CHICAGO — As the Illinois Housing Development Authority (IDHA) Board approved $19 million to provide affordable housing and to revitalize Illinois communities Wednesday, there are Central Illinois areas that will be receiving some funds including Peoria and Bloomington.
The money, awarded under the Strong Communities Program (SCP), will fund 68 total units of local government and land bank authorities across the state. Funds will be used to acquire, maintain, rehabilitate, and demolish abandoned residential properties in the communities.
“Vacant and abandoned properties continue to be a strain on local budgets and resources in
communities throughout Illinois, which is why IHDA created the Strong Communities
Program to assist local governments with their neighborhood revitalization efforts,” IHDA
Executive Director Kristin Faust said. “Through the Strong Communities Program,
IHDA seeks to help communities transform these properties back into positive, revenue-generating assets for neighborhoods.”
The Central Illinois communities to receive these funds include:
- Bloomington – $103,000
- Peoria – $712,000
- Peoria County – $239,000
- Galesburg – $562,000
- LaSalle – $100,000
- Oglesby – $210,000
- Streator – $73,000
- Rutland – $324,000
- Macon County – $337,000
The grants are funded by the Rebuild Illinois plan to increase property values, create jobs, reduce crime, generate additional tax revenue, and attract more community investment in the underserved communities of Illinois. There has been a total of $30 million in grant funding that has been awarded in two application rounds.
