The Joliet City Council has approved a Chicago developer’s $16 million plan to convert a former YMCA building into an apartment complex for senior citizens.
The developer still needs to secure about $3 million in state money before the project can begin, said Robert Gawronski, vice president of development and acquisitions for Senior Lifestyle Corp.
In a best-case scenario, the company could get a housing grant and historic tax credits this summer, start construction in the fall and open the 88-unit building at 215 N. Ottawa St. late next year, he said.
“We’re glad you’re here and look forward to the project,” Councilman Tim Brophy told Gawronski before the council voted 8-0 for the Senior Suites of Joliet project.
Besides seeking the state grants, the company will contribute $9.7 million, get a $500,000 housing fund loan from Joliet and a $3 million benefit by virtue of being within a tax increment financing (TIF) district, which covers the city’s downtown area. The company also will seek money from the federal government and Will County, Gawronski said.
The development agreement requires the company to start construction by September 2005 and open the building by December 2006. The company has an option to buy the six-story former YMCA, which was built in 1927.
The YMCA used the facility until the 1980s. Today, a Joliet company, Sportscenter Inc., owns the building, which is the site of a hotel and a bus stop.
The building is adjacent to the downtown campus of Joliet Junior College and is within blocks of Harrah’s Joliet Casino; Silver Cross Field, home of the Joliet JackHammers minor league baseball team; the offices of Will County government; and the Rialto Square Theatre.
Gawronski said the 18-year-old company, which operates senior rental facilities at 35 locations nationwide, took interest in Joliet because the city’s downtown area has become more attractive in recent years.
People must be at least 62 to live in the building, where rents will start at $625 a month for a studio and $695 for a one-bedroom apartment, he said.
