Development News

Wayne County racks up $26M in neighborhood stabilization funds

Thursday, June 25, 2009

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Green Building, Sustainability, Wayne County

Wyandotte, Dearborn, Detroit, Grosse Pointe, Hamtramck, Plymouth

The words green demolition would seem mutually exclusive at first glance, but Wayne County will take a stab at making them a reality this year.

It is preparing to start a pilot program that calls for the deconstruction and recycling of abandoned homes instead of the normal process of bulldozing them and dumping what's left into a landfill or the Detroit incinerator. The new program trains people how to deconstruct these homes to their foundations, recycling the details, metal, and wood everywhere from scrap yards to architectural warehouses. The foundations will then be dug up and recycled.

"We hope to hit the ground running within 60 days," says Jill Ferrari, senior executive project manager for Wayne County, who is overseeing the program and supervising its use of federal neighborhood stabilization funds.

The county has been awarded $25.9 million to buy, rehab and demolish foreclosed structures. It recently received the first $3.9 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Source: Jill Ferrari, senior executive project manager for Wayne County
Writer: Jon Zemke

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