Land Bank to use $500,000 to build rental units on South 5th Street

Fire-damaged homes at 154 and 156 South 5th Street will be demolished to make room for new rental units.

[Columbia Spy photo]

The Lancaster County Land Bank Authority will use $500,000 toward building four new affordable rental units on the site of two fire-damaged, blighted buildings at 154 and 156 South 5th Street. The buildings were damaged in a July 22, 2022 fire.

The Authority will share in $2.2 million for Lancaster County from the state’s Housing Trust Fund.

The Pennsylvania Housing Affordability and Rehabilitation Enhancement Fund uses Marcellus Shale Impact Fees and state realty tax revenue to help fund the creation and support of affordable housing across the state.

Recipients must use a portion of the funding to assist households earning less than 50% of the county’s median area income of $74,000.

In January, the Land Bank issued a Request for Bids for demolition of the properties, as Columbia Spy reported HERE.

Columbia Borough Council voted unanimously to approve the demolition application at its May 9, 2023 meeting. Demolition is set to begin at the end of this month. 

[Sources: LNP, Columbia Spy]