Trilogy Health plans seniors housing in Noblesville

A vacant property in Noblesville once slated for up to 100 units of independent senior housing may see a similar, scaled-down use if the Villas at Prairie Lakes are approved.

Louisville-based Trilogy Health Services wants to build 32 rental housing units in 16 one- and two-bedroom duplexes on an 8-acre lot just west of the Prairie Lakes Health Campus in Noblesville. The site was zoned to allow for assisted and independent senior living as far back as 2008, but the independent living project was never built.

Kris Holeyfield, a civil engineer for the Ohio-based Mannik Smith Group, told the Noblesville City Council Tuesday that Trilogy will only rent to occupants 55-and-older.

“As part of the lease, the owner also offers a concierge service to get residents around the city,” Holeyfield said. “They provide that for residents that don’t drive.”

Parking for residents and visitors was a sticking point for councilors who questioned Trilogy’s plan. It proposes 13 visitor parking spots—two more than are required—next to a 2,100-square-foot clubhouse.

“I do think we have a public safety issue here,” councilor Darren Peterson said. “I would recommend we try to find a way to sneak in a few common parking spaces—4 or 5 every so often—or parking on the street. These clubhouse parking spaces are too far away. If it’s raining, I’m going to park in the street to see grandma.”

Finding additional space on the 8-acre site may be difficult, though, due to a wetlands feature on the property.

Trilogy Health Services provided a statement Tuesday to say only half of residents at the company’s other facilities across the Midwest have a vehicle, and the other half don’t drive. Visitors aren’t as frequent as one might expect, and the age-restricted duplexes are expected to have lower vehicle traffic than other residential uses.

If the project is approved at the council’s June 23 meeting, Holeyfield said Trilogy plans to start construction in late summer. He estimated it would take about 12 months to build, so residents may be able to move in sometime in summer 2021.