The Chicago suburb where Pope Leo grew up plans to purchase his childhood home and turn it into a historic site.

The Board of Trustees of Dolton, Ill., voted unanimously on Tuesday to put an offer on the three-bedroom, three-bath brick house, which is up for auction later this month.

At the meeting — which was livestreamed online — Mayor Jason House called the purchase a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” for the village, which in recent years has been plagued by a series of scandals over alleged financial and political misconduct by its previous mayor.

“We can either seize this moment and move it forward, or we can let that moment go to an investor,” House said.

The May election of Pope Leo — the first American-born pope — has drawn national attention to Dolton, a village with an estimated population around 20,000 some 20 miles south of Chicago.

Leo — then known as Robert Prevost — grew up in the home on East 141st Place. His parents bought it new in 1949, paying a $42 monthly mortgage, according to member station WBEZ.

Prevost moved away for college and spent most of his career in Peru before rising through the Vatican ranks. His family sold the house in 1996, and ownership changed multiple times in the years since. Most recently, a local bought it as a flip property in 2024 and had been trying to sell it earlier this year — as the Roman Catholic Church was undergoing a seismic change in leadership.

According to WBEZ, the house was listed for $219,000 on May 5, just days after Pope Francis’ death and before the start of the papal conclave. But the listing was taken down by the time Leo emerged as the new pontiff.

Broker iCandy Realty and real estate auction firm Paramount Realty are offering it to the highest bidder by July 17, with a reserve price of $250,000 — the minimum the seller will accept. They say it was renovated in 2025, but remains a part of history.

“Pope Leo XIV’s journey from this humble neighborhood to the Vatican is a testament to faith, perseverance, and purpose,” its informational brochure reads. “Now, you have the rare chance to own a tangible piece of his inspiring legacy.”

Neither village authorities, the realtor or the auction firm involved have responded to NPR’s requests for comment about what Tuesday’s vote might mean for the property’s sale and future.

Some locals don’t see the house as a top priority

While the unanimous motion drew a smattering of applause in the room, not everyone is thrilled about this use of village funds.

Dolton has been plagued by financial and political scandals since well before the new pope put it on the map.

Its previous mayor, Tiffany Henyard, is the subject of multiple lawsuits and a federal investigation over alleged corruption, financial mismanagement and political retaliation during her four-year tenure.

Residents voted to recall her in 2022, but an appeals court later ruled that election invalid. In 2024, the Board of Trustees hired former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot to investigate Henyard’s conduct.

Lightfoot shared the results in January, outlining a pattern of unchecked spending and deception by Henyard. One of her findings was that Dolton’s general fund balance had dropped from a surplus in 2022 to around $3.65 million in debt.

Henyard’s attorney accused Lightfoot of “political theater” in an effort to thwart her re-election campaign, which was unsuccessful. House beat her in the Democratic primary with 88% of the vote and was sworn in in May. And while Henyard’s legal troubles continue, House has pledged to get the village back on track.

His priorities include rebuilding trust between the local government and residents, as well as bringing new businesses to the area.

It’s against this backdrop that several concerned citizens came forward on Tuesday to question the house purchase, saying they would rather see an investment in basic infrastructure improvements, like fixing roads and filling potholes.

“We need to be mindful of addressing the issues that the city has while we’re trying to address the debts and the lawsuits,” the Rev. Ryan Reese said from the crowd. “I’m not sure that this is the first priority.”

Another resident, Mary Avent, said that while buying the house is “admirable,” she worries about whether the village can afford it.

“Even if we have the money, who’s going to maintain that?” she asked.

House said police and public works have been maintaining the property and will continue to do so.

“We’ve had charters come in here, we want to make sure that anybody that comes into our community is safe,” he said. “That’s a cost we will incur whether we own the property or not … Why would we not want to participate in that and get the benefit of this historic moment moving forward?”

House assured worried residents that the project will not derail from the board’s other priorities, adding that some roads would be repaved within days.

Officials hope history can fund the future 

House said he wants the community to benefit from its history, and spoke of opportunities to get state and federal funds to do so. He stressed that attracting visitors would create much-needed revenue for the village, saying “you cannot cut your way out of a deficit.”

Several board members compared the pope’s house to the childhood homes of figures like Martin Luther King Jr. and Michael Jackson, and the tourism opportunities it could create. The Jackson home in Gary, Ind., is unoccupied and owned by the family, while the King family sold two of MLK’s Atlanta homes — where he was born, and where he later lived with his family — to the National Park Service within the last decade.

“When we do it the correct way, in the long run, it will pay for itself,” trustee Tammie Brown said, adding that she’s already heard from supporters of the idea who want to donate.

Since May, camera crews and Catholic tourists have traveled from across the country to visit and take pictures outside of the two-story house (although some mistakenly flocked to the wrong one), according to local media reports.

On Tuesday, the Village of Dolton posted photos to its Facebook page of workers repairing the building’s roof. It said the house continues to attract visitors, “bringing new energy and attention to our village.”

“This increased traffic represents a new day in Dolton — full of potential, progress, and promise,” it said.