Wabuck specializes in affordable housing projects in rural and suburban areas, Elmore said, and there are many “underserved” communities in Ohio that miss out on resources like those found in urban areas with higher rent and more interest.
“When we looked at Ohio, we looked at all the census tracts, all the scoring that was available, and Springfield floated towards the top,” Elmore said. “That can be because there have not been any developments here recently, there’s a need for housing in this area — there are many things that have pushed up the score, so that’s the reason why we identified Springfield as a potential."
Wabuck Development Company is headquartered in Leitchfield, Kentucky. It works often with the Ohio Housing Corporation out of Columbus and is continuing expansion efforts in Ohio, Elmore said.
The developers approached the city — which owns the site — with the proposal, which “really coincided with our goals for that site,” Springfield Community Development Director Logan Cobbs said at the meeting on Springfield’s southwest side.
The development would be part of the city’s Engaged Neighborhood Plan on the southwest side of Springfield to revitalize different areas of the community.
Other proposed projects for the southwest Springfield area include a community park, new apartments and single-family homes in three blocks adjacent to the Little Miami Scenic Trail bike path near West Euclid Avenue.
Wabuck builds developments with the help of the federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, which focuses on families at 60% or lower of the area median income, Elmore said. There can be a mix of families down to around 30% and up to 80% of the area median income as long as the average is 60%, he said.
If Wabuck does not receive LIHTC funding, Elmore said rent prices would have to be at around $2,600 a month and the project would likely not go forward.
The application will be submitted Feb. 26 and the company will hear back in June, Elmore said. There is a process to submit a “more final application with additional information” after that and construction would likely begin in the fall of 2027. Completion could take around two years, he said.
It will not take Section 8 or rental assistance but anyone with a voucher would see that honored, Elmore said.
Some residents, like Otis Williams, expressed concerns that the area is considered a distressed neighborhood and said the developers should work with neighbors.
Elmore pointed to Wabucks’ St. Joseph’s Community Apartments in Henderson, which is near Cleveland, as an example of working in distressed neighborhood.
“That was an area that has some dilapidated homes. There were vacant lots; it was an area that needed some attention,” Elmore said. “It was an older neighborhood and the church was able to secure several lots. We were able to secure others, and we went in and constructed a really nice property that became a cornerstone and really prompted a lot of revitalization in that area and it really changed the entire community.”
The apartments would have local management, three stories, an elevator, community areas and laundry facilities, Elmore said. The proposal currently stands at 54 one-bedroom units and 12 two-bedroom units.
Resident and local realtor Sheila Henry said during the meeting that multiple story buildings are inconvenient for older adults, with some having mobility challenges or other health issues.
“When you do multiple [story] buildings, they have to walk from an elevator to up a long hallway a lot of times to their units,” Henry, former Clark County clerk of municipal courts, said. “I think if you have a concept of like a condo type situation ... that one floor entry from car to kitchen, something that’s more feasible for an aging population with some health conditions.”
Elmore said the apartment’s site manager would work with residents to meet their needs.
“What we find in a lot of the elderly communities is a real community feel where residents are helping one another, where this is a true sense of community within the building,” Elmore said.
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