Lilydale planning commission gives tennis club redevelopment a thumbs up

The Lilydale planning commission gave the go-ahead this month for the vacant Lilydale Tennis and Fitness Club to be demolished to make way for a senior living complex and luxury apartments.

Developers requested approval of a plan for the site that would feature a mix of memory care, assisted living and independent living units as well as a three-story apartment building. The buildings would total about 170 units and share a parking lot.

The development will be discussed in greater detail in a public hearing at the Oct. 11 City Council meeting.

The 100,000-square-foot facility off Sibley Memorial Highway has been empty since 2006. The city had approved initial plans by developer Mendota Homes to turn the site into a condo development, but financing fell through. The site is now in foreclosure.

"The site won," said John Mathern, president of Mendota Homes and general manager of Lilydale Commons, the property owner and developer that submitted the new plans. "In the end, housing will be here. One hundred and seventy units is a great fit for Lilydale."

The planning commission suggested some minor landscaping changes, such as adding trees to act as a buffer on the river bluff, Mathern said.

Southview Senior Living Communities, which has facilities in West St. Paul and Inver Grove Heights, is the proposed operator of the senior facility. Lilydale Apartments, run by bank officer John Wall, would own the apartment complex.

"Demographically, it's a good location," said Lance Lemieux, president of Southview Senior Living. "There are seniors on both sides of the river."

Wall said the proximity to the river would be a good selling point.

"We'll have a competitive advantage with our location and our new construction," said Wall, who works in Highland's disposition department.

If the project is approved by the City Council later this year, construction could begin in the spring, he said.

Developers have asked the city to establish a tax increment financing district to help provide about $1.6 million for the project.