A proposed senior living facility which apparently stalled last year is back on the table, Chesterton Town Manager Bernie Doyle told the Chesterton Town Council at its meeting Monday night.

The development, dubbed Monarch Manor, is envisioned by the Burton Foundation, a not-for-profit, as a three-story facility with 80 units, which would be sited immediately adjacent to the Addison Pointe Health and Rehabilitation Center, an advanced-care nursing home currently under construction on Dickinson Road.

Doyle said that Burton Foundation’s partners are currently negotiating with the owner of the property in question, Porter hospital. Burton Foundation is also attempting to secure tax credits from the state.

According to a prospectus provided to town staff last year, “Preliminary marketing analysis has proven that there is a need for safe, decent, affordable housing for seniors in this market area.”

The facility would feature 28 one-bed units of 766 square feet, from $228 to $850; and 52 two-bed units of 1,016 square feet, from $266 to $980. The facility would have a central lobby, security clearance, full-time management and maintenance, a library, craft and game room, a TV room, and a dining area with kitchenette. Developers are also touting a park setting with a fountain and waterfall and gazebo.

Total project value: $15 million.

“I am particularly keen to see this project develop, as I was with Addison Pointe, as it falls into line with our approach to smart growth with an emphasis on the medical industry,” Doyle told the Chesterton Tribune after the meeting.

Posted 1/13/2012