The work includes painting, new roofs, replacement windows, parking lot improvements, energy-efficient appliances, floor coverings, attic insulation and more.
The apartments at the corner of Belmont Avenue and Sweetbriar Lane date to about the 1950s, said Ed Leinasars, city housing rehab coordinator.
The owners had renovated 26 of the 56-unit duplexes with private financing before the economy soured, said John Gelhaus, managing director of OREP Ohio.
In addition to the HOME loan, OREP also has received a $45,000 partially forgiveable loan from the city’s Lead-Safe Springfield program for work on another 11 units.
The duplexes are income-restricted and currently occupied, Leinasars said, although tenants shouldn’t have to relocate during the renovations.
The work likely will start in June and wrap up by the end of the year.
The project will not only better the housing for those renters, but improve the surrounding neighborhood, Leinasars said.
“It’s a good partnership between the private and the public to improve housing,” he said.
OREP Ohio Managing Member Doug Twillman agreed, saying the city has made the process easy. The project improves housing for residents, provides a good investment for the owners and puts the federal money to work, Twillman said.
“It’s a win-win-win,” he said.
In other business, commissioners also approved a contract with Tony Smith Wrecking of Springfield to raze the last two major buildings in the downtown hospital area.
The former Garrigan’s Office Plus, 234 W. Columbia St., and former Pillars Nursing Home, 334 W. Columbia St., will be demolished to make way for the rerouting of North Street.
The demolitions will cost about $103,000 and is paid for with federal money.
The work could begin in June and should wrap up by mid-July, City Engineer Leo Shanayda said.
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