The family of 14-year-old Alianna DeFreeze believes they should be able to share their concerns on Cleveland's new $5 million blighted structures demolition plan unveiled on May 25.
Their daughter's body was found in an abandoned home on the city's east side back in January.
Damon DeFreeze told News 5 they would have liked at least a call from Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson about the new demolition plan.
The family said it wonders if crime statistics were part of the decision-making process as to which 500 homes will be demolished by the end of 2017.
The family also believes residents should have had more of a voice on which homes were placed on the demolition list.
The Mayor's office responded, explaining homes selected under the demolition planhave been on a list of potentially hazardous homes for quite some time.
The 500 homes set for demolition in 2017, were selected based on their proximity to Cleveland schools serving students in grades K through 8.
The city said the demolition list was also based on the Safe Routes to School initiative.
Still, the DeFreeze family believes residents and neighborhood groups should have a greater voice in deciding which homes should come down first, since there are limited funds, and money for the plan is coming from the Issue 32 income tax increase.
