Naperville to get first look at concepts for affordable senior, disability housing at Route 59, 103rd St. – Chicago Tribune
Naperville Sun
Feb 08, 2022 5:58 PM
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A meeting is planned March 7 to hear concept plans for developing city-owned property at 103rd Street and Route 59 that would bring much-needed housing for those with intellectual and developmental disabilities and address the shortage of affordable housing for older adults. (Suzanne Baker / Naperville Sun)
Two companies will get the chance to tell how they would approach developing an apartment complex in Naperville that can addresses the lack of affordable housing for older adults in the city and provide much-needed independent living space for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
Gorman and Co., headquartered in Wisconsin, and Chicago-based Mercy Housing Lakefront each are scheduled to make a 30-minute presentation on their concept and qualifications March 7 before the Human Rights and Fair Housing Committee at the Naperville Municipal Center.
The presentations will be followed by up to 30 minutes of questions and comments from the committee and public. Additional input outside the 30 minutes can be submitted in writing.
Information and feedback gathered by the committee will be used by the Naperville City Council to formalize the parameters that will be used when the city goes out to bid for the final design for the property this spring.
Last fall the council solicited proposals for developing 6 acres of city-owned land at the southeast corner of Route 59 and 103rd Street to serve the housing needs older adults and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, or IDD.
The Naperville Senior Task Force has been pushing since 2014 for the city to increase its supply of affordable housing for older adults, and a group of parents appealed to the council last year for help creating a place for their adult children with IDD to live independently.
Four companies submitted proposals, and in January a scoring committee with representatives from the Naperville City Council, Naperville Development Partnership, Human Rights and Fair Housing Commission, Naperville Senior Task Force and the Accessible Community Task Force whittled the list down to two finalists with more than 35 years of experience.
Gorman initially is proposing 60 apartments, 45 for seniors and 15 for adults with IDD, and is partnering with the Ray Graham Association of Lisle to ensure support services are available on-site for the residents with IDD.
Gorman has developed properties for individuals with disabilities in Illinois and Colorado.
Developed with the Rockford Housing Authority, the Jane Addams Park Apartments includes a 38-unit supportive housing facility focused on physically and developmentally disabled individuals.
Gorman collaborated with Laradon Hall Society for Exceptional Children and Adults in Denver to create The Elisabetta, a 91-unit affording housing community of which 25% are set aside for adults with IDD.
One of the largest nonprofit providers of senior housing, Mercy Housing Lakefront owns and operates 52 properties with more than 5,500 units that serve more than 8,000 residents in Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin.
Mercy is offering 72 units of which up to 24 could be set aside for IDD residents, though no final count has been made. It also has yet to determine a partner agency.
