The developer of the Vero Green Apartments has proposed building a 159-unit independent living facility for adults 55-plus in a commercial area in St. Lucie West.
The facility would be designed for Baby Boomers who want a variety of services, such as 24-hour security, restaurant-style dining, housekeeping, laundry and recreational and social activities.
Lloyd Jones Multifamily Investment firm of Miami plans to build Aviva of Port St. Lucie on a 10.6-acre site on Lake Whitney Place, due south of South County Regional Stadium.
The independent living facility could open in 2021 or 2022 depending on City of Port St. Lucie development approval and construction permitting processes.
“It’s a huge market with the Baby Boomer generation,” Frank Baynham, the developer’s architect, told the city Planning and Zoning Board on June 4. “It’s something that’s needed in every community.”
“Independent living is a starter home of age-targeted housing,” Baynham said. “There will be a lot of widows and widowers who have lost their spouse and can’t maintain their home. They want to move to a facility that not only provides them nice housing, but also a social environment.”
“The big impetus is No. 1 to have meal service,” Baynham said about the reason people want to live at Aviva. “There is a restaurant-quality food service facility in the common area.”
“We offer clubs, a lot of activities and an activities director,” Baynham said. “There is transportation to Target, Publix, things like that for the people who can’t drive.”
The facility will not provide any on-side medical services, city records say. But there will be regular wellness checks, exercise classes, concierge service, a library and a spa/beauty salon.
Lloyd Jones is building similar facilities in Sunrise and Naples, the company website says. The facilities have spaces equipped with technology for virtual doctor visits as well as on-site exams.
The units cost about $250,000 each to develop, the company website says. That means the Aviva at Port St. Lucie project would be worth nearly $39.8 million upon completion.
The Planning and Zoning Board voted unanimously June 4 to recommend the City Council approve a zoning amendment for the project. The board is to review the Aviva site plan on July 2.
The council is to review the zoning amendment on June 24 and the site plan on July 22.
Lloyd Jones has a contract to purchase the vacant tract from CREG Lake Whitney LLC, of Nashua, N.H., city records show.
It has a market value of $2 million, St. Lucie County property records show. CREG Lake Whitney LLC paid $2.9 million for the parcel in December 2010.
The land currently carries an approved site plan for a 158-unit rental community, city records show. A 134,070-square-foot office complex had previously been approved for the site.
The property sits between Lake Whitney Professional Park and West Park Professional Center and overlooks Lake Whitney.
Board member Jon Corzine and Magnolia Lakes homeowner Jake Moriarity questioned whether the zoning amendment would allow a substance-abuse treatment facility to be developed on the site.
“What was requested was not just to approve independent living, but to approve all of the uses under institutional zoning, which we know includes private hospital, which has been used to build a drug rehab facility on East Torino (Parkway),” Moriarity said.
In addition, the location might not be suitable for senior living because it gets noisy around the South County Regional Stadium and First Data Field, the New York Mets’ spring training home.
“There’s no residential use anywhere near this proposed plan,” Moriarity said. “It just doesn’t make any sense.”
But Lloyd Jones is committed to building an independent living facility on the site, Baynham said. And the nearby stadiums, professional offices, shops and restaurants make it an attractive location for Baby Boomers.
“This is 55-plus. People go to baseball games until they’re 85,” Baynham said. “We’ll be a big user of that stadium. Same thing with the high school stadium. A lot of those people may just get up and go to a football game or go to a soccer game on Friday night as a means of something to do.”
