Politics & Government

More Senior Housing Proposed for New Lenox

The Plan Commission held a public hearing last week to discuss a senior housing complex that would be built off Calistoga Drive and Laraway Road, near Berkot's Super Foods.

More senior housing was proposed for New Lenox last week, adding to the list of local developments targeting the village's older population.

The Plan Commission held a public hearing last week to discuss a senior housing complex that would be built off Calistoga Drive and Laraway Road, near .

Planning Administrator Robin Ellis said the public hearing was not closed and will continue to the commission's Feb. 7 meeting. In the meantime, the Village Board will likely solicit input from the community during a Jan. 23 public hearing related to annexation of the 3-acre land on which the senior housing would be built.

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Lincoln-Way Builders plan for 74 units with a mix of one- and two-bedroom options. Many units would be income-restricted, though Ellis didn't have details of the cost available. She said it would be similar to another proposed senior development, The Lodge at Bristol Meadows, in which residents could not make more than $36,600 per year and monthly rent would be $650 for one bedroom and $1,000 for two bedrooms.

The Plan Commission's biggest concern with the development was parking. Village officials would like two spaces per unit, but currently plans call for just under 1.5. Ellis said that being next to the commercial area in Berkot's could help with some parking.

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In the last year, multiple proposals have been made for senior housing in New Lenox. The township offers a senior complex, but it's at capacity and has a long waiting list. , with a capacity of 80 people, is also in town, but as the population grows more people are seeing the need for additional housing.

Bristol Meadows was approved by the village in 2011 and , townhomes, duplexes and single-family homes near Laraway and Schoolhouse roads.

There are also plans for senior housing as part of the , and when the village annexed the vacant land northeast of the Walmart area, developer Andy Dystrup said in the past. At that meeting, some trustees pointed out the number of senior housing proposals in town.

"Certainly there’s a demand for senior housing, but we are seeing more of those (developments) of late," trustee Nancy Dye said.

About 17.8 percent of New Lenox's population is currently 55 years or older, but just over a quarter of the population is between 40 and 54 years old, so the need for more senior housing could grow. 

Ellis said this new proposal likely wouldn't be much of a concern as to whether there's too many senior housing developments in town, and that's because it would be income-restricted.

"I wouldn't imagine many problems because we'd be providing affordable housing," she said.


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