Press Release from Associated Bank
Acquisition and rehabilitation of the Johnson Butler-Lindon Apartments, located in the Woodlawn neighborhood of Chicago, will begin this month following the closing of a $7-million-construction loan and placement of $13 million in low-income housing tax credit equity from Associated Bank. The Illinois Housing Development Authority issued the tax credits for the project, and Associated partnered with Boston Capital to provide the equity. The renovation will be done by Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH) in partnership with general contractor Powers and Sons Construction Company and Johnson & Lee Architects, Ltd.
Built in the late 1920s, the two-building 106-unit apartments are historic buildings renovated in the 1990s by long-time neighborhood leader Mattie Butler and Woodlawn East Community and Neighbors in partnership with the City of Chicago. Butler sold the properties to POAH in late 2017 with the goal of preserving supportive housing for residents that would also continue to be an important anchor in the community.
Located at 6230 S. Dorchester Avenue, the Johnson building includes 64 units in a five-story elevator building. The Butler-Lindon building, 6146 S. Kenwood Avenue, has 42 units in a six-story elevator building. The two buildings are located 0.2 miles from each other.
The scope of the rehabilitation will focus on modernization of unit interiors, including full kitchen and bathroom rehabs. Common areas will also be modernized with new flooring, fixtures and kitchen amenities. In addition, the scope will include major repairs to roofs and masonry, as well as installation of new windows. Completion is scheduled for the second quarter of 2020, at which time these affordable housing units will continue to be available to households earning 30-, 50- and 60-percent below median incomes for the area.
The project is part of the last phase in the implementation of the Choice Neighborhoods Initiative, a federal program to revitalize neighborhoods through a focus on housing, people, and neighborhoods. Johnson & Butler-Lindon will provide replacement units in fulfillment of POAH’s commitment to replace 504 Section 8 units from the former Grove Parc Plaza public housing project with close to 1,000 mixed-income units that respond to a range of housing needs in the community. The project also includes a new loan from the City of Chicago, new project rental assistance from the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) and the conversion of CHA assistance for the formerly homeless into a permanent long-term contract. All current residents will return to these newly renovated units. POAH Communities’ Community Impact team has partnered with the Southside agency, Featherfist, to provide resident services.