WINNSBORO – The Zion Hill and Fortune Springs communities are invited to a community meeting at 7 p.m., on Thursday, Jan. 30 to learn more about a $487,568 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Fairfield County has been awarded to implement projects designated in the Zion Hill/Fortune Springs Park Neighborhood Revitalization. The plan was completed in the fall of 2019.
This will be the third community meeting about the revitalization process. At this meeting, Project partners will discuss the details of the grant and answer any questions.
The first phase of grant work will include the demolition and clearance of approximately 40 dilapidated and vacant structures, according to Gregory Sprouse, Director of Research, Planning and Development for Central Midlands Council of Governments (CMCOG).
Sprouse, Chris Clauson, Fairfield County Planning and Development Director and CMCOG planner John Newman spent the better part of the summer analyzing the needs of the Zion Hill and Fortune Springs Park neighborhoods. They walked the neighborhood visiting with residents and finding out what can be done to help bring the neighborhood back to its glory days. The planners were also tasked with estimating the cost of the project.
While they found the needs to be many, Sprouse said the initial focus will be on the demolition and cleanup of the 40 structures.
Sprouse said he hopes the county can get the project underway by the spring.
