The Borough of Lewisburg demolished six houses on South Sixth Street during the summer, resulting in a total of nine houses within the past year as part of the Bull Run Neighborhood Project.

The project was funded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA), after the homes were seriously damaged by floods. Grants from the agencies were approved in 2011 and 2012. As a result, the Borough received $2.7 million for acquisition, demolition, and other costs.

The Borough purchased the houses and began demolition in 2013 as part of a three-phase project. Three homes were originally demolished, followed by six homes in the second phase over the summer. The final house, which was not initially participatory, is now expected to be demolished to complete the project. Since the Borough bought each home, lease agreements initialized the gradual process of demolition.

“The demolition has been a desire of the borough for over a decade,” Lewisburg Borough Manager Chad Smith said.

The Borough now owns the land on South Sixth Street and it will remain open space, with plans to create recreation and park space to fulfill conditions of the grant.