Demographics spark demand for senior housing

An independent living center in Fort Collins will be completed and construction on senior housing projects in Loveland and Greeley will begin this summer.

The projects are an indication that the senior housing boom that started a couple of years ago shows no signs of slowing.

“I think eventually senior housing will be overbuilt in Northern Colorado,´ said Yvonne Myers, coordinator for Columbine Health Systems, which plans to open an independent living center at its campus in south central Fort Collins late this summer. “It’s kind of like condos. They’re hot, and then suddenly there are too many of them. But that’s the kind of market we’re in.”

Demographics in Northern Colorado indicate a market for senior housing. The number of Colorado residents age 65 and older increased 26 percent during the 1990s and now represents almost 10 percent of the state’s population. The 2000 Census counted about 24,000 people in Larimer County age 65 and older, also 10 percent of the county’s population.

With Baby Boomers entering retirement, that percentage will increase. By 2020, the 65-and-older crowd is expected to account for 13 percent of the population, according to the Colorado Department of Local Affairs.

Builders see Northern Colorado as a haven for senior housing because of publications that have named Loveland and Fort Collins among the best places to retire.

“Northern Colorado is a wonderful place for seniors to retire,´ said Randy Fitzgerald, regional director for Kansas and Colorado for the Evangelical Lutheran Good Samaritan Society, which has three Northern Colorado senior housing projects in the works. “That’s why we’re looking for ways to expand our mission in Northern Colorado.”

Groundbreaking is set for late May on a $45 million Good Samaritan senior housing complex at Fox Run in west Greeley, a combination of independent-living apartments and duplexes. Fox Run will be the third Good Samaritan senior campus in Greeley. It also has the Bonell campus in south Greeley and Joe P. Martinez Gardens, a 44-apartment senior complex built in 2001 in north Greeley.

The Good Samaritan Society is also planning to build 42 independent-living units at the Loveland Good Samaritan Village. Construction will start this summer.

Good Samaritan also plans to invest up to $100 million in a development at the Water Valley South development in Windsor. Construction is expected to begin in the spring of 2006. The complex will offer continuum care, which refers to the full spectrum of senior housing that ranges from independent-living to assisted-living to nursing-home care.

There has also been interest in building a senior housing complex as part of Centerra, a 3,000-acre development at U.S. Highway 34 and Interstate 25 in Loveland, that will include retail, commercial buildings and homes.

The Medical Center of the Rockies, also under construction at Centerra, has spurred most of the interest in senior housing in the same area, said Doug Hill, chief operating officer for McWhinney Enterprises, developers of Centerra.

Hill said his company would decide in the next couple of months whether to pursue a senior housing project.

The independent living centers being constructed by Columbine Health Systems and the Good Samaritan Society are the latest trend in senior housing.

The Winslow, Columbine’s $11 million independent living center, will have 94 apartments, 50 percent of which have already been leased. Life at the center will include a continental breakfast each morning, 30 additional meals per month and cleaning once a week. No staff will be on site to provide nursing care, but residents can hire their own home-health-care nurses.

“People are seeing independent living as a viable option,” Myers said. “Just because they need a little help doesn’t mean they want to live with their kids or live in an assisted living center. Independent living’s a supportive environment, but it doesn’t take away your independence.”

Fitzgerald said the goal of independent living centers is to allow people to stay in their own homes as long as possible. With continuum care, residents have the option of moving to a higher level of care, such as an assisted-living center or a nursing home, if they need it.

Myers said consumers are also becoming smarter about their retirement living options. As a result, senior housing developers have to understand the diverse needs of those over 65, she said.

“Consumers want the most independent place possible,” she said. “But someone in independent living could be a nursing-home client tomorrow.”

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