City updates demolition progress; ARPA-funded work prioritized to meet Oct. 15 deadline

Steve Gondol, Director of the Department of Planning, Neighborhoods and Development, told the Commission the City completed 18 demolitions in July and 139 demolitions to date as part of the Dayton Recovery Plan.

"18 demolitions were completed during July, including 14 funded through ARPA," Gondol said, noting that 84 of the 120 planned ARPA-funded demolitions have been completed and that ARPA projects must be finished by Oct. 15 so documentation can be submitted. He added that 52 of 70 ODOD-funded demolitions are complete and that CDBG-funded work will follow ARPA and ODOD work because of differing funding timelines.

Commissioners asked for clarifications about the demolition map and the total number of structures on the City’s structural nuisance list. Gondol said approximately 1,600 structures are on that list and that staff would resend the list to the Commission. He also reported that emergency demolition piles increased to 37 after four incidents in July and that July demolition activity was concentrated in Miami Chapel and Santa Clara neighborhoods.

The director said the demolition pipeline remains active, with 29 properties entering asbestos remediation in July, bringing that total to 137 as staff prepare properties for demolition. He said staff are prioritizing projects funded by sources with earlier expenditure deadlines and that approximately 99% of the City’s ARPA project funding has been budgeted, expended, or encumbered.