By Scott Harvey
Sulphur Springs – The Sulphur Springs City Council has approved a second and final reading establishing a low and moderate income housing program.
The city's Community Development Corporation - better known as the Nehemiah Foundation - will be very active in the program
City Manager Marc Maxwell said the city owns several residential properties that it has received through tax foreclosures and other means, and are no longer generating revenue for the city.
A Texas municipality would normally be required to dispose of such property only through public auction. A low-income housing program, however, allows property to be deeded to a non-profit corporation to develop affordable living spaces for qualifying applicants.
The only stipulation, according to Maxwell, is that if nothing is done within five years, the ownership reverts back to the city.
Maxwell says the housing program will allow the city to get property back on the tax roll, plus give local lenders the chance to create a loan package, local builders can construct homes, and families can live in affordable homes.