With the city seeing more than 1,800 foreclosures this year alone, Coral Springs officials last week discussed a law to accelerate the code enforcement process for vacant and abandoned properties. The proposed law also would establish minimum maintenance standards for properties owned by lenders.

The purpose of the ordinance is to prevent foreclosures from affecting property prices in the city. According to studies, every foreclosure affects property values in the neighborhood by 10 percent. Foreclosures also increase crime.

Besides accelerating the code enforcement process, the ordinance will create a new code section for vacant and abandoned properties. Lenders will be required to register with the city. The city will maintain single family homes on public rights of way to prevent neighborhood decay.

“The code enforcement process can take more than six months in the case of abandoned properties,” said Erdal Donmez, assistant city manager. “With the ordinance, we are trying to reduce the process to three months. Three months may sound like a long time, but we have to follow state statutes.