Millions owed to Detroit demolition contractors, raising concerns
Demolition contractors who have torn down thousands of blighted homes in Detroit have yet to be paid — in some cases longer than a year — by the Detroit Land Bank Authority for outstanding invoices totaling millions of dollars, the Free Press has learned.
The dispute has raised concerns the delay could put small contractors out of business or lead them to drop out of the city's demolition program at a time when Mayor Mike Duggan has announced an ambitious plan to demolish, board up or renovate every single abandoned home in the city by the end of next year.
While Detroit Land Bank officials rebuffed claims that up to $8.7 million has been delayed because of issues stemming from within the agency, officials from the Michigan Homeowner Assistance Nonprofit Housing Corporation said in a statement to the Free Press this week: "It appears the backlog is currently in the DLB office in getting us invoices for review."
The MHA was created by the Michigan State Housing Development Authority to administer funds from the U.S. Department of the Treasury under its Hardest Hit Funds program, reimburses the Land Bank for invoices paid to contractors. About $258 million in federal Hardest Hit Funds have been earmarked for Detroit's blight demolition program. Of that, about $144 million has been spent, city officials said recently.
Read more: https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/detroit/2018/03/16/detroit-demolition-contractors/362795002/
