BATON ROUGE — Mayor-President Sid Edwards and Office of Community Development Director Kelly LeDuff on Monday announced $6 million in federal grant funding for initiatives that aim to address blight and stimulate home ownership across East Baton Rouge Parish.

City leaders said the money will be used to fund a first-time home buyer program featuring lower mortgage rates and down payment assistance, find uses for vacant city-owned property, revamp local storefronts and work with developers on large-scale projects throughout the parish. 

“We expect to see millions more invested by private developers and contractors as the initiative jump-starts additional cleanups of blighted properties that can be placed back in use for new housing and commercial development,” Edwards said.

The OCD will host a series of developer workshops to "ensure that contractors, developers, landlords, and tenants understand their rights and responsibilities under federal, state and local laws, rules and regulations."

The series begins Friday with a workshop for landlords and tenants. 

According to Edwards, the city has demolished 21 blighted structures in 2026, and another 48 properties are in the condemnation process.

Earlier this year, Councilwoman Twahna P. Harris hosted an event aimed at combating blight in neighborhoods across East Baton Rouge Parish. 

Watch the announcement here: