BANGOR, Maine — The City Council on Monday approved the seizure of two properties for multiple years of unpaid taxes, continuing a push to return such properties to the tax roll.

Voting unanimously, the council directed the city to take possession of 76 Market St. and 217 State St.

According to city records, Walter Musson, the owner of 76 Market St. at the time of the latest assessment, was seven years behind on property taxes, owing $7,773.

Meanwhile, the WCS Family Trust, the owner of 217 State St. at the time of the latest assessment, was 13 years behind, owing $42,829 in back taxes to the city.

The unoccupied properties were among nine identified by the city’s Community and Economic Development Department as either easy to turn over quickly and return to the tax roll or beneficial to helping clean up blighted neighborhoods.

“I would say it’s far past time to take action on [a] property with $43,000 of unpaid taxes,” Councilor Ben Sprague said during a City Council Finance Committee on April 22.

Tax Collector David Little told the Finance Committee that property owners have had ample notice of their overdue taxes. While not required by state law, the city sent special notices to both property owners to give them one last opportunity to pay, he said.

“Neither has come forward and contacted us to indicate that they had any willingness to redeem the property,” Little told the committee.

Additionally, in accordance with state law, the property owners received a tax bill every year, a past due notice every year, a demand notice every year and a foreclosure notice every year.

Since the city announced its plan to seize the nine properties, all of which are unoccupied and at least three behind on their taxes, only one property owner had come forward to pay back taxes as of April 22.

The WCS Family Trust paid $20,398 to avoid the city taking its property at 20 State St., city records show.

Meanwhile, the taxes for five properties in the initial round this year remained unpaid as of April 22. Little said city staff will recommend the council approve taking possession of those lands in June if owners make no effort to pay.

City records show those properties, at the time of taxation, as 45 Patten St., belonging to Thu Ha Goodwin and owing $4,149; 65 Curve St., belonging to Dino Levi and owing $1,548; 3 Charles St., belonging to Len Adams and owing $23,804; 5 Grove St., belonging to Betty White and owing $9,434; and 130 Thirteenth St., belonging to Maurice Knowles and owing $3,441.

City officials weren’t sure what they’ll do with the properties seized Monday. Little said the vacant State Street property is part of a duplex and the neighbor may be interested in purchasing it. The Market Street property also is vacant, he said, though its condition is unknown.

“Once we take possession, we’ll do a full inspection of both properties and determine what the best course of action is to dispose of those,” he said.

Even as the city takes possession of the target properties, it will only represent a small portion of those in the city with matured tax liens. Little estimated there are 120 to 130 citywide.

City staff have already identified 24 additional properties with matured tax liens that they plan to pursue in a second round this year.

Those include 43 Dillingham St., 104 Mount Hope Ave., 14 Mill St., 21 Bomarc Road, 28 Freemont St., 419 Essex St., 145 Thornton Road, 38 Jowett St., 17 Garland St., 44 Patten St., 2 Bragg St., 28 Shepherd Drive, 54 Shepherd Drive, 156 Elm St., 190 Union St., 35 Webster Ave. N., 42 Winter St., 25 Randolph Drive and 1063 Stillwater Ave.

They also include five unnumbered parcels on Highland Avenue, Chase Road, Kittredge Road, Hayford Road and Nowell Road. The city has no record of who owns those properties, according to Little.

“We have five or six properties that are currently being assessed to an unknown owner, because there are no records as to what happened that we could find going back,” he said.

The city cannot take action to convey those properties to taxpayers without first taking possession of them.

Little told the Finance Committee that at least 15 of the properties on the new list are occupied, which could make taking possession more complicated.

“We’ll have to consider those issues when we get to those properties,” he said.

Follow Evan Belanger on Twitter at @evanbelanger.