Cadence, an affordable senior housing development in Fort Collins, CO (Photo courtesy of Volunteers of America)
An affordable senior housing development in Colorado is the first community of its kind in the United States to receive the “Plus” level of two key sustainability certifications, according to the International WELL Building Institute, or IWBI.
Cadence, a Volunteers of America community in Fort Collins with 55 senior apartments, received this highest-level dual certification from Green Communities and WELL Certifications from the IWBI. It also was named a Zero Energy Ready project by the US Department of Energy, according to the IWBI.
The certifications recognize the development’s green building achievements, including high levels of energy efficiency. Certifier Green Communities is a sustainable building program that focuses on affordable housing and is created and administered by Enterprise Community Partners, a nonprofit that aims to increase housing supply. The dual certification program is part of a collaboration with IWBI, which provides frameworks for the creation and certification of spaces that support human health and well-being.
‘Future-proofing’ for climate change
Wellness initiatives have increasingly become a priority in the senior living playbook, particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic. The companies involved in Cadence’s certifications said that including sustainable building in wellness strategies is less a choice than a necessity.
“Resilient building is the only way to future-proof our communities against the effects of a changing climate,” Krista Egger, VP of building resilient futures at Enterprise said in a statement. “Cadence represents a deep commitment to sustainability: healthy, energy-efficient affordable homes that are responsive to resident, community and environmental priorities.”
Financing construction
Cadence was developed by the nonprofit organization Volunteers for America, which used the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program to finance its construction. Equity was provided by Enterprise. Thirty-five states, including Colorado, and in addition to Washington, DC, and New York City, have LIHTC programs that either require or support Enterprise Green Communities certification.
Apartments at Cadence are reserved for residents who earn between 20% and 80% of the local community’s median income, which was $75,200 for an individual in 2022, local news outlet the Coloradoan reported.
In Larimer County, where Cadence is located, people aged 60 or more years are expected to make up a quarter of the population by 2025, the Coloradoan reported. In 2022, only 13% of respondents to a county Office on Aging survey said that they have adequate access to affordable housing.
Meanwhile, the WELL Building Institute has witnessed an uptick of interest in pursuing WELL certification among senior living operators, Rachel Hodgdon, president and CEO of IWBI said in 2022.
“Through our partnership with Enterprise, affordable housing developments all across the country can attain dual certification under Green Communities Criteria and WELL, which helps ensure this critical sector has the opportunity to take the lead on both sustainability and health,” she said in a statement regarding Cadence’s achievement.
