Village of Dolton cuts deal to buy Pope’s boyhood home

The pope’s old house won’t go to the highest bidder after all. 

The village of Dolton will buy the childhood home of Pope Leo XIV, cutting a deal with the property’s investor owner weeks before it was set to hit the auction block, Crain’s reported. 

The Dolton Village Board approved the acquisition of the three-bedroom house at 212 East 141st Place on Monday night, though the final purchase price hasn’t been disclosed. The home, rehabbed by Manhattan, Illinois-based DPR Homes, had previously been listed for $199,900 and later marketed for auction with a reserve of $250,000.

Dolton Mayor Jason House framed the purchase as a once-in-a-generation opportunity. 

“We can either seize this moment, or we can let that moment go to an investor,” he said. “I would like for our community to get the benefit.”

The deal ends weeks of back-and-forth between the village and the seller. In May, House directed Dolton’s attorney to warn the auction house that any non-municipal buyer would face zoning obstacles and potential eminent domain action. The auction was scheduled for July 17.

Instead, the sale will proceed directly to Dolton, reportedly with Wintrust Bank stepping in to finance the deal, to be paid off by the village like a mortgage.

The property’s value leapt in May after Cardinal Robert Prevost, who lived in the house until 1996, was elected Pope Leo XIV. Rehabber Pawel Radzik, founder of DPR Homes, purchased the house for $66,000 last year and sought to maximize its value following the papal election.

But the village’s financial health has been a major point of contention. 

A former staffer, Lavell Redmond, sued to block the purchase last month, calling it a “novelty real estate” buy that Dolton can’t afford. He cited mounting debts, unpaid bills and a $33.5 million judgment against the village stemming from a 2016 police chase. A January report by former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot pegged the village’s debts at $3.6 million.

House acknowledged Dolton’s budget woes but said the village is “fully committed” to balancing basic services with preservation efforts.

— Judah Duke