SunTrust Leads $86M in Financing for $300M Atlanta Seniors Living Project
By Mack Burke December 27, 2018 12:24 pm
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SunTrust Bank, First Tennessee Bank and Pinnacle Bank have combined to provide $86 million in construction debt to Village Park Senior Living for the first phase of development on a planned $300 million luxury seniors living project in Atlanta, according to information from SunTrust.
SunTrust, in leading the transaction, provided roughly $48 million, while First Tennessee and Pinnacle Bank provided approximately $20 million and $18 million, respectively, according to a spokeswoman for SunTrust. The deal closed in October. (The bank would not provide the exact date.)
The financing for phase two and three of the development has yet to be determined, according to a SunTrust spokeswoman.
“As an industry, we have limited supply and a growing demand for exclusive senior living communities throughout the country,” Village Park Senior Living CEO Tim Gary said in a prepared statement. “The Atlanta population is booming. Many professionals are moving to the city and bringing their parents along with them. This community will deliver on the highest quality of service and care for our residents.”
The project is currently being referred to as Village Park Paces; the formal name hasn’t been announced yet. Construction on phase one of the 9-acre campus, which will be at 3200 Howell Mill Road NW, is scheduled to wrap in spring 2020, according to Village Park’s website. SunTrust indicated that it expects the first phase of development to be completed by fall 2020.
Phase one will see construction of 204 of the 600 planned units—82 independent living, 75 assisted living, 26 memory care units and 21 “city homes” with a separate entrance—as well as most of the project’s common areas.
The development will sport French-inspired architecture with landscaped courtyards and will include a movie theater, a florist, a library, a salon, a wine bar, a sports bar and an outdoor pool.
The typical size of new seniors housing development projects has grown nearly 5 percent this year, and the cost of developing these projects has climbed in lockstep. The total cost of constructing seniors housing this year has increased by just over 5 percent to an average of $298 per square foot, or $270,200 per unit, according to a third quarter report from CBRE (CBRE).
Since the fourth quarter of 2017, new construction has fallen across all seniors housing segments—independent, assisted living and memory care and skilled nursing—according to a separate third quarter CBRE seniors housing report and survey focused on investor sentiment. Still, investor interest in the sector is strong, as CBRE indicated that many players are showcasing more confidence in the lifestyle-focused segments of independent and assisted living and are planning to grow their respective portfolios through the first half of 2019.
Officials at First Tennessee and at Pinnacle Bank could not immediately be reached.
