$5.2M eco-friendly elderly home to be built in Utuado
Rendering of the Utuado elderly housing project.
The central mountain town of Utuado will become home to the island’s first affordable, eco-friendly elderly home, which is slated to begin construction in January 2013, at a cost of $5.2 million, representatives of the nonprofit developer in charge of the project, Pathstone CDC de Puerto Rico, announced this week.
The 32-housing complex will feature common facilities, green areas, elevators, air conditioning and parking. The first units should be handed over in mid-2014, said Michelle Sugden-Castillo, urban developer and executive director of PathStone.
To develop the project, PathStone competed and obtained federal funding through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Supportive Housing for the Elderly program. The housing project will offer rent subsidies to qualifying residents who are 62 or older.
“This issue is particularly relevant given that market studies show that 40 percent of Utuado households have a member who is over 65 and 46 percent live under poverty levels,” said Sudgen-Castillo.
The elderly housing project is currently in the design stage, which allows developers to establish their ‘green’ goals and develop a sustainability plan focused on energy, water and environmental conservation. The complex will eventually participate in a ‘green’ buildings certification process, she said.
