Westerly Apartments was Ohio’s first HUD Section 202 project in the 1960s. Its renovation will mark the first LIHTC project in Lakewood, Ohio—preserving affordable homes for low-income seniors.
The Westerly Apartments is also the first complex of its kind in the United States to include an onsite senior community center offering a full service health clinic, a 110-seat dining room, a 175-seat auditorium, and activity center.
CHN Housing Partners partnered with Lakewood Senior Citizens, Inc. to renovate the Westerly Apartments, a 3-building, 492-unit complex. Each building will be renovated separately to more effectively address tenant needs by correcting issues associated with building layout and the age of the structures.
The Westerly Apartments has been extremely well maintained by Lakewood Senior Citizens, Inc. (LSC). The buildings all share similar aesthetic styling as well as similar building systems. However, the buildings were designed and built according to the market needs and building techniques of the 1960s – alcove apartments, inefficient mechanical systems and inappropriate configuration for today’s needs.
LSC, in partnership with CHN, has implemented a plan to rehabilitate and recapitalize the Westerly Apartments. Mechanical systems will be upgraded with high efficiency systems; finishes will be updated with more durable products; apartment layouts will change to address current market trends; accessibility and visitability issues will be addressed; and all renovations will meet Enterprise Green Communities© standards.
Lakewood Senior Citizens has significant experience as owner and proactive property manager for numerous other affordable housing projects. CHN was chosen as its development partner after a thorough RFP process that included other local and national nonprofit and for-profit developers
