Delaware County Land Bank proposes local demolition grant program to speed property cleanups

Jeff, the board chair, presented a draft county demolition grant program and said the plan is intended to put idle land bank funds to work on problem properties. "Money is idling and I'd like to put it to use," he said, outlining an initial funding approach of about $70,000 from reserves and $25,000 from DTEQ revenue (roughly $100,000 total) and noting demolition costs typically run "$30,000 to $60,000" per site. He emphasized the program would mirror ODOD application materials and require local jurisdiction support letters rather than necessarily a direct cash contribution from local governments.

The board debated safeguards and selection criteria. Treasurer Gary Merrill said, "Without a local match, I couldn't support it," arguing some skin in the game should protect taxpayers. Brent Smith (CEC), who advised modeling applications on ODOD formats, recommended a public, transparent scoring rubric and a simple checklist: "Here's what you're gonna be scored on... 1 through 5." Board counsel Scott Gordon urged the board to adopt formal policies, procedures and timelines before opening the program to applicants to avoid ad-hoc decision-making.

Members agreed staff and CEC will prepare the checklist, scoring matrix and draft policies for an August meeting; the chair suggested applications could open in August with a first submission round by Sept. 30 and board review in October. No formal funding commitment beyond drafting the program was adopted at the meeting; the board directed staff to return with documented procedures and a proposed timeline.