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LISBON -- Columbiana County's land bank program is getting closer to its upgraded goal of demolishing 200 vacant dilapidated homes.
Program director Robert Ritchey reported at this week's meeting of the county land bank board they have razed a combined 188 homes in the targeted communities of East Liverpool, Wellsville and Salem. The money for this comes from the $3.2 million in federal funding received since 2014 to tear down blighted homes specifically in the target communities under the Neighborhood Initiative Program (NIP).
The goal is to demolish 200 homes in the target communities by the Dec. 18 deadline set under NIPs. The original goal was 150 homes, but Ritchey said they exceeded expectations in their ability to acquire and demolish homes.
Of the 188 homes demolished to date, 124 were in East Liverpool, 49 in Wellsville and 15 in Salem. Another 15 homes were or are being rehabilitated under NIP -- 14 in East Liverpool and one in Salem.
Ritchey said $400,000 in NIP funds remain, and they are inching closer to achieving the goal. Nine homes (six in East Liverpool and three in Salem) are currently scheduled for demolition once asbestos are removed.
"I'm working as diligently as I can to acquire as many properties and complete the demolitions by then," he told the board.
Another 83 properties where dilapidated homes once stood are enrolled in the NIP mow-to-own program. Under the program, the adjacent property owner can purchase the now-vacant lot in exchange for maintaining the property for three years before receiving ownership. The landowner receives a $10 monthly credit that is deducted from the purchase price.
Of the 83 homes in the mow-to-own program, 47 are in East Liverpool, 29 in Wellsville and seven in Salem.
"It's been a successful program, and it's gotten a lot of adjacent property owners involved in these lots," Ritchey said.
The land bank was allowed to use some of the NIP funds on beautification projects in the targeted communities, and $5,000 was earmarked for each town.
The land bank continues to acquire and demolish homes located outside East Liverpool, Wellsville and Salem using a portion of delinquent property taxes collected by the county treasurer's office. Ritchey said the following are the communities where homes are to be demolished next using delinquent taxes: two in Salineville and one each in East Palestine, Leetonia, Lisbon, Liverpool Township and St. Clair Township.
He declined to give out the addresses of these properties beforehand because the last time it was in the newspaper people dumped tires on the properties since they knew the homes were scheduled to be demolished.
In other business, the board appointed acting Tracy Spratt to replace former East Palestine village manager Pete Monteleone on the board. Monteleone moved back to Virginia, and Spratt -- East Palestine's fiscal officer -- has been serving as acting village manager. The land bank wanted East Palestine to have a representative on the board, and Spratt agreed.
tgiambroni@mojonews.com