Hilltop Neighborhood Goal Seven: Remove Abandoned Houses
As with any neighborhood in transition, the Hilltop Neighborhood has a number of houses in disrepair, some of which appear to have been neglected or abandoned altogether. These homes are a visual blight and safety hazard. Residents participating in the planning process placed a high priority on the removal of these vacant homes.

Recommended Action

1. Solicit volunteer services from architects/engineers or city officials to determine the ability to reuse structures.

2. Identify most problematic homes.

3. Prepare list of priority demolitions and of homes to be stabilized (refer to Physical Plan in chapter 5 as a starting point).

4. Utilize neighborhood youth to stabilize homes which are to remain.

5. Work with city to accelerate condensation process.

6. Consider potential of 'receivership' that could get abandoned properties into hands of responsible party.

7. Create a neighborhood community development corporation (CDC) that can raise money to acquire, demolish, and renovate vacant (or poorly maintained) housing.

8. Look at models from other neighborhoods - e.g., the Dudley Street Neighborhood Association in Boston successfully fought to gain eminent domain powers within its neighborhood so that it could get control of property and steer neighborhood redevelopment.

9. Develop side (or rear) lot adoption program to give property owners additional outdoor space.

Partners
City of Wichita, Code Enforcement, City Attorney, Hilltop Improvement Alliance, Hilltop Neighborhood Association

Hilltop Neighborhood Goal Eight: Keep Out Drugs
Drug activity and the resultant traffic and noise that it generates are a threat to future stability in the Hilltop Neighborhood. Failure to address and solve many of the issues that have been discussed throughout this document will only lead to an environment that is conducive to drug and other illegal activities. Because Hilltop is not an island, the elimination of certain activities in the neighborhood would most likely mean that the activity has moved to another area of the city. As such, partnerships with other neighborhoods and the city are necessary to continually combat drugs in Wichita's neighborhoods.