SEDAMSVILLE — A struggling west side Cincinnati neighborhood has renewed hope for a turnaround.
The Hamilton County Land Reutilization Corporation (Landbank) has agreed to buy about 60 lots in Sedamsville owned by longtime landlord John Klosterman.
The nearly $1.5 million deal includes 42 buildings — mostly rental houses — and a vacant historic church.
"The opportunities are there for Sedamsville now, and especially with properties of this scale, you can really make an impact," said Philip Denning, Port executive vice president.
The Port manages the Landbank. Denning said the Port's immediate plan is to stabilize the buildings.
"The next step after that does involve talking with residents and neighborhood leaders about what they see as the best way to move forward," Denning said.
Most of the properties are on Delhi and Steiner avenues.
Klosterman — who was jailed for property code violations — lost control of those properties in February 2020.
A receiver took control, hired a property management company and prepared the buildings for sale.
The City of Cincinnati will receive $674,017 from the sale of the properties. That will pay Klosterman's fines for property code violations, fees, penalties and interest.
The agreement also calls for approximately $800,000 to be distributed to the receiver, real estate agent and other costs.
On Tuesday, Klosterman, 72, told the I-Team his properties should have brought a much higher price.
"It's bull****," Klosterman said.
The landlord told the I-Team he owns several properties in Sedamsville that were not part of the sale.
Klosterman, 72, insisted that owning those rental houses doesn't violate his 2020 Consent Decree with federal prosecutors.
According to the Decree, Klosterman "is permanently enjoined from directly or indirectly performing any property management responsibilities at any residential rental property."
The agreement resulted from what prosecutors described as Klosterman's "heinous" and "pervasive" sexual harassment of women who rented his apartments.
Klosterman agreed to pay $167,000 in damages to 20 women who accused him of harassing them.
On Tuesday, Klosterman denied the harassment allegations claiming it was all part of a combined effort to get him out of the housing rental market.
Over the years, the city has published detailed studies that included development plans for Sedamsville, but those plans didn't result in significant changes.
Sedamsville has a median home value of $69,000, less than half of the home value for Hamilton County overall, according to the Port. But the Port is optimistic that it can help turn around the neighborhood and help more residents own a home here.
"Economic development is a tough business," said Denning. "While real estate does move slowly, eventually we can work together to get somewhere that we all want to be together."
