Late Wednesday morning, Ericka Kendall saw a new home under construction on North State Street and it immediately sparked her interest.
She stopped her vehicle to find out more.
Kendall and her family, who currently live in the county, are in the market for a brand new, two-story home, and the single-family structure being built by Bricks & Gables, Inc. caught her eye.
She wants to live within city limits and likes what is happening with efforts to revitalize the community. “It’s up and coming, and it’s very family oriented. I work here in the city,” said Kendall, who is admissions and marketing director for Envive Health Care.
That’s exactly the response city leaders and some private housing builders are hoping for as part of an effort to revitalize Sullivan neighborhoods.
Mayor Clint Lamb, housing developers and a real estate agent provided an update on those efforts Wednesday at the Sullivan Civic Center.
It’s part of a long-term Sullivan neighborhood revitalization program that began in 2012. “Things have come full-circle,” Lamb said
Over many years, the city has worked to acquire blighted properties and tear down dilapidated structures. “Now, it’s time for regrowth. And that’s exactly what you are seeing here,” Lamb said.
Through the city’s redevelopment commission, three private developers bid on vacant lots to purchase some of the properties and build new homes. Representatives of Bricks & Gables Inc., J&J Residential and Nora Properties attended Wednesday’s update.
“These are the three that have responded to the bids,” Lamb said. “It’s so inspiring to see the private sector say, ‘You’ve got it up to this point, we’re going to take it from here.’”
Some homes are under construction and up for sale, and others have been sold and even pre-sold.
What once were blighted properties will be occupied by families and back on the tax rolls. “It makes a mayor’s heart happy,” Lamb said.
Troy Stanton, president/owner Bricks & Gables, Inc., has three homes under construction that are for sale.
He has ties to the community and owned a business there until recently. “It was important to me to give back to the community” and be part of the revitalization effort, he said.
The first three are under construction on Broad and State streets. “We anticipate at least another 10 to 12 homes within the next 24 months,” Stanton said.
He is working with Natalie Green, owner of Century 21 Elite real estate in Sullivan.
Lack of housing has been an issue in the community, Green said. “Hopefully, this is a solution to the housing shortage here.”
Jeff McNeely of J&J Residential is a lifelong Sullivan resident. He said he got involved because his daughter wanted to move back to the community from Indianapolis.
“We’re excited to bring people back to Sullivan,” McNeely said. One home is finished and occupied; another is under construction and presold; and a third is pre-sold but not yet under construction.
He has other lots where he plans to build additional homes.
Nora Leone, of Nora Properties, said two homes have sold and she has a potential buyer for a third.
Once one new home is built, “You immediately see the entire neighborhood transformed,” Leone said. People want to improve their own properties.
According to Lamb, the goal is to have 50 to 60 new, privately-built homes in the city over the next 24 months.