Case study

Garfield Green Sustainable Apartment Development

UPDATED: 10/04/2023

General


Project Name: Garfield Green Sustainable Apartment Development

Project Leader(s): Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH) Chicago

Partner(s): City of Chicago, C40 Reinventing Cities, Perkins+Will, Nia Architects, Terra Engineering

Stage of Completion: Construction started on June 6th, 2023, a few days after closing on the financing.

Construction Type: New construction

Building Type: Multi-family

Total Number of Units Targeted: 82

Total Number of Units Completed: N/A

Tenant Structure: Mixed

Target Audience: Subsidized/regulated affordable housing (LIHTC), low-to-moderate income housing (for tenants earning up to 80% of area median income)

Electrification Project Scope


Full/Partial Electrification: Full

Existing Heating Type: N/A

End Uses Electrified: Space heating and cooling, water heating, cooking appliances, clothes drying 

Specific electric appliances installed: No data

Funding/Cost


Total Project Funding: City of Chicago will provide $42.8 million in financial assistance:

  • $20M bond funds

  • $1.7M LIHTC

  • $6.5M TIF

  • $12.7M loan

  • $861,000 energy grant

  • $702,000 write-down of City-owned land

  • $343,000 donation tax credit equity

Amount or % of Project Cost Covered per unit: $844,437 or 94% of the per unit cost. 

Source of Funding: Primarily City of Chicago; some energy grants; private construction loan backed by bonds

More information


Motivation for electrification: The City wants to increase affordable housing opportunities and revitalize East Garfield Park, a neighborhood that has suffered from factory closures, vacancies in commercial spaces, and housing unit losses. The City owns 170 vacant lots in the Garfield Park area and intends to sell a portion of the lots to developers to increase affordable housing options in the community. The City and POAH applied and won the C40 Cities "Reinventing Cities'' competition for the site.

Additional Measures Implemented: Solar panels, green roof (rooftop garden and green plantings to reduce thermal inversion and keep building temperatures regulated), passive bioclimatic design (design that takes into consideration the landscape’s solar positioning, average wind direction, etc.), on-site stormwater processing, water saving plumbing fixtures

Workforce Development/Green Jobs Component: The units will be built in a local factory four miles from the development site using local workforce.

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