkes-Barre neighborhood where he owns a property as an example.</p><p>Land banks also focus on the &#8220;worst of the worst&#8221; properties that may be too daunting for neighbors to acquire in their current state, Haas said.</p><p>&#8220;I see it as being proactive,&#8221; Haas said.</p><p>Council Vice Chairman Edward Brominski congratulated the land bank communities for &#8220;picking up the ball&#8221; to address blight and said he will wholeheartedly support the plan.</p><p>It&#8217;s the first land bank created in Northeastern Pennsylvania and the fifth in the state since state officials passed legislation authorizing the option at the end of 2012.</p><p>Urban cautioned property owners in other parts of the county must shoulder more of the burden for benefits provided to those with land banks, and he predicted more municipalities will start forming land banks and also expect to utilize trump bids and shared revenue.</p><p>&#8220;I don&#8217;t think all private developers are deadbeats. I think some people do buy them and do rehabilitate them and turn them into rentals, and they&#8217;re respectable people,&#8221; he said.</p><p>Council members agreed to discuss the request at another work session instead of proceeding to a vote. It&#8217;s unlikely the matter will be resolved before the county&#8217;s main annual free-and-clear auction on Aug. 27.</p><p>Chacke said the authority&#8217;s mission will fail if it is forced to use rehabilitation and demolition funding to acquire properties. The authority received $150,000 in gaming funding to proceed with the initial acquisition of four properties.</p><p>Lombardo said the land bank is a tool to provide relief to responsible property owners subjected to an eyesore.</p><p>&#8220;The last thing we want to do is make the playing field uneven. That&#8217;s not the game. The game here is to improve our neighborhoods, improve our school districts and improve our county,&#8221; Lombardo said.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Urban </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_urban-Steve.jpg</photo0><caption0>Urban </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_lombardo.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Lombardo </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/web1_lombardo.jpg</photo1><caption1>Lombardo </caption1><photoCredit1></photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Jennifer Learn-Andes</p><p>jandes@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

North East Pennsylvania Land Bank Authority will have power to ‘trump’ others at tax auctions