Vacant Building Registry (VBR)

Vacant Building Management Plan Required Details 

Every VBR must be accompanied by a vacant building management plan (management plan). The management plan shall address one or more of the following three management options for the vacant building property: 

1. Demolition. The plan for this option shall include a time schedule indicating when major phases of the work are to be initiated and completed, including those activities necessary to protect worker safety, human health and the environment and to satisfy site restoration and design standards as set forth in the City's Demolition Regulations in Chapter 47A of the Municipal Code. 
2. Rehabilitate and reoccupy. The plan for this option shall include a time schedule of the major phases of repair, renovation and rehabilitation activities to be completed no later than the expiration of the registration to which it is attached. 
3. Stabilize and maintain. If the building is to remain vacant indefinitely or for so long as it will remain vacant prior to the implementation one of the foregoing demolish or rehabilitate/reoccupy options, the plan should include a list and time schedule for all measures necessary to maintain and secure the building in accordance with the owner's duties and standards of safety and sanitation, as well as a statement of the reasons why the building will be left vacant either indefinitely or temporarily prior to implementing one of the demolition or rehabilitate/reoccupy options.

The Management Plan shall be reviewed by the City, and the registration application to which it is attached shall not be deemed complete until the management plan is approved. The City shall notify the owner that the management plan is either accepted or rejected and, in the case of a rejection, what additions or modifications are necessary to make the management plan acceptable. 

Online Digital VBR Submission in the Civics Portal 

The City launched a new online property management portal on 8/4/2023. Civics provides several self-service functions to help property owners and managers better manage their portfolios and interaction with the City.  

The VBR must be completed within the Civics Portal. 

For instructions on getting started with Civics, please: 

1.  Visit the Civics Portal here
2. Download the full Civics User Guide

IMPORTANT NOTE: Registering as an Individual vs Company in Civics

In almost all circumstances, the City recommends that users create their Civics account as an individual “natural person”, ie “John Smith”, even if they will be conducting business on behalf of an LLC. This will avoid you needing to maintain two or more separate Civics accounts, with separate email addresses.

You are permitted to register a property in Civics via the Building Owner Registry in the role as owner on behalf of any person or company for which you are an authorized agent. This is typically provided through a management agreement, power of attorney, incorporation paperwork, or other similar legal document. Regardless of who is registered in the Building Owner Registry, the property's legal owner (per the deed) retains ultimate legal responsibility for the property and all associated costs. all bills, notices, tickets, fines, and other official communications from the City will continue be addressed to the name of the property owner per the deed on record with the Monroe County Clerk, and mailed to the tax bill mailing address on file with the Bureau of Assessment.

For properties that require a property manager's contact to be designated, only a "natural person" may be designated as a property manager. An LLC or corporation may not be designated as a property manager.

VBR Application Instructions 

1. Download the full Civics User Guide and review the instructions and guidance for account setup.
   • The City does not recommend creating an account as a company (such as an LLC).
   • You may register as a person (yourself) and register for properties on behalf of any owner if you are an authorized agent of that owner. The legal owner of record still retains ultimate responsibility for the property 
2. Create a Civics account at https://infor.cityofrochester.gov/  
3. Sign in and navigate to the Civics home page 
4. Click Submit New Application near the top of the page 
5. Locate the Property Owners section of applications, and click it to expand it 
6. Click Vacant Building Registry
7. In the Additional Applicants section, click Invite Applicant to add additional contacts such as a property manager who will need to view and edit the VBR record. If they don’t need to view or edit the application you don’t need to add contacts in this section. A property manager is required to be designated for any property owned by an LLC or corporate owner, or an owner who resides outside of Monroe County. The property manager must be a “natural person” and can’t be a company name. 
8. Click Add Address
9. In the popup search the property address. If the property has an address range, search based on the lowest number in the range.  
10. Once located, click the address to select it and click Add Address  
11. Choose the management plan option. Enter a proposed reoccupation date, and the date the property originally became vacant. 
12. Add rows in the table below with the name and contact information for other contacts associated with the property. Any property owned by a Limited Liability Corporation (LLC) must disclose all natural person owners, members, managers, or other authorized persons of the LLC as part of the BOR. If the LLC is owned by another LLC, the “natural person” owners, members, managers, or other authorized persons of the owner LLC must be listed. Continue this process until all LLCs in the ownership chain have disclosed all their associated “natural persons.” This is required per City Code section 90-21. Click here to download a fillable PDF template for the LLC disclosure requirement
13. Enter your name to certify the document, and click Save and Continue
14. Review your information for accuracy, and click Submit. You will receive a confirmation email. 
15. On the resulting confirmation page that loads after submission, or from your confirmation email, click the blue application ID number to return to the application 
16. Near the bottom of the page, click Add to upload your Vacant Building Management Plan as a PDF or Word file. See the above section of this page 
17. 'Vacant Building Management Plan Required Details' for what must be included in the management plan for it to be accepted. 
18. Upload a copy of an active property insurance certificate 
19. Upload a photo of a government-issued photo ID for the person applying. It does not need to be the owner’s ID. If an authorized agent of the owner is submitting it, it may be their ID. 
20. Once these are uploaded and saved, check to see that the Status has changed to Completeness Check. If so, no further action is required at this time. 
21. You will receive another confirmation email once your application has been approved, or if further information is required. 
22. Once the application is approved, you will need to log into Civics to pay the application fee. This can be done from the Civics homepage under My Fees

VBR Frequently Asked Questions and Common Issues