History
In the summer of 1975, 104 houses in varying degrees of disrepair located between Barre Street to the north, Hughes street to the south, Hanover Street to the east and Sharp Street to the west, were raffled off by the City for $1.00 as urban homesteads. The odds for winning one of these properties was 0-62, depending upon the number of applicants who were approved by the City for a particular property. From the day of the first awards to the completion of the last property, it took 10 years to create Otterbein. All homesteaders were involved in planning Otterbein from the Exterior Design Standards to the brick and lampposts for the sidewalks. (The Association’s publication, The Mullion, is a reminder of the night when four hours of discussion the homesteaders were deadlocked over standard window mullions). Homesteading involved demolition, planning, and Architectural Review Committee process, a City review process, the REAL Loan Committee process, the Home Ownership Program process, the house construction and renovation phase and site development. All of Otterbein, including the new infill housing, was designated an historic preservation area in 1983. From 1978 to 1986 all the property on the east, north, and west boundaries of Otterbein was developed with houses, a high rise, condominiums, and the Federal Reserve Bank, respectively.
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