December 7, 2006
South Franklin Circle Prepares for Fall 2007 Groundbreaking
By JOAN DEMIRJIAN
Site clearing is to begin in January for South Franklin Circle, a senior citizens complex with housing styles that include assisted-living units in Bainbridge.
A subsidiary of the not-for-profit Judson Services Inc., will be built on 88 acres between South Franklin Street and Chagrin Road in the township.
Site clearing on the land will begin in January, said Robert M. Lucarelli, spokesman for South Franklin Circle. Clearing must start before the Indiana bat-mating season, which requires a moratorium on the work from April until September, he said.
Groundbreaking for the first units will take place in September 2007. A.M. Higley Co. is construction manager of the project.
This rendering shows the first and second phases of work planned for South Franklin Circle
Mr. Lucarelli said South Franklin Circle has begun preparations for implementing an on-site display trailer showing examples of the bathrooms, kitchens and finishes. The trailer will be accessed off South Franklin Street.
South Franklin Circle will have entrances off Chagrin Road and South Franklin Street.
“We're excited that things are moving forward,” said Cynthia Dunn, president and chief executive officer of Judson Retirement Community.
Headquarters for South Franklin Circle are in Chagrin Falls.
In pursuing a two-phase plan of construction, the first phase of 210 units will include stand-alone cottages, garden houses or duplexes, two-story townhouses and independent apartments, she said. It also will include 40 assisted-living suites, Mrs. Dunn said.
A community building with a wellness center will be built in phase one, she said. The three-story building will include apartments on the upper floors, and apartment buildings will be grouped around the center, she said.
An auditorium, dining room, pub, bistro, weight room, creative-arts studio, pool, sauna, spa, fitness room, clinic and computer classroom will be located in the community building, Mrs. Dunn said. It also will include a distance-learning center and business center for residents who are still conducting business, she said.
Move-in date for the first phase will be 2009, Mrs. Dunn said. Informational meetings are being held at country clubs and community centers throughout the Chagrin Valley and Northeast Ohio. “People are excited to see the progress,” she said.
“And the economical impact is significant to the area.” She said the community will recruit and retain people to the area for their post-career living.
Three ponds will be located on the property, and a Cleveland Metroparks paved trail will wind through the site to Chagrin Road near the Chagrin Roller Rink.
“We're expecting to start clearing the first week in January,” said William Fehrenbach, owner's representative and project manager. “The overall site is going to be fantastic. There will be wetlands and natural areas we won't touch.”
Landscape architecture at the site is being done by Oehme Van Sweden and Associates, of Washington, D.C.
“The site is going to be very natural looking,” Mr. Fehrenbach said. “It will be grasses, meadows and four-season perennial colors.” The perimeter will be wooded with various sizes of trees, along with ground cover and shrubs, he said.
Twenty-seven acres, or 31 percent of the total site, is in conservation easement and deed restricted areas. Twenty-eight acres of tree canopy will be preserved, representing about half of the existing trees, Mr. Fehrenbach said. And an additional 17 acres will be replanted with new trees.
They are working with Bainbridge Township's zoning, which limits maximum-site coverage to 20 percent, he said. Underground parking at the apartments around the community building will keep vehicles to a minimum, he said.
The township required the maximum height of buildings to 44 feet, and it gives a more human and homey scale to the plan, Mr. Fehrenbach said. “This won't look like a 'facility.' This looks like a small community or friendly neighborhood.”
Used with permission of The Chagrin Valley Times.
For media inquiries about South Franklin Circle, please contact:
Rob Lucarelli
Director of Communications
(216) 791-2321
rlucarelli@judsonsmartliving.org
