Mayor Richard M. Daley today introduced an ordinance supporting the transfer of vacant property in the City's New City community to ACORN Housing Corporation of Illinois under the Preserving Communities Together (PCT) program, an initiative designed to reclaim abandoned property for disposition to approved developers.

"Chicago remains committed to building strong communities by providing affordable housing options for all residents," Daley said. "Bringing abandoned properties into productive use provides an opportunity to rebuild communities and benefits families who are in need of quality, affordable housing."

The developer will rehabilitate the unoccupied single-family home at 5024 South Marshfield Avenue in the 16th Ward, and it will then be sold to an owner/occupant at an affordable price.

The building will be acquired by the City through HUD's Dollar Home Initiative. Dollar Homes are single-family homes that are acquired by HUD as a result of a foreclosure and are made available through the program if they remain unsold for six months. The home will be sold to a buyer whose income cannot exceed 80 percent of area median income, which means the maximum yearly income for a family of four is $37,700.

Each year the program helps to reclaim and rehabilitate nearly a dozen buildings.

The PCT program is designed to encourage the preservation of existing housing, homeownership opportunities and the revitalization of neighborhoods throughout the City.