Client: Poplar Place | Springfield, Illinois
Poplar Place, originally known as Garden Court, is a multi-family residential complex located in Springfield, Illinois. Constructed in 1950. Garden Court was designed as a housing development for military families and featured 142 townhouses with a total of 244 apartments. Garden Court provided an important role in expanding the housing in the State’s capital and providing homes for World War II veterans. The reported original $2.1 million mortgage that financed Garden Court was, at the time, the largest ever recorded in Sangamon County. However, Garden Court fall on harder times in the 1980s and by 1985 fewer than half of the apartments were occupied. The community changed owners throughout the following years and was renamed Poplar Place in 1998.
In an effort to revitalize the community, Pioneer was contracted by a major midwestern developer to conduct Phase I investigations and radon measurement studies at Poplar Place. The developer sought to secure low-income housing funding from the Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA) and Pioneer’s extensive experience with IHDA projects and its non-scope Phase I items, including radon testing and a variety of regulatory compliance checks, was crucial to securing funding for Poplar Place. Pioneer was able to provide the necessary regulatory and documentation requirements resulting in a timely and accurate submission to IHDA. By ensuring the Phase I ESA and radon measurement met IHDA’s low-income housing funding criteria, the developer was able to secure the necessary funding from the agency.
As a result, the developer was able to move forward with the revitalization of Poplar Place and announced a $38 million renovation plan in November 2022. Today Poplar Place offers renovated affordable two, three and four-bedroom apartments and includes over 2.5 acres of green space with a community center for resident gatherings and social interaction, as well as walking paths and a playground.
