The City Will Sell Nearly 1,000 More Vacant Lots For $1 Each

By Stephen Gossett in News on Sep 13, 2017 8:40PM

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The city is gearing up to once again make hundreds of vacant lots available for just $1 per parcel. An ordinance introduced to the City Council last Wednesday will authorize 952 lots (currently owned by the city of Chicago) to be purchased for a buck. The lots are on the South and West Sides and are available through the city's Large Lots program, which it launched in 2014.

The lots are available to anyone who qualifies, but there are some fairly stringent qualifications: an applicant must own other property on the same block as the parcel for which he or she registers, have no outstanding city debt and be up on property taxes, among other criteria, according to a release. Purchasers must then of course pay property taxes on the lot and maintain it according to zoning and building codes. And you're only free to sell it after five years of ownership.

But for those who qualify and are selected, the program represents an opportunity for hyperlocal community development. The majority of planned properties are beautifying projects (expanded yards, open green space, community gardens), according to the Mayor's office.

As noted by Chicago Cityscape (who also mapped the properties) the ordinance first goes for approval by by the Chicago Plan Commission next week, then to the City Council’s Committee on Housing and Real Estate on Wednesday, Sept. 27, then on to the full Council for the ok.

Some 580 lots have been sold as part of the Large Lots program since it launched, according to city. The program garnered 2,841 applications through its most recent expansion, which closed at the end of January.

[H/T Curbed Chicago]