Seattle-based company gets permit for senior housing in Juneau

A sign advertising a public meeting marks the location of a planned senior housing building at Vintage Park in the Mendenhall Valley . (Photo by Ed Schoenfeld/CoastAlaska News)
A sign advertising a public meeting marks the location of a planned senior housing building at Vintage Park in the Mendenhall Valley . (Photo by Ed Schoenfeld/CoastAlaska News)

A Seattle-based company is one step closer to building a 49-unit senior housing facility in Juneau. If successful, it would cater to a region’s housing market that’s been historically difficult for everyone, especially Southeast’s aging population.

Earlier this week, the Juneau Planning Commission approved a conditional use permit for GMD Development, LLC. The majority of the beds in the proposed housing unit will be low-income affordable housing.

Assemblyman Loren Jones thinks it’s a positive step for the community.

A page from GWD Development's proposal for senior housing, which would include a four-story building with 49 living units. (Image from Regular Commission Meeting Agenda)
A page from GWD Development’s proposal for senior housing, which would include a four-story building with 49 living units. (Image from Regular Commission Meeting Agenda)

“Where it’s at, it’s going to be next to the assisted-living facility,” Jones said, “so there’d be a senior complex there in the valley, and I think it’s very important for Juneau for that to take place.”

The location of the site is off Clinton Drive, near Safeway. The non-profit Senior Citizens Support Services Inc. plans to build a 90-apartment, assisted-living facility in the same area.

Jones said the proposed housing project would help a market that really needs it.

“I have every anticipation there may yet be some construction work this fall, but I would suspect construction would hopefully start next spring,” he said.

Earlier this year, KTOO reported on the shortage of senior housing in for Southeast’s aging community. A 2014 market study estimated that over the next 30 years, Juneau will need more than 300 additional beds to meet demand, given the city’s limited space.

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