Dolton residents were skeptical at Tuesday's board meeting, questioning whether the financially strained village could afford to purchase the home and maintain the streets surrounding it.

W hat was once an average home in Chicago's south suburbs has now received national attention for being the childhood home of Pope Leo XIV. The Dolton Village Board voted unanimously Tuesday night to take control of the house at 212 E. 142nd Pl. Village leaders called the purchase a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Burt Odelson, Dolton’s attorney behind the deal, said that the owner agreed to sell amid threats of Dolton taking the house via eminent domain.