HENDERSON, KY, February 27, 2024– The first four parcels in the mass foreclosure action filed earlier this year by the City of Henderson will be sold by the Master Commissioner at 10:30 a.m. this Wednesday, February 28th, 2024.
The sale will take place at the Henderson County Judicial Center, Courtroom 201.
Here is a list of the properties and a few details about them:
- 835 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue, vacant lot
- 1023 Madison Street, house and lot
- 1533 Cumnock Street, house and lot
- 1002 Atkinson Street, house and lot
This is the fourth time in a little more than six years that the City of Henderson has pursued a mass foreclosure action to recover back taxes and code enforcement liens.
Before the City’s foreclosure action in 2017, there had not been any foreclosure proceedings since 1989. That 1989 action was done solely on tax liens.
A second mass foreclosure action was started in June 2019 and completed over the course of several months. Of the suits included in the second mass action, some involved code enforcement liens, three were for delinquent property taxes exclusively and some are a combination of both. There were 15 vacant lots ready for redevelopment.
“We are allowed by statute to do a mass foreclosure where we can put numerous counts in one lawsuit,” said City Attorney Dawn S. Kelsey, explaining that 20 counts is a benchmark in such an action. “It saves the City money and time and expedites the foreclosure process.”
The goal for mass foreclosure, she added, is to recoup some of the expenses generated by maintaining these properties and hopefully also spur redevelopment that will get them back on the tax rolls.
In the 20 filed suits, delinquent taxes owed amount to $17,336.33 and liens owed tally $37,998.17 for a total of $55,334.50.
“On several of these, the City has already torn down structures for public safety concerns,” Kelsey said. “When we get a judgment, they go into a Master Commissioner’s public sale and then will be available to whomever comes and bids on them. Ideally, we would like to see houses or businesses built on them. We want them to be productive.”
When properties are not maintained, the City incurs expenses for boarding up structures, mowing and, eventually, demolition.
The City is addressing and managing the issue through the creation of a Code Enforcement Board that started in July 2017.
“Now that we are making a priority of tearing down condemned properties we had to have a mechanism to recoup the costs of cleaning up unsafe properties and to make the property available for redevelopment,” Kelsey said.
In recent years the City has put into place a progressive plan to “clean up the city and remove condemned properties.” Unmaintained, dilapidated and abandoned property is a civic problem becoming more and more prevalent across the state and the country.
“This foreclosure suit also includes 12 counts where the property still has a house that can possibly be saved and rehabilitated, returning those homes back to the community as a valuable asset in the market for affordable housing,” said Kelsey. “When they are sold, she said, the properties come with a clear title.”
“Mass foreclosures are such a crucial part of dealing with blighted, abandoned, or forgotten properties and turning them back into productive, attractive and affordable homes in our community. I’m proud of all the work our team has done to get us to this point yet again.” said Mayor Brad Staton.
Anyone interested in being notified of Master Commissioner sales related to the mass foreclosure can contact Theresa Richey at theresar@hendersonky.gov to be placed on a notification list.
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