Senior housing planned on office complex site in Arlington Heights
A proposed 3-story, 175-bed senior living facility received zoning approvals Monday on a south-side Arlington Heights site, in a development that's expected to help fill an increasing demand for such housing in the area.
Trammel Crow Co. and Allegro Senior Living are planning a mix of 93 independent living units, 58 assisted living units and 24 memory care units on an 8-acre site the group has under contract on the southeast corner of Arlington Heights and Seegers roads. The four-building, single-story Arlington Executive Court office complex has been there for more than four decades, but owner Brian Properties expressed interest in selling amid low rents and a 40% vacancy rate, village officials said.
While a number of developers expressed interest in a site the village has been priming for redevelopment, as part of its larger South Arlington Heights Road corridor plan, Trammel Crow was the only one to step forward with a formal application to the village, officials said.
Joe Miklich, Allegro's senior vice president of development and acquisitions, during a virtual village board meeting Monday night, outlined the company's “hub and spoke” model of three distinct senior living communities served by a central amenity area. Such a concept would allow residents to move from one neighborhood to the next as their physical and cognitive needs change.
The development team has completed five similar projects in the Midwest, including the Avidor Glenview and Avidor Evanston.
Apartments would range in size from a 445-square-foot studio to a 1,080-square-foot two-bedroom unit, containing stainless steel appliances, walk-in closets and washers and dryers.
Rents for independent living units would be priced from $3,000 to $6,000 per month, with assisted living and memory care units as much as $8,500 per month.
Common area amenities are proposed to include a movie room, an indoor pool, a fitness center, a massage room, activity space and dining venues. The site also would have outdoor walking paths, a courtyard and patio, and a firepit and barbecue station.
The village board voted unanimously to rezone the property from an office-transitional district to institutional, along with variations for density and unit size, among others.
The approvals come while plans are drawn up for a similar 188-unit senior living community proposed by Ryan Cos. on the International Plaza property on Golf Road. Trammel Crow's market study found there to be enough demand in the area for the combined number of units the two sites would offer.
“As your market study found, we have a very healthy senior living segment of our community, and we're very proud of that,” Mayor Tom Hayes said. “We've got a lot of senior living facilities in Arlington Heights, and we can always use more.”
During public comment, six residents asked that lower-priced units be included in the development for lower-income seniors. Village Manager Randy Recklaus said that, unlike other residential developments, senior housing was not included in the recently-revised village inclusionary housing ordinance because of the complexity of that industry.
A closing on the property is expected this summer, after which demolition and construction would begin, with an opening scheduled for the spring of 2023.