Construction: Planned
Senior Housing Plan in Palo Alto Raises Local Concern
Palo Alto city officials are preparing to rule on a development that has stirred local anxieties—a project including 60 housing units for low-income seniors, Palo Alto Online reports.
The City Council will consider approving a zoning change that would allow the nonprofit Palo Alto Housing Corporation to build the project at a former orchard site at 567 Mayfield Avenue.
If approved, the Housing Corporation would be able to develop the site at a much higher density than existing zoning would allow.
The city had already loaned the Housing Corporation $5.8 million to purchase the proposed site.
But even with the benefit of more senior housing, the proposal has angered local residents, with hundreds attending recent public hearings on the project, citing traffic concerns surrounding a nearby school section.
Others have argued that the neighborhood doesn’t have enough amenities to accommodate seniors, however, from the standpoint of city staff, these concerns are “overstated” and “misguided.”
The planning commission voted 4-1 to support the zone change. Several commissioners noted that the property will be redeveloped anyways and that the underlying zoning is already fit to accommodate 34 single-family homes.
“The traffic from such a development could be far worse than that of a senior-family complex,” said Michael Alcheck, a Palo Alto planning commissioner.
Fort Wayne, Ind. Senior Housing Project Sets July Groundbreaking
A 16-unit, $1.6 million affordable senior housing complex should begin construction this July in Fort Wayne, Indiana, reports News-Sentinel.
The third senior housing project the Fort Wayne Housing Authority has taken on in the last four years, the Southside Senior Villas at 7200 John St. are expected to be in line with recently developed housing in the area such as the Village at Brooklyn Pointe.
To qualify for residency, seniors must fall within the 50% of lower area median income level, a figure calculated by Housing and Urban Development for the Fort Wayne area.
For new housing, the target range for income is lower, between 30%-40%.
For a one-person household in 2013, the target income range translates to $21,700 yearly income for the 50% levels and just $13,000 for the 30% level.
The building is anticipated to be environmentally certified to LEED silver standards, and already has a about 500 families on its waiting list.
While Southside Senior Villas can only accommodate up to 32 seniors, about 12% of Fort Wayne’s population is age 65 or older, according to 2010 U.S. Census data.
Funding sources for the project include $300,000 from the city of Fort Wayne; $350,000 from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Indianapolis; $819,450 from Fort Wayne Housing Authority; and Star Financial making up the remaining $130,500.
Construction should not last more than a year, according to Scales.
Isakson Living Plans New $200 Million Georgia CCRC
Isakson Living, an Atlanta-based developer with ties to Cobb County, Georgia has filed for rezoning and announced plans to build a continuing care retirement community (CCRC).
Inspired by Isakson Living’s Park Springs CCRC in Stone Mountain, Georgia, the 53.7 acre site in East Cobb County will cater to residents aged 62 and older.
The site for this new potential CCRC is located at 3540 Roswell Road in Marietta, adjacent to East Cobb Park.
Isakson’s proposed CCRC is the first such community to apply for a rezoning under the Continuing Care Retirement Community District—a code Isakson Living helped develop along with other representatives from the development community, local government leaders and Cobb County residents.
“This type of retirement living is not currently available in Cobb County,” says Kevin Isakson, partner of Isakson Living. “Our goal is to build a ‘lifeline community’ that will enable current residents to stay in the area as they grow older.”
The proposal includes 837 independent living units and 150 healthcare units. Enhanced dining, activities, entertainment, fitness and wellness amenities will also be included in the community’s design.
The community will also feature on-site healthcare services including assisted living, memory care and skilled nursing.
If everything goes as planned, construction could begin as early as next summer with the first phase completed in Spring 2016, according to Isakson.
Old Florida Hotel to Undergo Assisted Living Transformation
The developer of a 63-bed assisted living community in New Smyrna Beach, Florida is currently in talks with three companies interested in transforming the city’s first hotel into senior living, reports The Daytona Beach News-Journal.
Tentatively named the Alba Court Retirement Center at 115 Washington St., the community could begin construction by the end of this year for a completion date by end of 2014, according to developer Paul Ashe.
The site for the prospective project is currently owned by former Mayor Jim Vandergrifft and his wife Pamela, who applied for a little more than $107,000 in Community Redevelopment Agency for the project.
The Vandergriffts plan to sell the site to Ashe for $600,000, according to an agenda item summary sent to the City Commission from CRA Director Tony Otte’s office.
The three-story Alba Court Retirement Center would bear the name of the Alba Court Hotel that once occupied the site when it was first built in 1895.
Whether the name sticks could depend on which company is eventually selected to run the facility, according to Ashe, who says he has talked to two national operators and one local operator.
Concordis Senior Living, a for-profit company that operates several communities in Central Florida including Hampton Manor and Ormond Beach, is one of the companies Ashe is considering.
The assisted living community will cost about $5 million and will employ between 15-24 people.
Proposals for NJ Affordable Senior Apartments Continue
A public hearing will be held this week before the Newton Planning Board for a proposal to build an affordable senior apartment complex on Union Place, reports New Jersey Herald.
RPM Development is proposing a four-story, 65-unit apartment building that would be restricted to people55 and older. The building plans include 1,600-square-feet of retail space and a 2,200-square-foot senior citizen center.
The building would have frontage on Spring Street for the retail and center, and would stretch along Union Place to just short of Trinity Street.
The section of the proposed development nearest to Spring Street is currently a parking lot for the Newton Parking Authority, and 27 of the new spaces under the senior complex will be given to the authority.
The $15 million project would take about a year to build and is seeking a tax relief status from the town, known as Payment In Lieu Of Taxes (PILOT). PILOT would give a substantial tax break for the first 15 years of the agreement, with the next 10 years increasing to full payment.
Approval from five of the seven regular town board members is needed for the project’s passage.
If approved, the vote will be memorialized with a formal resolution at the Planning Board meeting on June 19.
O’Reilly Development Co. Outlines Missouri Senior Project
O’Reilly Development Company intends that its Adams Dairy Senior Community will help make the transition into a senior living community easy for residents, reports the Examiner.
The Blue Springs Planning Commission of Missouri approved the concept plan for the Adams Dairy Senior Community on Monday.
The 13.6-acre property will be divided into four separate lots, the first of which will be open space and storm water detention. The second lot, which will be the largest at just more than 8 acres, will include the senior community.
The final two lots will be reserved for a retail/office building to house medically offices that will assist the facility.
Once completed, the 55+ community will have 178 units. The first phase of the project will include 76 independent living units and 32 memory care units. Independent living rooms will be a mixture of studio, one bedroom and two bedroom units. The second phase will see the addition of 40 units, which all be divided among memory care and assisted living units, depending on the need.
Amenities will include a commercial kitchen, theater, gymnasium, men’s den, nurse stations, beauty shop, library and family dining area.
Real Estate Developer Unveils Senior Living Project Under New Brand
Dallas-based Caddis Partners LLC, a healthcare real estate development firm, announced today the launch of its senior living brand, Heartis, as well as the first community to be developed under the new brand in Cleburne, Texas.
The new brand name derives from Caddis’ commitment to fostering a home-like atmosphere, playing off of the saying, “Home is where the heart is.”
Heartis Cleburne is being developed on 15 acres at 902 Walter P. Holliday Dr. in the South Fort Worth suburb—an area Caddis officials note is underserved in terms of senior living options.
The hilltop site will provide residents with pleasant views of the surrounding countryside and Lake Pat Cleburne, and is not far from Texas Health Resources Cleburne Hospital.
Austin, Texas-based architectural firm Katus, the Dallas office of MAPP Construction and Houston-based Amegy Bank round out the development team behind the Heartis community.
Heartis communities will be developed and owned by affiliates of Caddis Partners, with management provided by Eugene, Oregon-based Good Neighbor Care, which currently has operations in Texas and seven other states.
Heartis Cleburne is scheduled for completion by next summer, according to a release from Caddis Partners.
Construction: In Process
L.A. Senior Apartments to Celebrate Phase One Grand Opening
A grand opening will be held this week to commemorate the completion of the first phase of the Linda Vista Senior Apartments in Los Angeles, reports Multi-Housing News Online.
The senior apartments represent the first phase of a $43 million redevelopment of a former railroad hospital, Linda Vista Community Hospital, which shuttered operations in 1991.
The hospital, which was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2006, has served as a backdrop for the filming of television programs and motion pictures for the last 22 years.
Located at 630 St. Louis St., the Linda Vista Senior Apartments were specifically developed to help provide care for Boyle Heights senior citizens.
The recently completed first phase transforms a former nurse dormitory into nearly two-dozen affordable apartment homes.
The Linda Vista Senior Apartments is one of the major multifamily properties funded by the City of Los Angeles Neighborhood Stabilization Program through the Los Angeles Housing Department (LAHD).
Construction: Completed
Unity Health System Opens Last Phase of Senior Living Complex
Unity Health System has opened the most recent phase of its expansion project—a senior living complex in Greece, New York, reports Greece Post.
The Villages at Unity, located on the Unity Park Ridge Health Care campus, now offers the James J. Bell Sr. Hamlet and Memory Care Community, which opened earlier this month.
The 20-apartment memory care facility offers enhanced services for seniors facing memory loss, according to Don Felter, president of Unity Senior Housing.
Depending on the level of care needed, seniors will be able to transition between the Villages’ independent living community, assisted care apartments, the new memory care community and Unity’s 80-bed skilled nursing home at Park Ridge Living Center.
The opening of the memory care community is part of a four-year expansion project for The Villages at Unity, which is expected to be complete in July.
Miami Health System Remodels Independent Living Common Areas
Miami Jewish Health Systems recently renovated the common areas of their independent living facility, Irving Cypen Tower.
Located on the campus of Douglas Gardens in Miami and near the Design District, the newly remodeled senior community not features sleek decor in a modern style.
New furniture, carpeting and more in the cafeteria, dining room and lobby provide a relaxing atmosphere for socializing, the health system said in a release.
Senior residents at Irving Cypen Tower can request a 540-square-foot studio suite or a 600-square-foot one-bedroom suite.
The community features amenities and services such as weekly fitness, music creative writing and weaving classes; pool with ramp access, fitness center and library; community center synagogue; on-campus medical clinic; as well as scheduled outings to local shopping, banking and medical appointments.
Spectrum Opens New Community for Albuquerque Seniors
Spectrum Retirement Communities officially welcomed residents to Palmilla Senior Living, the company’s first senior community in Albuquerque.
The 133,000-square-foot community’s independent living and assisted living residences war first to open, ranging from studio-sized suites to two-bedroom, two-bath, 1,000-square-foot duplex units.
The memory care wing at Palmilla will open within the next month, according to a release from Spectrum. The company is currently taking deposits for a limited number of available apartments across its many living options, all featuring is month-to-month rental program.
Palmilla Senior Living also indues a number of health and wellness programs to keep seniors healthy and active—including on-site personal care services and licensed providers of physical rehabilitation, speech and occupational therapies.
Other lifestyle amenities include outdoor gardening areas, a resource library with computer area, a full-service salon, day spa and a theater.
Affirmed Housing Group Celebrates Grand Opening of Solterra
Affirmed Housing Group will host a grand opening ceremony for Solterra, an affordable residential development for seniors. The event will be held at 131 Chambers Street in El Cajon, California.
The mixed-used development would have 49 units designated for adults aged 55 and older, including 46 one-bedroom and three two-bedroom homes.
The community’s on-site amenities include a computer lounge, gated and covered parking as well as a community room. Energy-sustainable features for the community include resident access to Solterra’s electric car, a 2013 Nissan LEAF.
Access to the “flex car,” according to Solterra President and CEO James Silverwood, will allow residents to experience a car-free lifestyle while still enjoying the occasional benefits of a private vehicle.
Written by Jason Oliva