EVANSTON, Ill. — Evergreen Real Estate Group and CJE SeniorLife have started construction of Evanston Senior Housing, a 60-unit affordable seniors housing community approximately 12 miles north of downtown Chicago in Evanston.
The four-story, 73,017-square-foot building will be located next to the existing CJE SeniorLife Adult Day Services center. 1015 Howard LP, a partnership that includes CJE SeniorLife, Evergreen and U.S. Bancorp Community Development Corp., will own the property upon completion. Development costs are estimated at $25 million.
“It is unusual to have affordable senior housing and support services paired together in the same location — a model that we feel can be replicated elsewhere in the Chicago area and across the country,” says David Block, director of development for Evergreen Real Estate Group.
Operated by Evergreen’s in-house management team, Evanston Senior Housing will offer 54 one-bedroom and six two-bedroom independent living apartments for seniors age 62 or older, with incomes at or below 60 percent of the area median income. Evergreen will begin accepting applications for the apartments next spring.
Evanston Senior Housing is designed for LEED Silver certification, according to Andre Pintauro, president of Evergreen Construction Company, a division of Evergreen Real Estate Group that is serving as general contractor. The building will complement the enhanced streetscape coming in 2021 through a joint project between the cities of Evanston and Chicago.
Financial partners include IFF, provider of the pre-development loan; U.S. Bank, provider of the construction loan and mortgage loan; U.S. Bancorp Community Development Corp., the tax credit investor; the City of Evanston, which provided HOME and local Affordable Housing Funds; Illinois Housing Development Authority, which awarded the Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC) and the Illinois Affordable Housing Tax Credits (IAHTC); the Housing Authority of Cook County, which provided project-based vouchers for 30 units; and the ComEd Energy Efficiency Program.