Senior housing offered in lieu of Glen Lake condos

Back in 2006, Minnetonka wanted 100 new condos in the Glen Lake redevelopment area as a way to lure young homeowners to the community.

Now the poor housing market and slumping economy may force the city to settle for senior apartments instead.

St. Therese Southwest has applied to build 150 rental units for seniors on the vacant 2.6 acres at Tree Street and Woodhill Road, a site originally reserved for condos.

The proposal has presented the city with a choice between leaving the site vacant until the condo market returns or taking a senior project "that is here at the present, ready to be built," said Minnetonka Community Development Director Julie Wischnack.

To approve the St. Therese building, the city would have to amend its contract with Glen Lake developer Tom Wartman, who is anxious for the change.

In 2006, Wartman and the city agreed that he would build 40 high-end condos on Kinsel Point overlooking Glen Lake and 100 moderately priced condos on the site St. Therese is now considering.

Unable to start those developments because of market conditions, Wartman wants to sell the one site to St. Therese and move back the required start date of the Kinsel Point condos from the end of 2009 to June 2013.

"Having new deadlines, and then another new deadline, and then another new deadline, damages the credibility of us all," said Council Member Brad Wiersum. He said he would prefer to keep the deadline as it is and then consider developer late fees once the restaurant opens.

Most residents who came to neighborhood meetings to learn about the St. Therese proposal were relieved to hear that something might be built on the site, Wischnack said. But some residents oppose the senior housing.

"I think it's time to call it quits with this project. It's meaningless," resident Grace Sheely told council members at a recent meeting. "You are not giving us what you promised, which was single-family home ownership."

Resident Ivan Fox said senior housing does not merit the tax incentives the city offered the condo complex. "We were told this would be for families and it would be for young adults. ... This is kind of a fraud."

The proposal is set to be discussed by the Minnetonka Planning Commission on Thursday and by the City Council again on March 23.

But this was one of the few opportunities the city had to diversify its housing stock to attract young people, Hiller said. "I don't wish to just write off this [senior] project. It is attractive. But it is taking away something of great need to the city."

Council Member Tony Wagoner said he would want to make sure that St. Therese would have the same percentage of affordable units that were guaranteed in the original plan. He said the promise of affordable housing in the condo building was one of the main reasons that the city offered tax incentives.

Mike Pagh of St. Therese Southwest said there would be demand for the senior apartments in a 3- to 5-mile radius around the site. If seniors move, that would free up houses for younger families, he said.

Pagh said the economy and market conditions are a challenge, but "we do have the ability to get HUD financing."

Wartman's attorney, John Herman, urged the city to make the switch. "At this point, with this economy, there are not a lot of alternative paths."