DAYTON — The City of Dayton is set to demolish 16 vacant buildings in the Burkhardt neighborhood, with work expected to begin in the next two to four months.
[DOWNLOAD: Free WHIO-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]
This round of demolitions uses Community Development Block Grants from federal funding sources, as the federal dollars previously available for demolitions through the American Rescue Plan are depleting.
The city’s strategy focuses on taking down multiple problem properties in a single area.
Dayton resident Chad McDonald expressed strong support for the city’s demolition initiative.
TRENDING STORIES:
- FBI takes lead on investigation into bomb threats that evacuated local schools
- Gov. DeWine names former Clark County prosecutor as interim Attorney General
- Local police department warns residents of new ‘door kicking’ TikTok challenge
He believes removing vacant structures addresses safety concerns in the community.
“I think it’s a great idea, a lot of people, you know, sneaking in there and catching on fire and stuff, and it could potentially be a dangerous hazard,” McDonald said.
He also noted the efficiency of the focused approach, which will remove 16 problem properties at once.
Neighborhood Director Steve Gondol, Planning & Development for the city, explained that these residential structures were selected with input from community partners.
“These are routine residential structures that we looked at with our partners, as does demolishing these really help us implement new strategies for those neighborhoods for revitalization,” Gondol said.
Gondol added that these specific buildings were identified as ideal candidates for removal to prepare their lots for future development.
He noted that the demolition process aims to facilitate subsequent reuse of the land.
The Burkhardt neighborhood, located on Dayton’s east side, encompasses Burkhardt Avenue itself, as well as portions of East Third, East Fourth, and East Fifth Street.
This area is situated further east than the Huffman Historic Neighborhood and contains many properties identified as eyesores in need of demolition.
Demolition work on the 16 buildings in the Burkhardt neighborhood is anticipated to start in the next two to four months.
The City of Dayton plans to implement this same focused-neighborhood approach for upcoming demolition rounds.
The next phase of demolitions approved by commissioners will involve a large group of buildings located in one west side neighborhood, the Westwood Neighborhood.
[SIGN UP: WHIO-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
