HRA Celebrates Skyridge Flats for Duluth Seniors

The affordable housing apartment complex reserved for seniors age 55+

DULUTH, Minn. — The Duluth Housing & Redevelopment Authority held a ribbon cutting Wednesday for their newest affordable housing apartment building.

The complex is called Skyridge Flats and looks to home seniors 55 and up. All 70-units inside are affordable to households at or below the 50% of the median income.

All units have 1 bedroom and 1 bathroom, with two community lounges. Seven units were also reserved for veterans experiencing homelessness. There is also limited parking underground.

The Duluth HRA determined the need for Skyridge Flats after conducting a study where they found seniors in our area are looking for a one-level living space.

“We knew that one-bedroom units was the biggest need in our community,” said the Executive Director of the Duluth HRA Jill Keppers. “From what’s on our waiting list, both on our housing waiting list at the HRA and our coordinated entry priority lists. One-bedrooms were the greatest need so we did an all one-bedroom project. We wanted to make it really nice for our seniors, so we included not only a community room, but also two different lounges, one that has internet access and one that’s more of a quiet reading lounge.”

Skyridge flats broke ground in the summer of 2023 and opened up for residents to move in on January 14 of this year.

The Duluth HRA will be providing rent subsidy that will help ensure residents can afford their unit. Rent is set at $800 per month, with utilities included.

“Skyridge Flats is really needed because we do have a growing senior population in Minnesota and we do not have enough senior housing,” said James Lenhoff, assistant commissioner of the multi-family division at Minnesota Housing. “So being able to add this into the community provides opportunities for seniors in the Duluth area, really in the Northland, to still call this place home.”

Funding for Skyridge Flats costed roughly $19.3 million to construct. $14.2 million was covered by the Housing Infrastructure Bands from the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency; $4.1 million was covered by the Duluth HRA; and $450,000 was covered by the City of Duluth and St. Louis County through their American Rescue Plan Act fund allocations.

The Duluth HRA recently obtained the funding to build 15 houses for home ownership that will be affordable to local workforce. The HRA hopes to break ground and unveil these project later this summer.