At its Nov. 20 monthly meeting, the Commonwealth Regional Council (CRC) announced updates and outlined expected milestones for its Dillwyn Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Housing Project.

The project is a result of a grant that was awarded to the Town of Dillwyn by the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD). According to CRC Community Development Planner Cam Johnson, the grant was allocated to help rehabilitate and make substantial improvements to some occupied homes within an identified project area in the town.

“I hate to put a timeframe on it,” said Johnson, “but we’re approaching pretty much the half-way point of the project. We have a couple of houses completed within the project as of now. We’re in the process of getting our second round of homes underway in the project. We’re working with a contractor to get those under contract and hopefully get those houses started after the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays.”

Johnson highlighted that CRC has been working with a rehab specialist on the housing project. “They basically do work write-ups on the project that determine whether or not the houses need to be rehabbed or they need to undergo substantial reconstruction, which basically means demolition and rebuild on the house.”

Johnson cited that the block grant currently involves three rounds of housing rehabilitation, with a current projected total of six homes to be improved.

The first round consisted of construction on two homes located at White Street and Culbreth Street. Construction is complete on both places of residence and the homeowners have since moved back into the homes.

The CRC meeting packet cited that a contract is being developed for a home on Hancock Street with plans to execute the contract in early December in order for work on the home to begin after the holidays. This second round home was cited as needing substantial reconstruction, and Johnson highlighted that the CRC works with the town and their rehab specialist in order to help temporarily relocate families when substantial reconstruction for a home is undergone.

Third round properties for the project, according to Johnson, still include another home on Culbreth Street and two additional homes on White Street.