Richmond gets $1.88 million for blight fight

Mayor Sally Hutton said this means "we can begin to clean up a lot of neighborhoods."

"It means a lot of abandoned, dangerous properties can be removed," Hutton said. "It's just a great opportunity for the city of Richmond, and we're ready to go to work."

The money is part of Indiana's Blight Elimination Program through the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority. It is funded by the U.S. Treasury Department.

Its goal is to decrease foreclosures, stabilize homeowner property values and strengthen neighborhoods and neighborhood safety by eliminating blight.

The plan is to identify and buy abandoned, blighted properties for demolition.