Thisweek ourlife 3 20 15

Page 1

Discovering The Mature Lifestyle

Discovering the big move isn’t so scary after all. Page 4

Housing Options

March 20, 2015

March Issue

Cambrian Commons will open in 2016 in Rosemount. (Submitted photo)

DAKOTA

Affordable & Successful

BY SUE WEBBER • CONTRIBUTING WRITER Long before needs of the Baby Boomers became a reality, Dakota County’s Community Development Agency (CDA) got the jump on housing for senior citizens. “Senior housing is going to be a greater need,” said Mark Ulfers, executive director of the CDA. “We like to think we’re a step ahead.” The agency, established in 1971, embarked on a 10-year plan in 1988 to locally finance and construct affordable apartment rental housing for seniors. “A lot of people looked at us with raised eyebrows then,

but we’re all glad we have [the buildings] now,” Ulfers said. “It’s never a problem keeping them filled.” In 1996, the Dakota County Board of Commissioners approved a second 10-year plan and in 2007 approved a third phase to construct an additional 10 buildings by 2016. Now the CDA Senior Housing Program includes more than 1,300 households. The size of the 27 existing buildings ranges from 42 to 88 units; the average is 60 units, said Kari Gill, deputy executive director of the CDA. The agency’s newest senior citizen housing facility is slated to be under construction this fall, and is expected

COUNTY

to open in the fall of 2016 at the southwest corner of South Robert Trail and Lower 17th St. West in Rosemount. All of the senior housing is similar in size and amenities, but each offers unique architecture and aesthetics, according to Ulfers. All of the senior buildings offer affordable rent based on income guidelines. Gill said the 60 units in Rosemount will have two rent structures: a sliding scale or flat rent. The flat-rent units in Rosemount will be priced at $592 for a 750-square-foot one-bedroom unit, and $722 for a 950-square-foot twoAFFORDABLE - TO PAGE 3


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.
Thisweek ourlife 3 20 15 by Sun Newspapers - Issuu