Extra Credit
Added-value amenities are key, says Mike O’Neil, president of Parkview Communities, a continuing care retirement community developer with offices in San Francisco and Denver. “Standard senior housing is OK, but these people are well-educated,” he says. “They’re looking for as-good-or-better housing. They want to live with dignity.”
That’s why Kendal at Oberlin has several on-site amenities, including a 5,000-volume library, hair salon, performing arts center, wood shop, dark room, horticulture workroom, computer lab, and bank.
Recreational opportunities are also important. Somerset Run by Del Webb, a 246-acre active senior community adjacent to Rutgers University, includes a 25,000-square-foot recreation center with tennis courts, indoor and outdoor pools, bocce ball, and a putting green.
Other upscale extras often included are dining rooms and cafeterias, housekeeping and laundry, concierge services, and valet parking.
Easier Approvals
Getting approvals for these high-density, low-impact communities can be easier because they generate more consumer spending while producing less traffic than traditional multifamily housing.
“We’ve found it to be easier, though we do have to rewrite the rules a little bit,” O’Neil admits. “After all, it’s hard for officials not to want your mother to have a nice place to live.”
The campus connection also is helpful, says Pat Travis, senior vice president of new business development for Nashville-based Cooperative Retirement Services of America, a consulting firm specializing in the development, marketing, and management of retirement communities. She was a consultant on Capstone Village.
“Being affiliated with the university made it much easier to secure zoning approvals and entitlements,” Travis explains. Campus-based development policy is often less restrictive. And because colleges and universities are economic powers in their communities, their influence can help secure special overlays or ease restrictive covenants.