Two Senior Care Facilities Coming To Lakeville

Responding to an increased demand for senior living in Lakeville, two development plans were presented to city planning commissioners Thursday evening that would add 194 units of managed care and independent senior living to the community.

Frank Schoeben and Hosanna Lutheran Church both laid out seperate plans that would break ground later this spring and be targeted to become operational during summer of 2012.

With the exception of some minor inclusions, commissioners approved both applications.

Despite Lakeville’s rapid growth in the last decade, the city had been without any assisted-living or memory-care facilities for its growing senior population until Highview Hills opened a 143-unit complex at Highview Avenue and County Road 50 in 2009.

According to the most recent U.S. Census data, Lakeville’s senior population of residents over 65 has nearly doubled in the last decade. Those residents currently account for 4.9 percent of Lakeville’s total population, an increase of nearly 1,400 since the 2000 census when seniors accounted for 2.8 percent of the population.  Lakeville’s overall population has grown from 43,138 to 53,597 during that time.

City planners greeted the facilities with positive remarks Thursday stating they kept with the city’s overall comprehensive plan to provide a variety of housing options.

“We’ve been working on this one a long time,” said Lakeville Planning Department Head Daryl Morey of Schoeben’s Kingsley Shores development. “Providing life-cycle housing to accommodate changing demographics meets the housing goals of the city.”

Schoeben is the former owner of the Chart House restaurant and still owns the surrounding land that is located west of Kenwood Trail and north of Klamath Trail. Schoeben began working with the city on creating the development more than six years ago.

“This has been a long time coming,” said Commissioner Karl Drotning. “This is a very, very nice plan that a lot of people have worked hard on.”

Commissioners were also impressed with Hosanna Lutheran Church’s presentation that calls for the facility to be connected to the existing church at 9600 163rd Street.

The commissioners did deny Hosanna’s request for a 60-foot identifying marker tower included in the plan pending further details and finalized plans from the developers. Not wanting to delay the project, Hosanna representatives agreed to rescind that piece of the proposal at this time.

Details of the two planned developments are as follows:

Kingsley Shores Senior Living

Plans call for a 101-unit, three-story facility located on a 3½-acre site adjacent to the Chart House Restaurant. The facility will offer 32 memory-care and 46 assisted-living services in addition to providing 23 independent-living units.

Studio, one and two-bedroom units will be available in sizes that range from 425-950 square feet. Some units will be eligible for low-income assistance. The facility will be managed by Southview Senior Living Management. An underground parking garage will provide space for 58 parking stalls as well as additional storage areas residents.

An approximate 100-foot swath of land will be deeded to the city as part of the development to provide a buffer between the building and the Lake Kingsley lakeshore. The plans also mentioned a possible future addition of a day care or office facility on the adjacent land at the corner of Kenwood Trail and Klamath Trail. Klamath Trail would be widened to account for a right-turn lane into the property and a bike lane as well.

Hosanna! Addition

Hosanna Lutheran Church’s facility calls for a 93-unit, three-story complex that will be attached to the existing 2,500 seat church via a one-story “town center” and atrium. The public area bridging the two buildings will contain a general store and café area as well as room for socializing.

Jim Hayes, a Hosanna Lutheran Church congregation member that has been assisting with the project, said there were tremendous advantages to connecting the two structures together.

“This provides us with outstanding opportunities for youth ministries as well as provide seniors access to the church without exposing them to the elements,” he said. “We believe this will satisfy the needs of the community as well.”

Ward Isaacson, a project architect, said “This plan will help create an extended community for Hosanna – a real faith-based inter-generational concept.” He said the plans were modeled after Shepherd of the Lake facility in Prior Lake that has met with great success in that community.

According to the presented plans, there will be 24 memory-care units located in a secure area of the ground floor with 45 assisted-care units and 22 independent care units located on the upper two floors. There will be two guest units included in the plan. The largest units will be approximately 1,095 square feet, two-bedroom apartments.

Other amenities will include underground parking, a beauty shop, theater, dining facilities and numerous lounge areas.

Hosanna Lutheran Church has formed a new LLC, Hosanna! Heartland, devoted to the facility and will partner with Ebenezer, the senior care company arm of Twin Cities-based Fairview Health in ownership and operation of the facility.

Jill Keiser from Ebenezer stated that the facility would provide flexible options and be designed to allow residents to rent an apartment and add on health services as needed. “We’re happy to become an employer in the Lakeville area,” she said, “and we’re happy about this partnership.

Ebenezer currently serves more than 4,000 senior in Minnesota through a variety of owned and managed senior care facilities. Keiser stated the Hosanna facility already had names on a waiting list.

Both projects will come before the city council on March 7 for final approval.