Florence mayor testifies in Columbia about dilapidated homes

Florence Mayor Stephen J. Wukela told the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee Wednesday that dilapidated and abandoned housing is big problem for Florence and other cities in the state.

"The City of Florence, like most municipalities throughout the state of South Carolina, suffers from a plague of abandoned and dilapidated buildings,” Wukela said. “My staff has identified in the City of Florence, of some approximately 40,000 residents, there are in excess of 2,500 uninhabitable properties.”

The Judiciary Committee hearing was on Senate Bill 1117, which is called the Rehabilitation of Abandoned and Dilapidated Buildings act. If passed, the bill would give municipalities the ability to act more quickly against abandoned or unkempt properties.

The Senate bill is sponsored by Orangeburg Democrat Brad Hutto, but the House version (H-4628) has the official backing of three Republicans and three Democrats. The bill offers a mechanism by which a city may petition for the appointment of a receiver to take over the abandoned property and bring it back to a useful purpose. The proposed bill provides that the receiver be a private developer, non-profit organization, or quasi-governmental entity.

Cities, Florence included, often run afoul of what Wukela called “heir” properties where relatives in distant places became owners of an old property, sometimes without their knowledge.

Property owners who die without a will can create additional problems and leave inheritors who may, or may not, be aware of their newfound ownership. Locating owners then becomes a problem.

The proposed legislation would eliminate much of that problem. The appointed receiver could advertise for owners. If no one came forward in a set amount of time, the property could be sold.

Wukela was asked to speak because, during his three years as Florence’s mayor, he’s aggressively sought ways to bring the city’s population of eyesores and abandoned properties under control. As an attorney, he also understands some of the critical aspects of the problem. During Wukela’s time in office, 85 buildings have been destroyed and more than 450 lots cleared.

Several other mayors also spoke out on the matter Wednesday, including representatives from Columbia and Camden.

Hartsville Mayor Mel Pennington and Florence City Councilman Glynn Willis, former Chairman of the Florence Planning Commission, also attended, though they did not testify.

After the hearing Willis said that he felt the measure would greatly improve city leaders' ability to crack down on the problem.

"This is the major concern of folks who do not understand why the city can't take aggressive action and we're excited that we may be able to step up a little bit," Willis said.

The bill is modeled after similar legislation in Texas.

While it drew a lot of support from mayors across the state, it was not received well by realtors and others who say the bill could infringe on the rights of property owners.

Cashion Drolet, of the South Carolina Association of Realtors, testified before the subcommittee as well -- with a different take on the proposal.

"We understand the intent of the legislation, we just want to make sure we're not inadvertantly providing a tool that degrades the rights of property owners in situations where the government and property owners cannot reach an agreement on the use of property in need of rehabilitation," Drolet said.