MINNEAPOLIS -- Boarded up and run down homes are a magnet for crime in Amy Holubar's neighborhood.
"We're dealing with the problem with these unsightly houses that are a magnet for kids criminal damaged property," said Holubar.
She lives next to a couple of abandoned homes off of Aldrich Street in north Minneapolis.
"This house actually turned into a brothel for a while. It has been sitting vacant since 2008," said Holubar.
Under a county pilot program, the county is looking at speeding up the redemption process for nine properties that owners have stopped paying taxes on.
County Auditor and Treasurer Mark Chapin says they have figured out a way to accelerate the process from three years to five weeks.
"So property owner has five weeks to choose to pay those taxes, and if they don't,
Chapin is working closely with County Attorney Mike Freeman's office.
Freeman says speeding up the process is key to stop criminal activity.
"This office works very hard on nuisance properties, trying to get people out of their house to stop the drug selling or lose their property -- this is a similar thing in which houses are abandoned," said Freeman.
For Holubar, it makes her feel good that the county is working to clean up these homes quickly.
The pilot program started in June.
Although they only worked on nine abandoned homes, Chapin and Freeman plan to recommend to the county board that the program continues on an annual basis.
