Belleville could get an assisted living center but some residents oppose the plan

Families looking for an assisted living and memory care center may have a new choice in Belleville.

A Charleston company, Phillips Investments LLC, wants to build a $7 million center for senior citizens at the intersection of Frank Scott Parkway West and 11th Street near Belleville West High School.

The Belleville City Council is scheduled to vote on a use variance request for the center on Monday, Dec. 18. On Thursday, the Zoning Board of Appeals unanimously recommended that aldermen approve the zoning variance although a half dozen nearby residents spoke against the request. The variance is needed because the site is zoned for single-family homes.

The City Council originally was expected to consider the request on Dec. 4.

Hadley Phillips, one of the developers, told the zoning board that “there is a severe need for this” type of housing for senior citizens in Belleville. “It’s actually surprising somebody hasn’t already done this,” he said.

But nearby residents raised concerns about safety for the assisted living residents who drive, extra traffic on area streets, property values being reduced because of a commercial building being built near their homes and the lack of information released by the developers.

“This is going to create a lot of traffic and we already have a horrible time trying to get out on Frank Scott Parkway during school times and different times,” resident Kim Wurtz said.

Reggie Phillips, Hadley Phillips’ father and a Republican state representative from Charleston, said after the zoning board meeting that he and his son would be happy to meet residents concerned about their proposal.

Hadley Phillips said his family’s company operates about 30 assisted living centers in Illinois and that most of the residents do not drive but take the center’s shuttle.

If the City Council approves the zoning variance request, the Phillipses would still need their site plan considered by the Planning Commission and then approved by the City Council before construction could begin.

Hadley Phillips said the family-owned business would like to begin construction in the spring and have the one-story center open in the spring of 2019.

The proposed 10-acre site is within a plat where the Brook Taylor subdivision was approved by the city about 10 years ago but was never constructed.

Plans call for 50 assisted living units called The Villas of Holly Brook and 24 memory care units called Reflections. The Phillipses are currently building an assisted living center in Collinsville off Illinois 157.

Hadley Phillips said the proposed center is not a skilled nursing home as that type of home requires a different license than the assisted living center license the company has. Also, he said The Villas of Holly Brook does not accept Medicaid and Medicare payments and just accepts private pay residents. The expected monthly fee will be $3,000 to $3,500.

The proposed Villas of Holly Brook is near the proposed Parkway West Estates homes and professional office buildings on 50 acres off Frank Scott Parkway West. Todd Keller, the developer of this site, said Thursday the project remains viable even though he initially announced the plan for upscale homes two years ago.

This story was originally published November 17, 2017 at 9:04 AM with the headline "Belleville could get an assisted living center but some residents oppose the plan."