Can Cleveland take incremental steps to improve its residential tax abatement policy to target the most hard-hit and blighted areas of town and wean the areas that are thriving?

It will be challenging politically to try to re-tool the system since Cleveland currently offers an  100% 15-year abatement to any new construction, regardless of its price tag. But, target areas or a sliding scale have a proven track record: Many cities use them.

For example, Des Moines, Iowa’s residential tax abatement policy reduces property taxes on new improvements for a period of time. The term of the abatement – 5 or 10 years – depends on the property’s location.

Other examples or suggestion on how to amend Cleveland's tax abatement policy?