Retirement community nonprofit presents proposal for Madison project to commissioners

MARSHALL - Senior Madison residents may soon have more options for affordable continuing care retirement living.

At the Board of Commissioners meeting in October, An Asheville-based retirement community care nonprofit pitched its proposal to bring a new facility to Madison.

Givens Estates is an Asheville-based nonprofit continuing care retirement community founded in 1979

Givens Estates' affordable housing director Theresa Stephens met virtually with the Madison County Board of Commissioners Oct. 11 to discuss the potential of Givens bringing a development to Madison County. 

Givens is a continuing care retirement community with campuses in Asheville, Black Mountain and Waynesville. It has two campuses in Asheville, including the original Givens Estates which sits on 215 acres and houses nearly 700 residents, and Givens Gerber Park in South Asheville. Givens Great Laurels in Haywood County hosts more than 100 residents, while Givens Highland Farms in Black Mountain hosts another 375 residents. 

Givens Estates' project development coordinator Andrew Crosson and Tonya Haddock, an affordable housing consultant working with Givens for the project, joined Stephens for the virtual presentation. 

"Tonya, Andrew and I are working closely together to address senior affordable housing needs in our rural counties in Western North Carolina," Stephens said. "Dogwood Health Trust has come to us as a partner because they like the way we do senior housing, and what we've done in Waynesville and in Asheville with a model of housing and the supportive services to help our seniors age in the living apartments as long as possible. We are working with various counties to look at options that you have and what your needs are."

According to Stephens, Givens was founded with the Housing and Urban Development's Section 202 Support Housing for the Elderly program. 

"Everything else that is Givens has grown out of that affordable housing," she said. "We like to say that affordable housing is in our DNA. We strive to serve seniors across the income spectrum - from high to low and low to high, and everything in between. We are connected with the United Methodist Church through the Western North Carolina Conference, and are committed to making a difference in the lives of seniors."

Stephens said Givens has identified the region's housing needs through its LifeMinistries initiative, which was started in 1998 and serves roughly 6,000 residents across 13 counties. 

"We strive to balance our affordable and middle-market, and market-rate housing," Stephens said. "We also work with local various other nonprofits to partner. Part of the way we support seniors...is through local nonprofits already serving in the community. We can't do everything, so we seek out partners to do those things with."

Madison County's community-minded spirit is one of the features of the county that Givens finds so attractive, the nonprofit organization's affordable housing director said.  

"That's one of the things that has really impressed me about Madison County," Stephens said. "Some folks from Madison County have visited Gerber Park clients, and they brought a group of people from a long array of nonprofits in Madison County who want to serve your seniors. So the commitment that we saw in Madison County was quite impressive."

Stephens pointed to Givens' Waynesville campus, which was built in 2007, as an example of what Madison County's retirement community may look like. 

"When it opened 14 years ago, Waynesville was even more rural than it is now," she said. "It's grown a lot in that last 14 years. This is 100 units for seniors and disabled people. I think it's a really good example of what we could do in some of our more rural counties in Western North Carolina." 

Stephens also cited Madison's crucial need for affordable housing for its senior residents as another selling point for bringing the retirement community to the county.

"The need in Madison County is great, We just got an updated market study, and Madison County is projected to experience at least a 4% increase in renter off-site households over the next five years. The rental housing gap in Madison County is estimated to be 270 units, with 192 of those units needed for seniors. Of those 192 units, 95 units are needed for seniors at or below 50% of the area median income." 

Per the study, the county's vacancy rate was zero, further highlighting the need for more affordable housing, Stephens said. 

"It's very clear that we have a critical need for housing," Interim County Manager Norris Gentry said. "You folks have an excellent reputation in both developing and operating these projects. We are very pleased that you are looking at coming to Madison County. We hope that we can work out something in the very near future that will benefit the citizens of Madison County."

Stephens said the proposed retirement community would be available for rental only, and would target residents with the most critical need for housing. 

The county's older population is "one of its greatest treasures and assets," said Commissioner Michael Garrison.

"I'm always excited when I hear public-private partnership ventures where the private sector steps in and takes responsibility," he said. "In this case Givens Estates has a proven track record of doing that and providing services. So, I welcome the opportunity to at least engage in dialogue to see what we can do to move forward with it."

Stephens said Givens Estates would be "very excited to be in Madison County." 

"We have a vision for Madison County," Stephen said. "We think we can come in and help you guys with your need for senior housing. We don't try to be all things to all people - we are pretty focused on senior housing, and that's our wheelhouse. That's what we try to focus on, and what we feel like we do well. If you feel like we can help you address that need, we would love to be in partnership with you."