Tim Landis
The State Journal-Register
A Kansas developer has drawn up detailed plans for restoring the MacArthur Park Apartments in Springfield in preparation for a state ruling this week on up to $15 million in federal assistance for the project.
Ward 7 Ald. Joe McMenamin told a meeting of the MacArthur Boulevard Association last week that plans include significant upgrades of 184 apartments; a raised, 3,000-square-foot garden bed; secured bicycle parking; new landscaping; new picnic tables, enclosures and benches; repair of fences, sidewalks and roads; and new lighting.
“It is really comprehensive. We should be so happy this is happening on the boulevard,” said McMenamin, whose ward includes the apartments. “We’re going to get more population to support businesses along the boulevard, and when you have one landlord upgrading their standards, you have other landlords upgrading because it’s a competitive market.”
McMenamin said there are only about 30 vacant units in the complex, compared with more than 100 before extensive city-ordered repairs were made in the last few years. And he said there was only one MacArthur Park disturbance call to police in September, down sharply from the multiple calls per month before the repairs were made.
The Illinois Housing Development Authority board is scheduled to vote Friday on a request from Cohen-Esrey Affordable Partners of Overland Park, Kansas, for the issuance of up to $15 million in bonds toward the estimated $20 million cost of purchasing and upgrading the apartments. Cohen-Esrey has been involved in similar affordable housing projects across the country.
Asked whether existing residents would be able to afford rents after the upgrades are finished, McMenamin pointed out that state rules require affordable rent in return for project assistance. Rents are based on median household income for an area under state and federal affordable housing rules, with the current rents of about $550 a month at MacArthur Park Apartments.
Housing Development Authority staff have recommended approval of the assistance, McMenamin said, but authority spokeswoman Cami Freeman said she could not comment on staff recommendations. She said the board vote remains scheduled for Friday.
Joe McMenamin for Ward 7 