SANDUSKY — A Sandusky neighborhood with a proud history is looking forward to a brighter future.
The city of Sandusky is continuing its efforts to provide affordable homes and revitalize neglected neighborhoods. To do so, the city received money from the Welcome Home Ohio program to build affordable family homes.
Becoming a homeowner in Sandusky seemed nearly impossible for Hannah Smith, a mother of three.
“I was trying to get pre-approvals other places, but they wanted a $10,000 down payment and as a young person paying rent, all of your money goes to what you have going on right now,” said Smith.
But her mission to give her kids a comfortable life wouldn’t allow her to give up.
“I have twins that are eight and my son is seven, so I was like now is the time because I have to do this for them,” said Smith.
So, one day, she came across a program called Welcome Home Ohio, which would change her life forever.
“This program takes care of the down payment, and all we have to have is our closing costs which are very low,” Smith said.
With support from the Ohio Department of Development, the city was awarded $3.5 million through the Welcome Home Ohio program to build 14 single-family homes. City officials say they plan to build 30 affordable homes for families with household incomes at or below 80% of the area's median income.
“The market in Sandusky is strong, the housing market is strong, and who's being squeezed out of that market are low to moderate-income people. But, this program caters to those and is only available to low and moderate-income families. We already have nine homes sold,” said Director of Community Development Colleen Gilson.
After a housing study done in the Fireland region in 2023, Gilson said the city was in dire need of housing.
“Thousands of homes are needed in the Firelands region, which includes three counties. We're in Erie County, and I believe we need over 4,000 units to create a healthy housing market that's both rental and for sale,” said Gilson.
These homes are a part of a bigger plan called the Southside Revitalization. I first told you about the city’s effort to invest in Sandusky’s south side when they remodeled MacArthur Park back in July.
RELATED: Sandusky works to improve Southside neighborhood
“Every area in our city is important, but this area has been one that unfortunately for probably money reasons, have been neglected for a few decades. So, it’s good to be able to spend the dollars here to improve the people's quality of life,” said President of the Sandusky City Commission Richard Brady.
And the momentum of creating affordable home ownership opportunities and rebuilding neighborhoods is part of their strategic plan. The city has been meeting with developers to continue building housing on three different sites in Sandusky.
To get more information on the Welcome Home Ohio program, you can reach out to Colleen Gilson at the City of Sandusky.
