For the first time in over 50 years, there is a new building on Historic Commercial Street in Springfield.
Amid a light cool drizzle and against a thrumming backdrop of trains, local leaders and developers Wednesday morning cut the ribbon on the Sankofa building
The development, at the intersection of Campbell and Commercial, houses 42 affordable one- and two-bedroom units, and five retail spaces on the first floor including a business incubator space operated by the Multicultural Business Association.
The $13.5 million project was developed by the firm Vecino, which has its office next door on C-Street. It was partially funded with $4.5 million in Greene County ARPA funds. Lyle Foster served as an ARPA grant administrator for the county.
"These dollars were federal dollars that had a specific purpose of helping to promote economic development throughout our nation in the wake of the Covid 19 pandemic," Foster explained, addressing the crowd. "This project is exactly what we had in mind in terms of how to administer and distribute those funds in the community. And we believe that what casino has done is exactly in line with those goals."
Foster has also owned a business on c-street for over two decades, long enough to see the street revived. He described helping to found the district's merchants association.
"I lived on the street. I invested in the street. I believed in the street. And to see where we are today. It is a wonderful celebration and it's transformative."
Vecino staff said the building is mostly full but still has some units available. Affordable housing has been a major issue across the nation and in Springfield. It's a perennial red flag in the city's Community Focus Report.