Macomb is getting more state funding to target abandoned properties.
The city previously received $200,000 from the Illinois Housing Development Authority’s Strong Communities Program, which paid for demolishing 26 structures.
This time, it will get a $487,000 grant, which Community Development Coordinator John Bannon said it is not required to match.
“It’s a good opportunity for the city to be able to do this without (using) any of our own financial resources. There’s some time obligations but no money,” Bannon told the city council.
The work must be completed within two years.
Bannon says the funding will allow the city to demolish around 11 houses and acquire and rehabilitate three or four others.
“The rehabilitations are significantly more expensive,” he said.
Bannon hoped the city could demolish houses next summer, and also begin the process of acquiring and rehabilitating houses next year.
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