The Truxtun neighborhood in Portsmouth is about to receive some help in fighting blight, according to The Virginian-Pilot.

The extended Truxtun neighborhood has about 600 houses. The original area was built in the early 1900s to house black shipyard workers. Crime, absentee landlords and vacant housing later became problems in the area.

City Council is scheduled to vote on Tuesday on a revitalization plan. The strategy to fight crime and renovate vacant properties will help to improve the home values in this and surrounding neighborhoods.

"The historic Truxtun neighborhood and surrounding areas are finally close to getting a long-awaited strategy to fight blight.

The City Council is scheduled to vote Tuesday on a revitalization plan for the neighborhood, which opened in 1919 to house black shipyard workers and their families.

While approval of the plan will not immediately translate into city money to revive the neighborhood, designation as a conservation district will enable Truxtun leaders to apply for federal grants.

'We haven't gotten to the end of the tunnel, obviously, but we're getting closer to it,' said Vanessa Claytor, president of the Old Truxtun Community League.

She and other neighborhood leaders have been working with the Portsmouth Redevelopment and Housing Authority, city staff and police and sheriff's departments for more than two years to preserve the neighborhood's history.

With enactment of the plan, the housing authority would be able to acquire and redevelop blighted properties, and money to boost home ownership and do home repairs could potentially become available to residents."

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