Litchfield Council Approves Residential Demolitions and Emergency Roof Grant for Downtown Business

Litchfield City Council Meeting | April 2, 2026

Article Summary: Utilizing state grant funds, the Litchfield City Council approved two residential demolitions to combat local blight, while also granting emergency TIF funds to a downtown business for severe storm damage repair.

Demolition & Grant Key Points:

• Approved demolition agreements for structures at 115 East Corwin Street and 843 South Montgomery Street.

• Demolitions are fully funded by the city’s $258,000 IHDA Strong Communities Grant.

• Awarded a 50% match emergency roof repair grant capped at $10,000 to Short Furniture Company.

The Litchfield City Council on Thursday, April 2, 2026, approved multiple property management and rehabilitation initiatives, utilizing state grants and local Tax Increment Financing (TIF) dollars to address structural hazards and support local business.

Following a motion by Alderperson Sara Zumwalt, the council unanimously approved demolition agreements for two blighted residential properties. The structures are located at 115 East Corwin Street, owned by John and Linda Davis, and 843 South Montgomery Street (house structure only), owned by Kenneth and Nicole Thrasher. Both properties have been deemed dangerous, unsafe, and beyond reasonable repair by the City’s Chief Building Official.

Rather than pursuing costly demolition orders through the court system, the property owners consented in writing to the demolitions. The financial impact on the city is effectively zero, as all asbestos abatement and demolition costs will be reimbursed through the $258,000 Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA) Strong Communities Grant previously awarded to Litchfield.

Building Inspector Gary Baker informed the council that the abatement and bidding process is already underway. “By the time we get asbestos removal done and bids out for demolition, these two will probably be down around the end of May,” Baker stated.

In a separate move to support downtown infrastructure, Alderperson Ray Kellenberger motioned to authorize an emergency roof repair grant for Short Furniture Company, Inc., located at 315 N. State Street.

According to agenda documents, Short Furniture incurred severe storm damage to its roof, necessitating an immediate and complete tear-off and replacement. Young’s Roofing Inc. submitted a total bid of $46,880.00 to install new ISO insulation and a 60 mil White TPO roof to bring the building up to current city code.

While the city’s Façade Improvement Program typically requires work to be approved prior to completion, the urgent nature of the storm damage allowed for an emergency exception. Because the business had already received a fiscal year 2026 façade grant, this emergency award will count toward their fiscal year 2027 grant allowance. The city will provide a 50% reimbursement of the TIF-eligible project costs, capped at the program maximum of $10,000, to be paid out after May 1.