Nonprofit MidPen Housing has redeveloped part of an older housing community that no longer was meeting the needs of its senior residents in Menlo Park, Calif.
MidPen purchased the 130-unit Gateway Apartments, a complex built in 1960 serving seniors and families on two blocks in the Belle Haven neighborhood near Facebook’s headquarters, and lightly rehabbed it in 1987.
When the city of Menlo Park rezoned the sites for higher density, it presented the opportunity to create a more-efficient senior community on one block and a family community on the second block. The first phase of the redevelopment, renamed Sequoia Belle Haven, nearly doubled the number of apartments for seniors, from 48 to 90, and replaced single-story buildings and inefficient space with a new, energy-efficient building with elevator service to help its residents age in place.
Through the redevelopment, MidPen also was able to tailor the amenities for the seniors, with a computer lab, a fitness center geared toward the population, a lounge area, outdoor workout equipment, and a walking path inscribed with the words of “Santiago,” a poem by David Whyte.
The redesign also employed many green features, such as photovoltaic solar panels, high-efficiency windows, solar hot-water systems, Energy Star appliances, and drought-tolerant landscaping, helping Sequoia Belle Haven reach as close to net-zero as possible. These features have earned the community LEED Platinum certification and exceed the California Energy Code by 33.5%.
Completed in February 2017, the $43.2 million redevelopment is serving seniors earning 30% to 50% of the area median income, with 36 of the original residents returning.
“It really is an absolutely beautiful building, and it has created a welcoming kind of feeling in the building that the residents are contributing to and benefiting from,” says Jan Lindenthal, vice president of real estate development at MidPen. “From the perspective of the seniors who are living there, you can see on their faces the joy they have and the pride they have in their homes.”
The second phase of the Gateway Apartments redevelopment is in the works and will provide a brand-new building and community space for 141 families, an increase of 59 units.
