The number of vacant properties in New Castle County peaked in 2017 at 1,350, according to county officials. Since then, the Vacant Spaces to Livable Places initiative has worked to reduce those vacant locations with much success. In six years, the number of vacancies has dropped 53%.
This week, County Executive Matt Meyer celebrated the completion of the latest vacant property to be transformed under the program, a spot in Minquadale that will be used as a transitional home for young women aging out of foster care.
New Castle County’s executive Matt Meyer announced the transformation of a vacant property to a transformational house that’s located behind him. (Johnny Perez-Gonzalez/WHYY)
“There are over 700 properties we’ve now done like this on my watch,” Meyer said. “This starts by identifying a problem, a problem of delinquent housing stock in neighborhoods not just here in Minquadale, but across the county, really the city of Wilmington, the state, and to some extent the country.”