Macon Mayor closer to goal of destroying 100 vacant and dilapidated houses

MACON,Georgia (41NBC/WMGT)- Mayor Robert Reichert’s vision of demolishing 100 abandoned and dilapidated houses in 2014, has almost reached its goal.

Tearing down the vacant houses is part of the Macon-Bibb County government attack on deteriorating neighborhoods.

Bivins was among officials watching as, the 90th house, located at 1475 Anthony Road, was destroyed Wednesday, around 9:30 a.m.

“Abandoned and dilapidated buildings bring down the neighborhood, erode the sense of community, and impact our entire city,” says Mayor Reichert. “By removing these buildings, we can impact crime, improve safety, and help restore people’s pride in their neighborhood.”

It took less than an hour for a Public Works crew to turn it into a pile of rubble.

“We have a problem with the deterioration of our neighborhoods, and it’s happening faster than we can address the issue,” says Mayor Pro Tem Bert Bivins. “We need to start seriously considering using funds from a future SPLOST to really attack this problem.”

An additional penny sales tax could be on the horizon if Bivins has his way.
 
He wants to use the additional Special Local Option Sales Tax money to pay for revitalizing neighborhoods and improving roads. He says that will lure more companies to the area, which could mean an economic boost for Bibb county.

Bivins believes demolishing abandoned homes is a start in the right direction.

“We need to draw as many jobs as we can hopefully this process will end up being part of that,” says Bivins.