Village of Sussex —Brookfield developer Art Sawall says he may build a 100-bed assisted living facility on the Golner Farm rather than the condominiums that he initially proposed to village officials.Sawall said he has discovered that a portion of the 7.5-acre site west of the post office is in a flood plain.
The existence of the flood plain would preclude building basements for the condo units and, according to Sawall, basements are a popular amenity for condominiums.
Without basements, the condominiums would be more difficult to market, Sawall said.
In addition, the cost of purchasing the mandatory flood insurance will adversely affect the financial feasibility of the project, he added.
Sawall said he is in the initial stages of developing plans for a facility that would provide senior living care ranging from independent living to memory care units.
“I believe it is actually a better use of the land than condos. But, everything is still in a very preliminary stage. I haven’t even talked to the village, yet,” he said.
His plans are likely to be warmly received by at least one village official, Village President Greg Goetz, who also chairs the plan commission.
Goetz has said there is a need for a senior assisted living facility in the village that provides various levels of care.
However, some developers have told village officials such a facility cannot be profitably developed on the Golner farm site.
Sawall said he disagrees.
He said there is a market for such a facility because there is a shortage of recently built comprehensive care assisted living facilities in the region.
“People don’t want to go into older facilities. They want new,” he said.
Sawall said he is exploring several development options.
Included in those options would be him joining into a partnership with the owner of another assisted living facility in the region and jointly owning and operating the Sussex facility.
Another option, he said, would be to build the facility and then lease it to a company that manages such facilities.
Sawall is the developer and owner of the Mammoth Springs residential and retail complex at Main Street and Waukesha Avenue.
He anticipates that the last of the five residential and two retail buildings in the complex will be completed in June.
He anticipates beginning construction in June of about 100 apartment units that will be built south of the Mammoth Springs quarry pond.
The Mammoth Spring South project will include approximately 20 ultra-high end apartments with rents ranging from about $1,800 to $1,900 per month.
They will be three-story, 1,800-square-foot, three-bedroom, 2.5-bath units, with a view of the quarry pond.
There will be another approximately 20 units that will be about 1,500 square feet and feature two bedrooms, some with lofts, that will range in rent from approximately $,1500 to $1,600.
The remainder of the units will be one and two bedrooms ranging from $1,000 to $1,400 per month.
Written by Kelly Smith
Sussex Suns
Sussex Suns
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