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neighborhood issues the low to moderate income and fixed- Issues specific to the Northwest income household with respect to property neighborhood were elicited from residents, maintenance and the ability to remain in a a questionnaire, community leaders, staff single-family home. surveys and careful observation. The major issues identified during the plan preparation Absentee owners were also identified as a have been categorized into seven focus major neighborhood issue. Approximately areas. 21% of the housing units in the study area are renter occupied. There is a perception HOUSING that absentee owners and their renters care A majority of the existing housing stock is less for the neighborhood and property well maintained. Respondents to the maintenance than owner occupied Questionnaire, participants at the May 31, residents. Some residents are concerned 2006 public meeting and a staff field survey with the perceived number of Section 8 revealed that several housing units appear tenants, and the implications of such to lack routine maintenance or have tenants. structural deficiencies. Many homeowners are not making in- Vacant buildings were also place home improvements. And cited as an issue. According to given the older housing stock, the 2000 Census, 7% of the many homeowners in the housing stock is vacant. Over neighborhood need to replace 20 properties have registered outdated systems, kitchens, or with the City’s Vacant Building baths and catch up on deferred Registration Program. Vacant maintenance to keep the house houses can contribute to habitable. Painting, broken windows, declining property values in the area. outdoor storage, leaning or cracked walls, roof in disrepair or driveway in disrepair NEIGHBORHOOD APPEARANCE were some of the housing maintenance AND AESTHETICS issues found in the Northwest Unkempt properties were repeatedly cited neighborhood. Residents cited a lack of as a major neighborhood issue. Overgrown (government funded) home maintenance trees, weeds, and grass were observed in programs and a lack of strict and consistent various locations throughout the study area. property maintenance code enforcement as Litter is also present in some areas; in two causative factors of the condition of particular near the River des Peres. some of the housing stock. Residents also identified a lack of adequate Although residents were generally pleased street cleaning, trash pickup and leaf with the assessed and market values of collection as a neighborhood appearance housing in the study area, some expressed issue. concern about housing affordability. Approximately 29% of homeowners in the The land use and appearance of Olive study area are housing burdened (housing Boulevard is a major concern for study area costs are in excess of 30% of household residents. With few exceptions, the income). This situation has implications for commercial buildings along this corridor