As envisioned, Boulder Creek Commons will provide numerous benefits to the community of Boulder generally as well as to the adjacent neighborhoods.

  • We believe the most significant benefit of Boulder Creek Commons will be the new, permanently affordable senior housing rental apartments.  The buildings will include both private living areas and common areas for residents to enjoy, such as a library and exercise and card rooms. 

 

Why is affordable senior housing good for Boulder?

    • The 65 and-over age group is the fastest growing segment of Boulder’s population, and the housing needs of this group have been identified as among the most important by the City of Boulder.
    • It is estimated there were between 2,200 and 2,500 senior households in 2006 whose annual income qualifies them for affordable housing under City guidelines. Within the Boulder Valley, the population aged 65-74 years old will increase by 88% between 2005 and 2020 and will double between 2005 and 2025. (Source is the Colorado State Demographer's Office).
    • Low-income senior apartment owners report that there are more than 200 low-income seniors who are currently on wait lists for affordable apartments.  At the same time, some currently affordable senior housing is being converted to luxury senior housing, further exacerbating the problem.

What Makes Boulder Creek Commons a good fit for Boulder seniors and the neighborhood?

  • The Boulder Creek Commons units, which will be specifically designed to meet the social, physical and emotional needs of seniors, will be available exclusively to lower-income residents.
  • The seniors at Boulder Creek Commons will have convenient pedestrian access to the East Boulder Recreation and Senior Center.
  • The potential impact to the adjacent neighborhoods is minimized with housing that serves seniors, which has fewer residents per unit, and fewer cars (and therefore fewer car trips per day per unit) than non-senior residential units.
  • Virtually every unit is occupied, with more than 200 low-income seniors now on wait lists for affordable apartments. For more information on the benefits of the affordable senior housing component, please click here

Market Rate Housing

  • Boulder Creek Commons will include market rate housing which will be appropriate for the entire community and potentially incorporating some ‘universal design’ components such as main floor master bedrooms, stepless entrances, wider doors,  accessible bathrooms, and variable-height worktops in the kitchens.

    • An often overlooked benefit of Universal Design is a home’s ability to accommodate the resident’s changing lifestyle demands,  thus extending the home’s useful life for the residents.  Flexible home design  that is adaptable to the home owner’s changing needs over a long period of time is a fundamental objective of sustainable development.
    • The housing will be built to the new Green Points standards for Boulder, using materials, design and construction methods that will create a community with a lighter environmental footprint.
    • The new homes will average approximately 2,900 square-feet, much smaller than the typical new construction in Boulder.
    • These homes will create a neighborhood that will be attractive to all types of individuals and families and which will include the most desirable, yet the least available, type of home in Boulder’s housing supply today.  This will help to encourage residents to remain in Boulder instead of moving to Broomfield, Lafayette or Longmont, as many of them are doing today.

Other benefits of the project include:

  • 4 acres of environmental preservation land dedicated to the City of Boulder, a small but significant addition to the nearly 1,300 acres of open space that exist in the Boulder Creek Open Space Corridor.
  • The dedication of water rights to the City of Boulder upon annexation, resulting in an increase in the City’s water portfolio.
  • Minimize soil displacement and groundwater disturbance by not having basements.
  • Installation of piping along the western and southern boundaries of the property to better contain any groundwater seepage.
  • An open space and trails-oriented design that connects Boulder Creek Commons and the Keewaydin Meadows, Keewaydin East and Greenbelt Meadows  neighborhoods to the East Boulder Recreation and Senior Center and Boulder Creek Open Space Corridor.
  • Introducing an effective storm water management system to protect water quality and providing relief from potential flooding.
  • A pedestrian-friendly design that creates a sense of community and place while encouraging residents to leave their cars in the garage and experience the “walkability” of their neighborhood, while also providing the surrounding neighborhoods with a connection to open space in the area.
  • The new homes to be offered for sale in this development will be priced competitively with the sales prices for existing homes, which is typically less than the sales price for new homes available today in the City.