By: Stephen McCollum

Ever watch Extreme Makeover on TV and marvel at how quick and easy they made the renovation of a house seem?

It won’t make TV and it’s usually far from fast and simple, but there is some making over going on in Hartford City. It’s one part of the effort to overcome the blight that has afflicted the community and is essential to the restoration of decent and affordable housing stock.

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Some of the most severely blighted properties have been removed by Hartford City’s Blight Elimination Program and by Build a Better Blackford, but a number of problem houses are good candidates for renovation.  Dallen Bunch and Charlie May each have taken on the art of the makeover locally.

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Bunch, whose day job is as an appraiser, lives in a house on Cleveland Street he purchased out of foreclosure and rehabbed. It’s been a multi-year process, since he does much of the work himself. He purchased another small house on White Oak Court that was gutted down to the stud frame and refurbished.

“I think it’s important to take this on with more than just a ‘lipstick and rouge’ approach,” says Bunch. “There is a great need for housing here. Because I rent out some of my rehab units I have been approached by individuals and churches looking for rentals for at least ten families.”

“Because of my experience as an appraiser it is easier for me to determine the current vs the potential future value of a property and whether it is worth the investment to bring the house back to good condition.”

Something that makes Bunch’s approach unique is that he likes to give job opportunities to people who are struggling to readjust to life after bouts with substance abuse or incarceration. 

“It’s a win-win,” he says. “The whole idea of rehabilitating houses flows naturally into the process of people who are undergoing rehabilitation.” People need both shelter and jobs.

Charlie May has worked as a mason for 60 years—from Arkansas to Cape Cod and back home to Blackford County, where his craftsman’s imprint rests from the First Presbyterian and Grace Methodist Churches to the Smith and Newberry buildings.   But May has undertaken at least four local house renovations.

“I say do this work not to make money but as if you were going to live in it yourself,” he says. Which is not to say he hasn’t improved on his original investments, but that attitude must translate into gratitude to occupants of the “new” houses.

May has rehabbed homes in The Oaks subdivision, and on North Maple, North Walnut, and East Franklin streets. 

The East Franklin Street house got a new roof, was rewired, repainted, new tile in bathroom, new carpet and flooring throughout. He even purchased the vacant lot next door to add space to the otherwise narrow lot. 

Either way—through demolition or renovation—the community is getting a chance to put its best face forward. 

“We hear comments now that people are glad to see these improvements,” says Jon Creek, a member of the Property Standards Board. “When they see these “going nowhere” houses rehabbed into good homes it gives them hope that the city can turn the corner in its effort to improve the quality of life.”

The makeover has a very practical economic result, but just as importantly it is a vital element for rebuilding community pride and spirit.