The City of Monmouth is considering an investment in the Prairie Hills Land Bank Authority, a newly forming nonprofit organization focused on returning vacant properties to productive use. If approved, Monmouth would contribute 10-12 vacant lots to the land bank, with the goal of developing new single-family homes, explains Mayor Rod Davies:
“Prairie Hills Resource and Conservation Development did a feasibility study and we are really working with the five counties in West Central Illinois. They want to try and create a land bank for this area. We are doing some of the preliminary work. There has been a lot of support from Macomb and Galesburg. These land banks offer the legal support to communities to help clean up title issues with land that is in question or abandoned. They are seeking funding to help them do some infield development and use their capacity in representing a number of counties and communities, hopefully to get a favorable rate and ability to do that. We are working on intergovernmental agreements. In the end, as a non-profit they would hold the ownership, do the marketing, do some of the development, and the sale of those properties of single-family homes.”
The Prairie Hills Land Bank is expected to launch in the spring, with Monmouth potentially becoming an early partner in the effort. More details will be shared as City Council reviews this proposal in the coming weeks.
