The Solon Community Housing Corporation, the nonprofit organization that owns Meadowlark Commons, will be bringing a new senior living community to town.
Founded in 1984, the Solon Community Housing Corporation (SCHC) is a nonprofit organization with a volunteer Board of Directors and between 40 and 50 local members. In 2000, SCHC built eight independent living apartments for Meadowlark Commons, before adding 12 independent living units to the complex in 2008.
Windflower Commons is set to be a 21-unit senior living community in which people 62 and older will be able to live maintenance-free. Unlike a retirement community, Windflower Commons will not provide services like meals or housekeeping.
“This is completely independent living while offering a common area for socialization and things. So, the seniors that live there can get services if they need them through a home healthcare agency; if they need transportation, they can line that up; those types of things. But it is completely independent,” explained Allison Phillips, Solon’s Senior Housing Consultants’ executive vice president.
Living maintenance-free means being able to live independently, while not having to worry about things like mowing the lawn or making repairs.
According to the Johnson County Housing Study Assessment, the need for a senior living community in Johnson County has been growing.
The survey stated, “Johnson County’s non-metro area is expected to continue growing at a steady pace,” and “the non-metro area’s population is aging rapidly.”
Thus, with more younger people and families coming into the area, the need for housing is growing rapidly.
Providing senior housing locally would allow for homes to open and would “allow seniors to remain in the Solon community they helped build,” according to a packet from the team’s informational meeting on June 15.
SCHC’s Meadowlark Commons has maintained 100% occupancy for the last decade, which indicates to those involved in this project that the demand for independent living opportunities for seniors in the community is high.
“It allows seniors to remain in the Solon community. It allows local families to have aging parents living closer to children and grandchildren,” Phillips added. “It provides safe, affordable housing, strengthens Solon’s housing sustainability, and then, importantly, it supports Solon’s local economy by keeping residents here.”
As a result, in Dec. 2024, SCHC bought two one-acre lots, 503 and 505 Windflower Ln, with the intention of creating a second independent living senior housing development in town, called Windflower Commons.
The project has gone through Planning and Zoning with the City of Solon and received approval from the Solon City Council, and the team hopes to host a formal ground-breaking ceremony in Oct. 2026.
The formal ground-breaking ceremony does not have an identified date yet, as the team is still working with construction crews and architects to finalize plans.
After beginning construction later this year, the goal is to welcome residents in July 2027. The complex will include 21 units, with an opportunity to build an additional 21 units as needed within the two lots bought for the project.
Unit options will include four two-bedroom and one-bathroom units for $1,950 per month, 13 one-bedroom and one-bathroom units for $1,650 per month, and four studio units for $1,350 per month. All rent rates will include an additional monthly fee for utilities.
Amenities will include no HOA fee, garbage service, garage parking for an added monthly cost, Wi-Fi, allowance of dogs and cats as pets, both an elevator and stairs to the second floor, and a community room that includes tables and chairs to gather, a couch and large-screen television, a restroom, a kitchenette, and an outdoor patio for gathering.
To apply to live at Windflower Commons, those 62 and older can visit www.liveinsolon.com, or call 319- 321-0880. After applying, applicants will be asked to put down a deposit.
“The first people to put down deposits are the ones that can get their choice of apartments,” Phillips said.
Partnerships that SCHC has developed for this project include Bridge Bank, Solum Lang Architects, MMS Consultants, Fredrickson Law, Stebral Construction & Sub-Contractors, Keystone Bank, Solon State Bank, and Solon Housing Consultants.