MEADVILLE ? About two years after halting expansion plans into the Conneaut Lake area, Meadville-based Wesbury United Methodist Retirement Community now is looking to expand north into Erie County, possibly sometime in 2013.
Wesbury is in the midst of developing plans for a senior residential community on an 11.5-acre site of the former Edinboro Inn along Route 6N, according to Donald Clawson, Wesbury?s president and chief executive officer.
Annesley Association of Senior Health Services, a wholly-owned Wesbury subsidiary, purchased the property in December, and the site is being cleared for potential development as single-family homes, Clawson said.
Wesbury is a continuing-care retirement community offering independent living, assisted living and skilled nursing care in Meadville.
In 2009, Wesbury began to formulate development plans for a 30-unit apartment with some retail space along Route 322, east of Conneaut Lake.
However, it never purchased any property in the area and instead was going to use an outside developer.
In the spring of 2010, Wesbury said the Conneaut Lake project wasn?t going to go forward, due to a sour economy. Wesbury was concerned the apartments would be overpriced for the market by the time they were completed, Clawson said at the time.
Edinboro proposal
No site plan has been developed as yet for the Edinboro property, but it would be similar to Thoburn Village, a single-family home/independent living area developed on Wesbury?s property between Park Avenue and North Main Street, in Meadville, Clawson said.
?As part of our long-range strategy, our board of directors adopted a plan that included opportunities in surrounding communities to expand our mission so we could help more people,? Clawson said.
?Conneaut Lake is on hold, but it?s still on the drawing board for the possible future,? Clawson said.
However, Clawson cautions the proposed Edinboro project still has a long way to go.
Zoning for the Edinboro property has to be changed to accommodate single-family homes as well as a possible small commercial plaza, he said.
Wesbury is planning to submit a zoning change application in the coming weeks, he said.
Also, sewer, water and natural gas lines will have to be extended from the former hotel site to other areas of the property, he said.
?It will be a year before infrastructure would be in place,? Clawson said.
Preliminary ideas call for a cluster of one-story single-family independent living homes of 1,400 to 1,800 square feet each, but the number of new homes won?t be known until a site plan is developed, he said.
In addition to the homes, Wesbury is looking to have a small commercial center on the property, he said. Wesbury also would have an office for maintenance and other services at the property, he said.
The homes are expected to be in the $200,000 to $250,000 range, he said.
?They?re to be designed for ?empty-nesters,? those who have raised a family and are looking for a smaller home,? Clawson said.
There already is a preliminary list of those interested, Clawson said. He wouldn?t say how many, but said the list had less than a dozen names.
The former hotel site is adjacent to a golf course and outdoor swimming pool, he said. The owners of the golf course and pool are interested in having the development take place, Clawson said.
General McLane School District, the local school district in Edinboro, the borough of Edinboro and surrounding townships all have Local Economic Revitalization and Tax Assistance (LERTA) programs for residential properties, but not commercial ones, Clawson said.
A LERTA program forgives a certain portion of real estate taxes for a defined period of time to spur property development.
Many commercial LERTA programs are for five or 10 years, with taxes abated a certain percentage each year until the full 100 percent payment level is reached.
Wesbury is working with the school board and Edinboro to develop a LERTA program for the property, Clawson said.
?We think it?s an ideal spot for a small residential community,? Clawson said.
Keith Gushard can be reached at 724-6370 or by email at kgushard@meadvilletribune.com.
Source: http://meadvilletribune.com/local/x741513613/Edinboro-site-eyed-for-retirement-homes
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