Downtown holds the crown for development in Queen City

A city of Springfield study found the largest concentration of private commercial and multifamily residential development in the downtown area.

The city's economic development department created a heat map based on data for the 15 months ended March 31, showing a high project density in downtown and center city. Medium-density areas spread south from downtown, with the south side of the city seeing myriad projects. North Springfield was largely low density, according to a news release.

"I think that anecdotally, Springfieldians see the south side as where the most private development takes place in our city," Economic Development Director Mary Lilly Smith said in the release. "But in our department, we knew there has been a lot of activity in downtown Springfield for a while.

"We looked at all projects –  from January 2013 until the end of March of this year – that were issued building permits, projects with estimated permit fees (the preliminary step to issuance of a building permit), and projects with an inferred project cost of $100,000 or more. What we came up with is that right now, the highest level of private commercial and multifamily development is occurring in downtown Springfield."

Smith pointed to rehabilitation of the Vandivort, Frisco and McDaniel buildings, as well as new student-housing developments, as primary drivers.

According to the release, downtown has been home to some $230 million in private investment the last 15 years; has roughly $125 million in the current private development pipeline; and has 26,000 jobs, 30,000 residents and 40,000 students within 1 mile of the area.

"What this shows is a healthy reinvestment in the urban core of Springfield," Smith said in the release. "Every healthy community has a healthy downtown.

"These findings are consistent with the goals set in Vision 20/20 and in the recent Field Guide 2030 Community strategic plan."

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Heat map

The heat map released by the city of Springfield shows a large concentration of development in center city. Click the photo to view the large-form map.