Ritter’s Run Apartments to be completed by June in Mansfield

MANSFIELD — The Ritter’s Run apartment complex doesn’t have a foundation yet, but it does have a triple-digit waitlist.

Nicole Williams, chief operating officer for the Area Agency Aging’s Ohio District 5, said more than 100 individuals have expressed interest in renting one of the development’s 12 housing units.

“Housing is definitely a need. It’s been a passion of the area agency even before I started,” Williams said.

“It really just takes a while for things to come together — the right sources and the right individuals to come together — and it finally happened.”

Williams said Richland County’s newest affordable senior housing unit will be ready for residents by June, in spite of weather-related delays.

Ohio’s winter has halted work on the foundation, but the modular units have started to arrive. The ranch style homes were constructed by Unibilt, a company based in Vandalia, Ohio. 

Appleseed Building Company was able to pour part of the foundation at the site and place one unit before Jack Frost got in the way. Additional units have been delivered to the Area Agency on Aging parking lot and the rest will be delivered by the end of next week.

Appleseed’s Eric Vanderbilt said it will likely be about a month before the ground is firm and dry enough to finish the foundation. After that, it should be poured and ready for the units in a matter of weeks.

Williams said once the units are placed, the project will be close to completion. Most of the remaining work will involve finishing the inside of the units and adding porches.

“Once they’re put on the foundation, I would say we’re about 75 percent there,” she said.

The Area Agency on Aging District 5 proposed the development of Ritter’s Run Apartments in 2020. The project was originally slated for completion in June 2022. Unforeseen issues with the site and pandemic-related delays drove up the price and extended the timeline. The final cost will be $1.5 million.

The complex will have 12 apartments — half one bedroom and half two bedroom — scattered through a mix of low-rise, ranch-style buildings designed to blend in with the neighborhood.

Each unit will have a private entry with a small porch, as well as air conditioning and a washer and dryer. All utilities will be included in the rent and parking will be provided on the site.

The units will be located on four parcels, three of which were donated by the Richland County Land Bank. Adjoining landowner Frank Nemeth donated the fourth parcel.

The units are being funded by the Area Agency on Aging District 5, with financing from Mechanics Bank, $740,000 in contributions from the City of Mansfield’s HOME Investment Partnership Program funds, and a contribution by the Richland County Foundation.

Four of the units must be affordable since the agency is using HOME funds, but Williams said the goal is for all units to be accessible for low-income seniors.

“The Ritter’s Run Apartments project was conceived as a demonstration of how senior housing could be built on a relatively small infill site using local funds, local lending and a local sponsor,” Williams said.

The Area Agency on Aging will own and manage the apartments. A certified community health worker will provide service coordination onsite.

“A service coordinator (will be) on site during certain days to offer help and information, make referrals, promote healthy lifestyles and wellness, encourage common interests and activities and improve quality of life,” Williams said.

“The Service Coordinator’s phone number is also posted and can be called for help on the days they are not on site.”

A study of data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Medicaid, and Medicare found the presence of an on-site service coordinator at senior housing centers reduced hospitalization rates for residents by 20 percent.

Last summer, the Ritter’s Run project received an Aging Innovations Award from the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging (n4a), the highest honor presented by n4a to member agencies.

Williams said the agency has requested additional American Rescue Plan Act funds from the county and continues to look for opportunities to build more senior housing.

She added that more senior-friendly housing will benefit multiple generations.

“(A senior) might be in a home that they’ve owned for 34 years, that isn’t what they need to live out the rest of their retirement,” she said.

“If you can create senior housing where they can move and be in a better living situation, then you open up that house for a starter house for someone else.”

Ritter’s Run isn’t the only big project the agency is undertaking. The agency is also renovating an empty portion of its Park Avenue West building.

Williams said the wing used to house the Habitat for Humanity Re-Store and was essentially an empty shell. The agency is adding another community room and a full-scale kitchen.

“During COVID we realized we needed more space,” she said. “This will allow us to have so much more programming in Richland County.”

The renovation will help accommodate a significant bump in attendance for weekly meals. According to Williams, attendance used to average around 40 people. Now it ranges between 120 and 140.

“The seniors always had the need, but I think COVID allowed them to actually say ‘I have that need,'” she said.

The agency hopes to add a second day of meals and additional events. New technical equipment will allow the agency to stream exercise classes to its partner senior centers in surrounding counties.

A ribbon cutting ceremony will take place this summer once the renovations are completed.