STILLWATER, Minn. — Standard Communities has made its first investment in Minnesota, acquiring Rivertown Commons, a 96-unit affordable seniors housing community in Stillwater.
The transaction is capitalized at $27.8 million. Stillwater is located along the St. Croix River separating Minnesota from Wisconsin, just east of the Twin Cities area.
Standard completed the acquisition in partnership with the Washington County Community Development Agency and the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency (MHFA). Huntington Bank provided the tax credit equity.
Standard will preserve and extend the affordability of Rivertown Commons, with resident income restricted to 60 percent of the area medium income.
The community was built in 1978 and previously renovated in 2007. It features one and two-bedroom units.
“Half of all renters in Minnesota are cost burdened, and rents continue to rise,” notes Jeffrey Jaeger, co-founder and principal of Standard Communities. “For seniors living on fixed incomes, it has become increasingly difficult to afford a quality home.”
Standard plans a nearly $9 million renovation of Rivertown Commons, which includes adding a second elevator and upgrading and modernizing various building systems. A 100-kW solar panel system will be added that will generate 112.5 MWh of clean energy annually, lowering the property’s carbon footprint by 86.6 tons of CO2 each year. Standard will also add a resident services coordinator at the property who will design and implement a comprehensive suite of resident services and programs.