Jeff, a City of Cedar Rapids Community Development representative, told the Linn County Board of Supervisors that Cedar Rapids and Linn County are partnering on a “Saving Properties and Revitalizing Communities” program to address properties that have escaped normal code enforcement.

The program uses three routes: the Linn County held tax‑certificate process (properties that go through two consecutive tax sales without bidders and become controlled by the county), a Chapter 657 court process for vacant and abandoned structures, and an enabling municipal ordinance the city and county adopted in 2023 to remove certain nuisance properties from a typical tax‑sale progression. Jeff said the goal is to return properties to nonprofit housing developers so they can be rehabilitated or redeveloped as affordable housing.

Jeff gave examples: one tax‑certificate property issued in 2021 carried more than $7,000 in city liens and more than $4,000 in county taxes, and another vacant parcel had been empty since the 2008 flood with more than $15,000 in city liens and more than $10,000 in county taxes. Since the program launched in 2023, Jeff said the city has acquired six properties, disposed three to Habitat for Humanity and Hope CDA, demolished three for health and safety reasons, seen more than $230,000 in investment in the first three properties, abated over $40,000 in city liens, and addressed more than 118 outstanding code cases.

Supervisor Running Marquardt asked how many parcels had been identified for potential use under Chapter 657; Jeff said about 50 Linn County‑held tax‑certificate parcels are in the first tranche for review. Jeff described the tax sale timeline — including the county control outcome after two unsuccessful tax sales and a 27‑month redemption period for investors in some circumstances — and said the county treasurer’s office has been a seamless partner in sharing data and moving cases forward.

The presentation closed with board members thanking Cedar Rapids staff and requesting a map of identified parcels and other data for follow‑up. The county took no formal action on the presentation; staff will provide mapping and coordinate further cooperation.