In a unanimous vote at a special board meeting held on July 1, the village council of Dolton, Illinois, voted to purchase the childhood home of the first U.S.-born pope, Robert Francis Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV. Dolton City Attorney, Burt Odelson, said a “world of opportunity” has opened for the small suburb, which is like “no other place in the world. . . . Things are just going to get better and better for the people of Dolton.” Odelson said he hopes to close on the property in the coming week. While he did not disclose the final sale price, he said it was much lower than the $1 million the realtor handling the sale hopes the house might sell for at auction.