Blight – or urban decay – reduces property values, has been linked to higher crime rates, and is visible throughout Pennsylvania in the form of deteriorated and abandoned properties. The Pennsylvania Neighborhood Blight Reclamation and Revitalization Act, 53 Pa.C.S. §6101 et seq. (the “Act”), provides additional tools to combat blight. Originally passed as Act 90 of 2010 (“Act 90”), the Act subsequently was amended through the passage of Act 171 of 2014 (“Act 171”) and Act 34 of 2015 (“Act 34”). Through the Act and related laws as well as financing opportunities, municipalities and developers have the tools necessary to reduce blight and make neighborhoods safer and more desirable.
Continue Reading Combating Blight: New Tools for the Ongoing Municipal Battle
Esch McCombie
Esch is an an at McNees Wallace & Nurick LLC in Harrisburg, PA. He is a member of the Firm’s Real Estate Practice Group, Oil & Natural Gas Group and the Pipeline & Oil/Gas Infrastructure Group.
He focuses his practice on land use matters and permit approvals at the municipal, county and state level. His work includes reaching favorable zoning and land development outcomes by way of variances or waivers, special exceptions or conditional uses, zoning amendments and challenges to ordinances, and negotiations with municipalities and other government agencies throughout Pennsylvania. In addition, he works on storm water management and transportation issues that often arise with land use matters. On a national level, Esch conducts zoning and land use due diligence associated with mergers and acquisitions and the purchase or sale of properties and businesses. He has assisted commercial, industrial and residential developers, educational institutions, pipeline and other oil and gas related companies, telecommunication companies, and small business owners and start-ups. Esch has received favorable determinations, decisions and approvals for large warehouse and distribution centers, residential communities of all types, urban redevelopment projects, craft breweries and event venues, car dealerships, pipeline projects, and coal to natural gas conversion projects.
While in law school, Esch served as a Senior Editor of the Penn State Law Review, was the Dickinson School of Law Liaison to the Carlisle Borough Council, Carlisle, PA, and was a judicial intern to the Honorable Christopher C. Conner, U.S. District Court. Prior to his legal career, Esch spent seven years working in the claims department of a Fortune 500 insurance company.
Esch currently serves on the McNees Hiring Committee, is Co-Editor of the McNees Land Use Blog, and is President of the Board of Directors of the Carlisle Theatre.