Muncie, IN
Housing, Built environment | 2025
Creating a public database to track the role of the tax sale process in perpetuating inequities for two historically Black neighborhoods.
The Indiana tax sale process is intended to recover delinquent taxes and encourage the redevelopment of neglected properties for better uses. However, in historically Black and other disinvested neighborhoods, properties frequently go unsold, remain abandoned, or are bought by speculative buyers uninterested in supporting neighborhoods. Muncie Land Bank plans to create a public database and analyze the data to produce insights toward a pathway for tax-delinquent properties to contribute to equitable, community-driven development in the neighborhoods of Whitely and Industry.
Muncie Land Bank, with the help of students from the Department of Urban Planning at Ball State University, will compile historical data on tax sales and property conditions to identify patterns in property ownership. Data sources will include county tax sale records, city code enforcement property condition reports and surveys, and property ownership and transaction data. With the administrative data, the land bank will build an interactive database that maps out tax-delinquent and abandoned properties and patterns of disinvestment. To gather qualitative information about the impacts, the land bank will interview residents directly affected by tax sales. The project will also produce a research report and policy brief drawing from the spatial analysis and community experiences.
Muncie Land Bank plans to share the database with residents through interactive workshops and collaborate with local officials to explore policy reforms, such as the land bank receiving unsold properties or having first refusal on unsold tax lien properties. Ultimately, Whitely and Industry residents can use the data, analysis, and recommendations to engage in decisions affecting their neighborhoods, and Muncie Land Bank will be better equipped to facilitate equitable, community-led development.