Detroit Gets Funding To Buy Homes Near Aging City Airport
DETROIT (WWJ/AP) - Detroit has secured funding to buy homes in a desolate neighborhood near an aging airport, raising hopes of revitalization.
Brian Farkas, director of special projects for Detroit's Building Authority, told The Detroit News that officials "are finally going to bring certainty to the situation."
"You are going to see a unified approach coming out of the mayor's office on this that will make sure these residents get the deal they are entitled to," he said.
Detroit City Council initially approved the buyout in 1994 with the intent of creating a federally mandated safety buffer at least 750 feet from the main runway at Coleman A. Young International Airport. That effort was supposed to take 18 months.
About two dozen homeowners and tenants still live in homes in the neighborhood.
Known as City Airport, commercial passenger service ceased in 2000. Private pilots, cargo companies and charter operations still use the facility.
The area's main airport is Detroit Metropolitan Airport in the suburb of Romulus.
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