County Administrator Joey Preston reports that Bamberg County has been awarded $1,303,039 by the South Carolina State Housing Finance and Development Authority to remove blighted residential structures and improve the remaining parcels.  The County and its non-profit partner, Southeastern Housing Foundation, will soon begin the task of acquiring selected properties, performing environmental remediation, demolition, greening, and maintenance of up to 38 properties identified as residentially blighted.

The objective of the Neighborhood Initiative Program is to stabilize property values and prevent foreclosures through the removal of blighted properties.  The goal of the Program is to stem the decline of home values, and act as a catalyst for redevelopment and revitalization in areas suffering blight and decline.

The Neighborhood Initiative Program is a joint venture of the South Carolina State Housing Finance and Development Authority and the SC Housing Corporation.  The Program is made possible by the U.S. Treasury’s Hardest Hit Fund.