Family renovates west side properties

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In March, the West Central Neighborhood Alliance sent a letter of appreciation to Joe Ege for the housing rehabilitation projects he has undertaken in west central Springfield. According to Jack Pugh, alliance president, Ege has gone above and beyond simple cleanup and repair.|ret||ret||tab|

The renovation of 12 houses including three duplexes located on Kansas, State and Nettleton streets came about as a result of Ege's vision of cleaning up the deteriorated area of town where he grew up. Ege's daughter, Lisa Ege, still lives in a house on South Kansas near the refurbished rental properties. That house has been in the Ege family for more than 100 years.|ret||ret||tab|

Initially, Joe Ege planned to refurbish a stone house about a block south of his daughters, plus the vacant lot next to it that had been his family home as a boy. The house has long since been torn down.|ret||ret||tab|

At Lisa Ege's urging, her father purchased several other houses in the area that were formerly owned by the Weatherwax family. Some of the houses were occupied and some were empty when Ege took possession, but all of them were in need of major repairs and renovation.|ret||ret||tab|

Little by little, Ege began to make improvements as he could from his own pocket.|ret||ret||tab|

The houses were not connected to sewer until the rehabilitation process was under way, according to June Hethcoat, health investigator for the area. Before Ege began renovations there were constant complaints about septic problems. Ege said he had to pump the systems regularly before he was finally able to connect the properties, one by one, to city sewer.|ret||ret||tab|

Lines were in place down Kansas, but Ege had to run extensions to service five of the properties.|ret||ret||tab|

"These places were hideous before he came along," Hethcoat said. "It is a healthier environment because of Mr. Ege."|ret||ret||tab|

However, as Ege proceeded, the renovations were exhausting his resources, and there was much work yet to be done.|ret||ret||tab|

Ege saw his vision of a nicer neighborhood grow dim when he exhausted his savings to make improvements. He had loans at Empire Bank already in place to purchase the properties, but he needed more capital than he had on hand to make the dream of a better neighborhood complete.|ret||ret||tab|

When he learned of the city HOME program, which provides federal grant money to refurbish rental property at a low interest rate, he found the answer to his dilemma.|ret||ret||tab|

The primary goal of the program is to provide housing for low- to moderate-income families and improve the neighborhood, according to Ann Peck, loan officer for the city.|ret||ret||tab|

"He's virtually turned the neighborhood around," Peck said of Ege.|ret||ret||tab|

With the city loans, Ege did not stop at repairs and sewer service. Each of the properties he acquired has been gutted and put back together with new wiring, plumbing, sheet-rock, cabinets, appliances and floor coverings. In some cases, new sub-flooring and roof decking were installed.|ret||ret||tab|

All of the houses have received new roofs and most have been wrapped in siding. Central air and heat, new carpet and fixtures completed the renovations to make the homes look like new inside and out.|ret||ret||tab|

The remodeling for the first few projects was done by local contractors, but as city officials gained faith in Ege's determination to make the houses better than average, they relaxed the conditions and allowed him to act as his own contractor on the last five projects.|ret||ret||tab|

Lisa Ege, owner of Acclaimed Roofing, has done the roofing on those five houses, with Joe Ege doing as much of the finish work himself to keep the costs down.|ret||ret||tab|

"They've all run over the expected cost," he said. "There is always something unexpected once you get into it."|ret||ret||tab|

The neighborhood had gone from being a good place to live to a bad one, Ege remembered. There were drug activities and family disturbances.|ret||ret||tab|

It was not a nice place to live, he said. Now the property values have increased because of the improvements, and Ege is carefully selecting tenants so the neighborhood can regain its pride and thrive.|ret||ret||tab|

"I have some good renters now. Everyone gets along, and there are no problems," he said.|ret||ret||tab|

The houses have not yet turned Ege a profit, but they are paying their own way, as rents have finally equaled payments on them. Ege said he believes his investment will pay off as future retirement income.|ret||ret||tab|

The improvement loan closed May 1 on the last of the houses to be refurbished, located at 736 S. Kansas. Work has begun on the structure to bring it up to the standard of the homes already completed. Ege said he hasn't decided if he will take on any more projects in the future. For now, he said, he is content to look back on how far he has come with the 12 properties he already has.|ret||ret||tab|

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