Project removes blighted houses
BUTLER TWP — More than 200 properties in this county have been identified as blighted.
Not nice to look at, horrible to live near and sometimes attractions for vermin and vagrants, these eyesores are being targeted by a $1 million public-private partnership Blight Mitigation Program.
Demolition, the first step in renewal, kicked off last week on two houses on Penn Avenue in Butler Township. Other properties in the city are also coming down currently. And Perry O'Malley, director of the Housing and Redevelopment Authority of Butler County, said residents can expect to see the bulldozer visit about 70 other sites throughout the county, including two more in the township, during the course of the program.
O'Malley said the secured funding, intergovernmental grants and credits from NexTier Bank and Northwest Savings Bank, covers a significant wave of projects. But officials will continue to seek more funding to extend the project into the future.
Goals of the program include creating more secure neighborhoods, improving quality of life and creating attractive places to live by eliminating dangerous, substandard housing, reducing crime and reducing drug-related blight, promoting housing stability and increasing the tax base.
O'Malley said what happens to these properties after they are targeted depends on the status of the properties and their owners. In some cases the buildings or lots will be rehabilitated for reuse. In others the lot will be left vacant.
