(COLUMBUS, Ohio)—Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine has announced that grant funds for the demolition of abandoned houses through the Moving Ohio Forward Program are now available for approved grant recipients. After applications or requests for extensions were received from all 88 Ohio counties, the initial grant contracts were sent to approved counties starting today.
“I am pleased that every county in Ohio is making an effort to utilize these funds,” said DeWine. “One of the biggest things holding this state back from moving forward is the vast number of abandoned and vacant homes littering Ohio. They are a blight on our communities, rotting them from the inside out.”
The Moving Ohio Forward Demolition Program helps stabilize and improve communities by removing blighted and abandoned homes with funds from the national mortgage settlement reached earlier this year. The Demolition Program requires that a lead entity, such as a land bank or local government, apply for the funds on behalf of each county in Ohio.
The deadline for submitting applications was July 2nd. 80 counties submitted applications, while the remaining eight counties were granted extensions for filing the initial applications.
The total amount of funding available to each county is based on the percentage of foreclosure filings in each county between 2008 and 2011 (which is the time period of the settlement agreement) divided by the total amount of funding ($75 million). Not all counties applied for their full allocation; however, counties may submit additional applications as matching funds become available. Allocated funds will remain dedicated to a county until December 31, 2013. The funds may be reallocated if funds remain unspent on eligible reimbursement projects.
Attorney General DeWine has informed 27 counties of funds availability pursuant to their processed and approved applications. Other counties will be notified as their applications are processed and approved, with all awards for submitted and complete applications being made available by August 1, 2012. The counties who were notified in the initial announcements included:
- Adams
- Allen
- Ashland
- Athens
- Auglaize
- Belmont
- Brown
- Carroll
- Clermont
- Columbiana
- Crawford
- Cuyahoga
- Franklin
- Hamilton
- Harrison
- Huron
- Jackson
- Knox
- Licking
- Lucas
- Mahoning
- Montgomery
- Pickaway
- Scioto
- Summit
- Trumbull
- Tuscarawas
Local communities with questions regarding this program should contact the Ohio Attorney General's Office, Mortgage Foreclosure Unit, 30 E. Broad St., 15th Floor, Columbus, Ohio 43215, or email at MovingOhioForward@ohioattorneygeneral.gov. Information is also available online at www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/MovingOhioForward.
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