Seniors apartments expanding at St. Stephen Church
PENNSAUKEN — Residents of a broad area of Camden County are expected to see something for themselves in a senior housing complex starting construction in spring 2024 here.
The Zoning Board recently approved a third phase for Stonegate at St. Stephen, currently a two-building complex of affordable apartments for senior citizens operated under the Diocese of Camden. Stonegate, on the grounds of St. Stephen Parish, has created 143 apartments since opening in 2008.
Stonegate III will have 54 units and likely will be the last such building at the Browning Road site, said James Reynolds, executive director of Diocesan Housing Services.
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Reynolds said construction will likely will start in April 2024 with occupants moving in during summer or fall 2025.
“But we do anticipate that a good chunk will come from Pennsauken, and then the immediately surrounding areas from Camden to Cherry Hill, Collingswood, Haddon Township,” Reynolds said.
The third apartment building is meant for tenants 55 and older, and it will go up at the site of a parish school that closed in 2014. Some units will be reserved for people with disabilities.
Locally, the project has moved ahead with township support.
In July 2022, the Township Committee approved a resolution stating the township had a need for affordable senior apartments.
In August 2022, zoning officials approved the preliminary site plan. The approval included variances for the height of the four-story building, which will be about 18 feet taller than allowed, and too few off-street parking spaces.
The project is funded through federal affordable housing tax credits and a conventional mortgage.
Stonegate phase one resulted in a building with 75 apartments for tenants 62 and older. It opened in 2008.
The second building has 68 units intended for tenants 55 and older. It opened in early 2020.
Joe Smith is a N.E. Philly native transplanted to South Jersey 36 years ago, keeping an eye now on government in South Jersey. He is a former editor and current senior staff writer for The Daily Journal in Vineland, Courier-Post in Cherry Hill, and the Burlington County Times.
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This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Final zoning review favorable for Pennsauken apartments
