Modular Meets Main Street: How Springfield’s Wren Building Is Rewriting the Rules for Downtown

Springfield just offered a practical blueprint for smaller cities that want more downtown housing without years of ground-up construction. The Wren Building—a former department store on the National Register of Historic Places—is being transformed into ~72 market-rate apartments over street-level retail. What makes it newsworthy is the method: historic renovation + newly built modular housing, a first-of-its-kind combination that speeds delivery while preserving character. Backers expect the residential portion to wrap in roughly 14 months, faster than typical stick-built timelines. springfield-news-sun

Why the Wren approach works for west-central Ohio

• Right location, right format. Adding elevator-served units on High Street brings residents to where amenities already exist—supporting restaurants, services, and events without adding traffic to the edge of town. springfield-news-sun

• Layered capital that pencils. The project leverages Ohio Historic Preservation Tax Credits and the state’s Transformational Mixed-Use Development program to close the gap that often stalls downtown rehabs. springfield-news-sun

• Speed via modular. Factory-built modules arrive fully inspected by the State of Ohio, then set in place—reducing weather delays and improving quality control. springfield-news-sun

A regional pattern: reuse over replacement

Springfield isn’t alone. In Dayton, the Centre City Senior Apartments secured OHFA financing (loan, HDAP, and 4% LIHTC) to convert a legacy tower into 80 affordable units for older residents—a strong vote for adaptive reuse in the urban core. ohiohome.org

In Lima, New Lima – Housing for the Future continues to add modular single-family homes on infill lots like Hazel Avenue, delivering attainable ownership at neighborhood scale. It’s the same principle as Springfield’s Wren—build where services already are—applied to single-family supply. Your Hometown Stations+1

What buyers, brokers, and lenders can do now

1. Map reuse candidates. Identify historic or underused buildings near jobs and transit; zoning + incentives often tilt the math in your favor. (Ohio’s historic credits are a proven lever.) springfield-news-sun

2. Pair mortgages with rehab tools. For owner-occupants, FHA 203(k) can bundle purchase + renovation; for larger assets, layer LIHTC, HDAP, and preservation credits to stabilize deals. ohiohome.org

3. Pre-scope building systems. Early inspections of structure, MEP, and egress avoid mid-project surprises—especially in older shells.

4. Use modular strategically. Where speed and predictability matter, off-site construction can compress schedules without sacrificing finish quality. springfield-news-sun

The takeaway

For west-central Ohio, the path to more homes isn’t limited to new subdivisions. Reuse first, build smart, and layer financing. Springfield’s Wren Building shows how to deliver modern apartments fast while keeping the architecture that makes downtown special. Dayton’s Centre City conversion and Lima’s modular infill prove the model scales—from towers to single-family lots—when projects meet real needs and use the tools Ohio already provides.

That’s how our region moves from shortage to steady pipeline—one well-scoped rehab at a time.