SHELBYVILLE - New housing developments and existing housing rehabilitation added 30 building permits and more than $250,000 to Shelbyville's economy, the city council learned Monday.

Building Commissioner David Young said he had issued 30 building permits in January, mostly related to a new housing development on Shelbyville's southwest side. He also told the council he had met with grant administrator Dave Bitzer about state and federally funded housing rehabilitation projects on Shelbyville's south side.

"In the first phase of this project, eight houses are completed," Young said. "They're amazing to see, new siding, new windows, new heating and cooling, new roofs. These houses were in terrible shape and now they're great."

Young explained the program is targeted at very low-income and fixed-income homeowners with substandard housing. He said the average cost of a home rehabilitation was $36,000.

"These homes were awful. You wouldn't believe how people had to live," he said. "This is a great program that costs the city nothing."

Young explained that Bitzer's company does the research to target the needy homes and applies for the grants. Bitzer also hires the contractors that do the work.

"So, for only the cost of a resolution of support, we get this work done," Young said. "It's a good deal."

Young said the next target area had been identified with 43 possible homes for rehabilitation.

In other business, the council learned that the Illinois Department of Transportation had recently repaired and recalibrated stop lights on Illinois 16, Shelbyville's Main Street. Street Commissioner Jeff Johnston said the DOT has resurfacing of Illinois 16 planned for 2010.

"At some point soon they will want to talk to us about parking and cost sharing," he said. "We just need to be aware of it now."

Police Chief David Tallman told the council that recent rains and heavy fog on Monday contributed to problems with stop lights and railroad crossing lights. He said water on the railroad crossings led to them activating and that fog decreased the reliability of stop light traffic sensors.

"We were able to get someone from the railroad out to fix the tracks," he said.

Sharon Mosley can be reached at sharonhrnews@yahoo.com.