They Said a 3D Printer Would Bring Housing to This Town. It Was Yet Another Broken Promise.

A 3D printer, brought to Illinois with a $1.1 million investment, failed to deliver on promises of affordable housing in Cairo, Illinois, leaving one duplex unfinished and cracked. The industrial 3D printer, intended for a housing renaissance in the Little Egypt region, was at the center of a groundbreaking ceremony in August 2024. A year later, the printer had produced only the framing for one duplex, which was abandoned before completion due to cracks in the walls. The project, promoted by State Sen. Dale Fowler and Prestige Project Management Inc., is now under FBI investigation into Prestige's broader business dealings. The printer supplier, Black Buffalo 3D, has offered Prestige a new concrete solution and to find a buyer for the idle machine.