Thursday, October 20, 2011

CHANDLER — SilverLeaf, a new complex here providing senior citizens who are able to live independently with high-quality housing at affordable rental rates, is adding 44 apartments in four-plexes and six-plexes in nine buildings less than a year after it opened.

The additions will increase capacity of SilverLeaf at Chandler Senior Apartment Community at 801 Farm-to-Market Road 2010 from 30 apartment units in six buildings to a total of 74 apartments, all built in the Texas traditional style of architecture.

“We hope to bring the first buildings (of Phase 2) on line at the end of the year,” said Mike Sugrue, principal of StoneLeaf Companies, a Mabank-based development company specializing in senior living communities.

“We would not ever build a place we would not live in ourself,” Sugrue said.

Phase 1 on the approximately 13-acre site formally opened in December 2010, although leasing started earlier, and it is fully occupied.

Residing in the new senior apartment community is “wonderful and peaceful and the people are kind,” Benni Brown said. She was drawn to move in by the convenience, access to things and realization that she is older.

She also liked knowing that her newly constructed apartment had never been lived in until she moved in.

There’s a waiting list of approximately 50 applicants for apartments under construction in Phase 2.

“I don’t foresee any problems filling up those 44 (new) units. Everyday people come by or call about an apartment,” said Laura Dickson, on-site property manager for Alpha-Barnes Real Estate Services, a management company hired by Sugrue to oversee the senior living complex.

Most residents are widows or widowers, although there are a few couples.

The development represents an investment of about $7.5 million, including $3 million for the costs of Phase 1 and $4.5 million for Phase 2, Sugre said.

Sugre undertook building the complex through the low-income housing tax credit program, based on Section 42 of the Internal Revenue Code, a federal program administered in Texas by the Texas Department of Community Affairs that provides the private market with tax incentives to invest in affordable rental housing.

His company picked Chandler as the site of the project after a market study showed a need for this type of housing, partly because Chandler is a bedroom community to Tyler.

“We looked at a lot of different places to see where there is a need. I talked to a number of towns in East Texas. The people in Chandler were very, very accommodating and really wanted housing and knew they needed housing,” Sugrue said.

To show the state and federal governments that the city of Chandler wanted the development and was willing to participate, the Chandler Economic Development Corp. loaned the developer $100,000 for Phase 1 and $140,000 for Phase 2 from half-cent sales tax revenue, city Administrator Jim Moffeit said.

Sugrue paid back the Phase 1 loan upon completion of construction and Moffeit expects he will pay off the Phase 2 loan when Phase 2 is completed, probably next summer.

The new senior living complex allows a person with limited income to have a place to go and still be independent, Moffeit said.

“There’s a big need in Chandler,” Sugrue said, “because of its proximity to Tyler. It’s an area that had a need and we could fill that need.”

Many of the Phase 1 residents have family members who live in Tyler and wanted to be close by. Several Tylerites with aging parents moved them into StoneLeaf from all over Texas, Louisiana and Oklahoma City, Ms. Dickson said.

“It’s a quiet, safe community,” she added. “The biggest (benefit) is the community aspect. I can truthfully say that you see the best in people when you live in a community like this. They (tenants) get to know each other, share rides to the grocery store and doctor, check on each other.”

There are two restrictions that tenants must meet — age and income.

Phase 1 is restricted to persons aged 62 years and older, while Phase 2 will be restricted to persons aged 55 years and older.

Depending on tenants’ income, monthly rent for a one-bedroom apartment ranges from $229 to $526 and for a two-bedroom apartment the range is $278 to $634. The rent includes garbage pickup, water and sewer service. Size of the apartments varies from 750 square feet for a one-bedroom apartment to 900 square feet for two-bedroom units.

Most tenants sign a 12-month lease, although the minimum lease is for six months.

There are eight handicapped-accessible units. Some are designed for the mobility impaired and the hearing and sight impaired as well. Units for the handicapped have roll-in showers for anyone who is wheel-chair bound.

All of the units have granite counter tops in kitchens and bath rooms. Counters are chair height and easy to reach over. To facilitate movement, especially by anyone on a walker, they have plank vinyl flooring and no carpeting, which makes them easier to clean and less offensive to anyone with allergies.

Living rooms have 9-foot, tray ceilings, creating the illusion that the apartments are bigger than they actually are. Insulation is heavier than in a typical home to make the units energy efficient, and every room has a ceiling fan. Most have showers, but some also have bath tubs.

All of the units have washer and dryer hookups, dish washer, disposal, self-cleaning ovens, a 17-cubic-foot refrigerator with ice maker, built-in microwave oven, walk-in closets, an outside storage area and patio. All of the light fixtures have an energy star rating to keep electric bills down, Sugrue said.

A community building in the complex serves as a gathering place for residents. It has a large room with a flat screen TV where they watch football games, play games, and have parties. There are billiard tables and card playing tables. Another room hosts crafts, Bible study, health fairs and other activities.

A business center in the community building is equipped with computers for residents, a copy machine and a fax machine.

The community building also has an office, a kitchen and a laundry room for residents who do not install a washer and dryer in their apartment.

Walking trails weave through the property and there is a place for a community garden.