ANDERSON – Over the next 18 months the urban landscape of Anderson will change as the city uses two federal grants to convert blighted properties into community gardens and green space.
Anderson was awarded $2.7 million for the demolition of up to 128 houses that are considered blighted, which generally are buildings considered dangerous to the public. The city is working with a number of community partners to find new uses for the properties.
Proposals include community gardens, small pocket parks, new housing and green space.
Tonya Turnley, administrator of the blight elimination program, said the effort is concentrating on the main corridors into the downtown area along Nichol Avenue and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.
The list of properties being considered for demolition came from complaints filed by local residents and a walk through the areas. Turnley said the properties were ranked. A grant was obtained through the U.S. Department of Treasury's "Hardest Hit Fund."
The maximum amount that can be paid for a property is $6,000. Bids will be received for the demolition work.
The funds can only be used to demolish residential properties and the owners have to voluntarily agree to be a part of the program. Turnley said the program must be completed within 18 months and 50 percent of the funding has to be spent in the first year.
“This is a brand-new program for the state,” she said. “There has to be title searches conducted, asbestos testing and state inspections. We can ask for an extension on the time limit for the use of the funds.”
A condition of the program is that the city cannot take ownership of the properties where structures have been demolished and must be owned by a community partner.
Turnley said the state has to approve a waiver for the change of the proposed use for any one property. She said city officials are working with the Madison County commissioners to combine properties on the demolition list with parcels on the tax sale list to make them more attractive to future development. The community partners can dispose of the property after three years.
Community partners for the Anderson program include Habitat for Humanity, local churches, St. Vincent Anderson Regional Hospital, Anderson Community Development Department, local churches and Grow Anderson.
“This is a unique program to Anderson,” Mayor Kevin Smith said. “There are a number of qualifiers for how the funds are to be used.
“This is a transition to a new economy for Anderson,” he said, referring to the properties returning to the tax rolls in the future.
There are 13 properties in the first round of the blight elimination program with the majority being used for community green space and future development.
St. Vincent Anderson Regional Hospital is listed as the partner on properties at 2312 Delaware St. and 222 W. 22nd St. for future expansion.
Bethesda Missionary Baptist Church is listed as the partner on 2109 Madison Ave. and 2113 Madison Ave. for future expansion of the church. Habitat for Humanity plans to construct a new house at 2427 Locust St.