Timeline set for downtown Springfield project to restore vacant historic buildings, create 111 apartments

SPRINGFIELD – A project to restore four historic downtown buildings and provide market-rate housing is expected to start next spring.

Last week the City Council granted a special permit allowing renovations of the vacant buildings, which are considered significant to the city's downtown. The project will create 111 apartments as well as retail and commercial space.

The city acquired most of the buildings through a tax title process and then put the buildings out to bid . McCaffery Interests Inc., of Chicago, was selected as the preferred developer with a roughly $68 million project.

"A very prominent site in Springfield, we feel this could be sort of a catalyst to other sites downtown," said Julian Looney, the project architect and principal at Antunovich Associates of New York.

The project includes the Clock Tower building at the corner of State and Main streets and the attached building at 1163 Main St., the Colonial building at 1155 Main St. and a smaller building at 11-21 Stockbridge St.

While the majority of the redevelopment will be market-rate residential, with 94 apartments being studios or one-bedrooms and 17 set aside for two-bedroom units, the first floors will be set aside for commercial use. That follows what was historically in the buildings, Looney said.

"We feel we can attract strong retailers, food and beverage, mom-and-pop type retailers to the ground floor," he said.

The plan is to begin construction in earnest in the spring and be finished and ready for tenants in 13 to 15 months, said Carol Dooney, director of construction and development for McCaffery.

Because the buildings are vacant, work is expected to be done simultaneously, instead of having crews work on one structure and then move to a second building, said Dooney, who is overseeing the project.

The company is already doing small jobs, such as abatement, and historic restoration such as repairing the prominent clock on the corner building at State and Main streets, which has not worked in years.

Major work will not be completed until final approvals are done to place all the buildings into a historic district. The company is using historic tax credits to help finance construction, she said.

"All four of those buildings will be, in the next few months, part of the historic district and will be part of the improvements in this project," Dooney said. Some of the buildings have already been declared historic.

Work, including extensive outside masonry repair to some of the buildings, will be done under the state and federal historic preservation guidelines, she said.

At the same time, the city is working to construct the 364-space South End parking garage off Willow Street that will be owned and managed by the Springfield Parking Authority. The new structure is designed to serve as overflow parking for the project, as well as provide parking for multiple other downtown uses.

Developers estimate they will need 120 parking spaces for the units, but are only able to provide 46 on-site, according to the plans.

The City Council voted 11-0 with two members absent to approve the special permit. There was no opposition from the public and councilors had some questions but no objections to the proposal.

Two members aired concerns about the impact the project will have on the neighboring Community Music School.

McCaffery officials are working with the school to ensure staff and students will still have safe access and parking during and after construction, Dooney said.

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