After failing to win tax credit awards to redevelop the blighted and now abandoned Nesbitt Court, the Wilmington Housing Authority is seeking permission to sell the property.
Either way, the housing projects that opened in 1940, is not long for this world. If they aren’t allowed to sell or can’t close a deal, the authority has funding to demolish the buildings, said CEO Michael Krause.
“We’re committed to doing something with it one way or another,” he said. “We aren’t going to continue to let blight the neighborhood for much longer.”
Nesbitt Court, located between Front and Third streets on the south side of downtown Wilmington, has been vacant since at least late 2007, when the last of the remaining residents moved out of the 1940s-era housing project.
Nesbitt Court was closed because they represent an outmoded form of public housing, where residents were crammed into tight, barracks-style apartments. At the end of their use as homes, the units suffered from old age, erratic heat and leaky pipes.
The housing authority has twice applied to receive tax credits to redevelop Nesbitt Courts, but twice they have been turned down. Federal housing officials expressed concerns about the site’s proximity to railroad tracks and the fuel tanks across Front Street.
That was the main reason the application for funding was turned down earlier this year, putting the Housing Authority in the position it’s in today.
“There are some environmental issues with the site,” Krause said. “We believe it’s in our best interest to sell the property.”
The housing authority must receive permissions from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development before selling the property. Krause said they hope to receive word soon from HUD.
If permission is granted, Krause said they have been approached by parties interested in the land, and he doesn’t think the economy would be a large barrier to selling the land.
Related links:
Is there anything officially planned for the abandoned projects on Greenfield and Front Street?
UPDATE: Overhaul under way on Nesbitt Courts
Date posted: September 28, 2009
User-contributed question by:
Anonymous
Please, Please don’t let it become another Project, It seems everywhere you look there is a project around. Just like when people come in town from the bridge it is a shame they have to see all those projects on the left. It does nothing but take away from the beauty of our state!!!!!!!!!!!