Pope Leo XIV’s childhood home in Dolton, Illinois, has been designated a local landmark, the village said Tuesday — the first step toward restoring the property and safeguarding it from alteration or demolition.
It’s part of Dolton’s plan to turn the property into a tourist attraction that they hope will benefit the southern Chicagoland suburb economically. Dolton closed on the purchase of the modest 1,050-square-foot home where the pope grew up with his parents and two brothers in July for $375,000.
Dolton attorney Burt Odelson told Homes.com that it’s not required to be locally designated before receiving state and federal landmark status, but it was a logical place to start.
Seeking state and federal landmark status will open up Dolton to receiving grant money, helping the village restore the property to its original state when Robert Prevost grew up in the home, said Odelson. The home was last owned by a house flipper who remodeled the interior.
“One thing we haven’t done, didn’t want to until we did the ordinance, is reach out to the pope’s brother and ask if he’ll come out and lend a hand to restoring it to the way he remembers it,” said Odelson, referring to John Prevost, who lives nearby in New Lenox. “It might be fun for him because it’s his home, too.”
Grant money will also be steered toward expanding the nearby street to permit large coach buses carrying tourists, renovating sidewalks and further developing the neighborhood. The village also acquired a nearby dilapidated home that it has since demolished in an effort to beautify the area.
Dolton is slim on funds to achieve its goal of sprucing up the home and block, said the attorney, due to its former mayor, Tiffany Henyard, who has been part of an ongoing FBI investigation looking into financial misconduct.
Today, tourists come from around the world to touch the steps of the pope’s childhood home or merely snap a photo, said Odelson.
“It’s really interesting when you see what the different countries and municipalities have done with the homes of the last three popes. It’s quite remarkable how it’s added to tourism and helped the towns,” he added.
A childhood home stuck in limbo
Dolton’s purchase of the home came after a whirlwind few months following Cardinal Robert Prevost's naming as pope in May.
At the time, the home at 212 E 141st Place had been listed for sale since January, unknowingly to agent Steve Budzik of iCandy Realty, it was the childhood home of the pope. The seller was a house flipper who had remodeled the property, reducing its price $199,000 by February.
After Homes.com News contacted Budzik to inform him of the home’s status, the agent removed the listing per his seller’s request to strategize on selling the suddenly famous home.
The property was then listed through auction, starting at $250,000, despite the village of Dolton expressing its desire to acquire the home. The village then sent a letter outlining its intent to seize the home through eminent domain, but it ultimately struck a deal with the seller through the auction.
Pope Leo XIV’s parents, Louis and Mildred, owned the home from 1949 through 1996, according to Cook County records.