GALLIPOLIS — Gallia County Commissioners have chosen Gallipolis as the target area for utilizing funds received through the 2009 Ohio Neighborhood Stabilization Program (ONSP) grant.

Funds are being administrated by the Ohio Department of Development (ODOD), which requires that a target area be selected based on foreclosure rates and other considerations and Gallipolis drew the highest rating, according to County Administrator Karen Sprague.

Coincidentally, Gallipolis has been conducting an ongoing effort to raze dilapidated and abandoned properties resulting in a number of demolitions in 2008 and at least a dozen more expected throughout this year.

Gallia County has been allotted $140,000 of more than $1.2 million that was awarded to the region, which also includes Jackson, Meigs, Lawrence, Scioto and Vinton counties. An additional $7,000 was also granted for administration purposes.

County commissioners recently approved an application for Gallia’s portion of the grant that proposes acquisition/rehab or demolition of ten total properties, all falling within Gallipolis.

The county has proposed that $60,000 of the funding be used to purchase two foreclosed or abandoned properties within Gallipolis to demolish. The structures must either be dilapidated, unfit for human habitation, pose a direct threat to health and safety, in unsafe sanitary condition, contain non-working or disconnected utilities, vacant, or infested with vermin.

Gallia-Meigs Community Action Agency will work with the county to pinpoint vacant and/or abandoned properties that can be acquired for future development in order to provide affordable housing.

In addition, the county has proposed to undertake the demolition of vacant, blighted residential structures in Gallipolis with the remaining $80,000 in funding. Eight structures have already been designated by the Gallipolis city manager, code enforcement officer and city solicitor as being “unfit for human habitation” under local ordinance and zoning/building code regulations making them eligible for demolition.

It is estimated that each tear down will cost around $10,000, but if some are able to be completed under that cost, then more structures may be added to the list.

The application was due in to ODOD last Friday; it is to be submitted by Vinton County, which has been designated as the lead agency of the six county region. ODOD is to issue grant agreements by April 1 and following the completion of environmental reviews, demolitions can begin with a completion deadline set for Oct. 1, 2010.

In total, Ohio received more than $258 million of Neighborhood Stabilization Programs funding from the federal government as the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development awarded over $141 million directly to 22 cities and counties in Ohio. The state then received $116.8 million for additional distribution.

On top of the $83.3 million dispersed among Ohio cities, counties, and regions, ODOD allotted nearly $29.2 million of ONSP funds towards an Affordable Rental Housing Initiative to encourage non-profit organizations and public housing authorities to turn demolished, foreclosed, or vacant structures into rental housing.

The rentals are to then supposed provide affordable housing for households with incomes at or below 50 percent of the area median income.