T-L Photos/JOSIE BURKHART The Belmont County Land Reutilization Corp. will use funding from the Ohio Department of Development Brownfield Remediation grant to fund demolition of houses in Bellaire that were acquired by the public school district.

THE BELMONT County Land Reutilization Corp. accomplished quite a bit in 2024, using funding it obtained to demolish dilapidated structures.

Commonly known as the land bank, the organization applied for multiple grants through the Ohio Department of Development Brownfield Remediation program as well as its demolition and revitalization grant.

Friday was the deadline for bids to demolish the former Bellaire vulcanizing site that is adjacent to Bellaire High School. The property holds four houses that Bellaire schools acquired on the corner across from Union Square Park and the school parking lot adjacent to the high school.

The site previously was occupied by a dry cleaner and a vulcanizing site, so everything has been tested and found to be a brownfield, or a property which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant or contaminant.

Just under $500,000 in Brownfield Remediation funds was granted to have the site remediated and tear down the buildings, Belmont County Treasurer Katherine Kelich, who serves as chairwoman of the land bank, said.

Kelich said the land bank also applied for and received funds for the cleanup of the Great Stone Viaduct’s old pipe yard. That demolition and revitalization grant also was just under $500,000.

There are 29 properties on the land bank’s list to be demolished in 2025, but some of those have already been demolished. Evaluations have been done on all but three of them, so the land bank is moving forward on those projects. There have been 12 structures demolished this year.

The land bank is sending out demolition bids in the next week or so for the projects. Kelich is hoping to have all of the properties demolished in May.

The land bank is also working on a Howard Street project in Bridgeport, which has been turned over to the land bank. The site is not a brownfield. The land bank will be applying for funds for its remediation in the next round of funding in January.

Kelich said she sets her expectations higher than what the land bank can achieve, but she still hopes to accomplish them. However, she was hoping to be farther along with the Howard Street Project in Bridgeport because it is a large nuisance property that would make a tremendous difference being demolished.

“I was hoping to actually have that one farther along than it is, so I’m a little disappointed that we weren’t able to get some more done,” she said. “However, we are still moving forward, and we’re still doing a lot of work, so I’m proud of the fact that that’s not stopped.”

Kelich noted many of the delays are due to acquisition of property. The way the land bank gets the properties is by them being foreclosed upon or donated, and if they’re donated it’s a whole different issue because there has to be a cause for why someone is donating it.

She added that in a general sense, most properties are acquired through a tax foreclosure. She said those tax foreclosures take quite a bit of time from start to finish.

Kelich said the land bank has a great start planned for the new year after ending this year with many properties that were demolished and plans for more to be demolished.

“There’s obviously a need in our county, along with all the other counties in the state of Ohio, for funding money so that we can continue to revitalize the neighborhoods and bring them back to good use,” Kelich said. “For 2025, I just want to see us keep moving forward, never have a delay and hope that we will get another round of funding where we can continue to do this work.”