EAST ST. LOUIS, Ill. — An East St. Louis non-profit is nearly finished with the construction of 20 new homes near Jones Park.
Tucked away off Interstate 64 in East St. Louis is a brand-new neighborhood aimed at bringing people back to the city.
“What we've heard is that they say, ‘well, I don't want to come back to East St. Louis, because there's no housing available. The house that I want is in some other part of the greater St. Louis area.’ So now we want to put those houses back into East St. Louis, and make it a thriving middle-class community, which is what it used to be many decades ago,” Lansdowne Up Director of Administration Kevin Green said.
East St. Louis used to have a population of roughly 80,000 people; now it's around 18,000.
Green said the current housing in the city is aimed at helping low-income families.
“If you look at the housing here in East St. Louis, the older homes, they're all middle-class homes, two-bedroom bungalows, so to speak, up to even many mansions that might have four and five bedrooms in them. Houses range from being 100 plus years old, to maybe having been built in the 50s. So when you look at the housing stock here, because of the deterioration and the decline of the population, much of the housing has now become low-income housing,” Green said.people have moved, but they maintain their homes here. And so then they rent their homes out. And because of, again, the lack of jobs here in the city, based upon our population, it winds up being low income housing, even the newer homes that have been built.
Very soon, 19 of the 20 homes will be on the market, ready for families.
“Every home here is built on at least a quarter of an acre. And in the very center of the subdivision we do have plans to have a wonderful park-like setting there and the homeowners association, the homeowners will decide exactly what that looks like,” Green said.
They’re working with local realtors to sell the homes.
The University of Illinois Architects School helped with plans for the green space in the middle.
One of the 20 homes is already off the market, bought by the man who started it all.
“With what we do with the Jackie Joyner-Kersee center, and what we're trying to do with Lansdowne Up, if we're trying to change people's lives, or help change people's lives then living in the community where we're doing the work, it just makes sens,” Lansdowne Up Board President Mark Mestemacher said.
The neighborhood is right near the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Center, a Metro stop and Jones Park.
“It's just been an awesome experience to be in this community. We’re ready for neighbors,” Mestemacher said.
Green said after the families move in, businesses will follow, and they're already working to make the city safer for everyone.
“There's one way into the subdivision one way out, the homes are all facing one another. People will know their neighbors, but even then, the Illinois State Police are moving their southern district headquarters here into East St. Louis. So approximately three blocks from where we're sitting right now,” Green said.
Green said they don't want anyone to think they're trying to push current residents out.
“As a matter of fact, we have empty houses here. We'd love the people who own those houses to come back, fix your home and stay here in East St. Louis. We don't want one resident to leave,” Green said.
He added they hope this development will not only entice businesses but also other developers.
A few of the new homes are already for sale.
“The first model will be called a small ranch actually, we're sitting in the small ranch right now. It's approximately 1600 square feet, and it's priced at $360,000. We have a large ranch a little bit larger than the one that we're currently sitting in and it is priced at $370,000. We have a two-story home that's priced at $385,000 and that's over 1800 Square feet,” Green said.
To learn more about the project, click here.