Ohio Grants Fund Razing of 6,000 Properties
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Ohio's Demolition Grant Program has paid for more than 6,000 properties to be demolished, state Attorney General Mike DeWine reports. The state set aside $75 million for demolition grants, allocating funds based on the percentage of foreclosures in each of the 88 counties from 2008 to 2010.
“The foreclosure crisis is not just about losing homes. It’s about losing entire communities,” DeWine said in a prepared statement. “By tearing down houses, we are building neighborhoods. We are opening up land to stop the decline in property values, stimulate many types of economic development, and help our neighborhoods grow and prosper.”
The Demolition Grant Program, which DeWine announced in February 2012, is intended to helps stabilize and improve communities by paying for the removal of blighted and abandoned houses with funds from the National Mortgage Settlement.
Matching funds were required for all grants greater than $500,000, and all 88 counties made grant allocation requests. To date, the program has issued $28,407,415.44 in reimbursement grants for demolition. This has resulted in the demolition of 6,002 properties, including 2,581 in Cuyahoga County (Cleveland), 559 in Lucas County (Toledo) and 455 in Summit County (Akron).
Counties have until next May 31 to spend their initial allocations. To date, three counties have done so: Fulton, Mercer, and Pickaway.
Ohio is the largest state to use all of its mortgage settlement dollars on housing and related programs, according to a report by the Enterprise Foundation.
Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
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