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Media contact: Kathe Stanton
651.633.7676 kathe_stanton@excite.com
FOR
RELEASE: Oct. 7, 2004
City’s First New Housing for Seniors
in 32 Years
Minneapolis
Public Housing Authority Breaks Ground, Unveils Design for “Heritage
Commons at Pond’s Edge”
102
Apartments in Affordable, State-of-the-Art Community for Seniors
- $14.2 million
HUD-funded "jewel in Heritage Park" to replace senior
housing in Bryant Highrises, demolished in 1997
- Unusual
design approach fully integrates residents who need assisted-living
services with residents who live independently
MINNEAPOLIS
— Keeping its promise to create affordable, state-of-the-art
housing for seniors inside the landmark 76-acre Heritage Park
redevelopment on the near North Side, the Minneapolis Public Housing
Authority today broke ground and unveiled design for Heritage
Commons at Pond’s Edge.
At the doorstep
of downtown, this $14.2 million project — with universal
design features in all 102 apartments — will be the first
housing the city has built for seniors since 1972. At that time,
public housing for seniors in urban areas typically was in towers
that isolated residents from the surrounding neighborhood.
In contrast,
Heritage Commons will be low-rise construction overlooking a park
and pond, with design that encourages social interaction, a sense
of community and connections with the Heritage Park neighborhood.
Set on a
prime 2.1-acre site at the south gateway to Heritage Park, the
four-story, 94,000-square-foot building will have indoor and outdoor
community spaces, resident gardens with raised beds, a rain garden,
beauty salon, café/store, library/classroom, second-floor
open balcony, exercise room, great room with fireplace, nurse’s
station, social services and high-speed Internet access.
"Heritage Commons
represents the very best in senior housing, public or private,"
said Mayor R.T. Rybak at the groundbreaking. "Seniors deserve
to live in a great building like this, and it's going to raise
the bar for projects both here and in other cities."
Owned by
MPHA, Heritage Commons is financed with a Hope VI grant from the
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The grant
was secured by MPHA and its developer, St. Louis-based McCormack
Baron Salazar, Inc., partnered with Legacy Management and Development
Corporation, Minneapolis.
City Council
Member Natalie Johnson Lee said Heritage Commons “shows
what we’re capable of accomplishing as a city if we’re
willing to challenge conventions and think creatively about community
building.”
Heritage
Commons is designed by Miller Hanson Partners, Minneapolis. The
general contractor is Weis Builders, Inc., Minneapolis. Construction
is scheduled for completion in late 2005.
Unusual
Design Approach
Of the 102
apartments in Heritage Commons, 62 are designated for seniors
who live independently, 40 for seniors who need assisted-living
services. Commonly in senior design, all residents who require
assisted-living services live in one wing of a building or on
one floor, away from residents who live independently.
But at Heritage
Commons, all 102 apartments will have the same universal design
features, so any resident can live in any part of the building.
This approach also enables seniors to “age in place,”
staying in the same apartment as their needs change. (The term
“universal design” refers to design choices that make
an environment or product usable by as many people as possible.
It encompasses a wide range of features. PLEASE SEE “BUILDING
DESIGN.”)
"We have designed our assisted-living program
to allow residents to remain in their homes and receive the services
they need," said MPHA Executive Director Cora McCorvey. "Heritage
Commons will be the jewel in Heritage Park."
Heritage
Commons will replace senior housing in twin towers known as the
Bryant Highrises. In need of major repairs and improvements that
would have cost more than the new construction, the Bryant Highrises
were demolished in 1997. At that time MPHA committed to incorporating
new housing for seniors into the master plan for Heritage Park.
—————————————————
Heritage Park is a $225 million mixed-income, mixed-density and
culturally diverse community on the former site of Minnesota’s
oldest public housing. This redevelopment results from settlement
of a lawsuit in the 1990s that alleged racial discrimination in
concentrating public housing on the near North Side.
When completed,
Heritage Park will have 800 family homes, rental and ownership,
plus the 102 senior apartments. Half of the family homes will
be market-rate, half will be affordable housing (including 200
units of public housing). Developing this high-amenity community
involves major infrastructure improvements, including parks and
a new parkway boulevard connecting North and South Minneapolis,
increasing accessibility to jobs and schools.
Heritage
Park is on Olson Memorial Highway, bounded by 12th Ave. N., Third
Ave. N., Lyndale Ave. N., Humboldt Ave. N. and Girard Terrace/Emerson
Ave. N.
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