Dominium Pitches 369 Rentals in West St. Paul

Plymouth-based developer Dominium has approached the city with plans to build 232 senior apartments and 137 units of workforce housing in two buildings on the southwest corner of Butler and Livingston avenues. The project would replace the Kmart building at 50 Signal Hills Court, which was built in 1955 and closed in 2016, as well as the Signal Hills Bank building immediately east, a combined project site of roughly 12 acres.

In a project narrative submitted to the city Economic Development Authority, the company estimated the project will cost between $90 million and $100 million. The site is half a block west of Robert Street, a north-south arterial.

“It is a site … that no longer makes sense as a retail site and makes more sense as a multifamily redevelopment,” Dominium Vice President Nick Andersen said in an interview. “We’re excited about being able to come in and clean up a blighted area of Robert Street.”

The proposed unit mix includes 87 one-bedroom, 95 two-bedroom and 50 three-bedroom units in the senior building, and 28, 69 and 40 respectively in the non-age-restricted building. All units for both buildings will be restricted to renters making 60% of the Dakota County median income, and Dominium estimates rents ranging from $1,053 for $1,454 for both buildings.

Dominium’s senior building is indicative of a new trend in age 55-plus housing, said Michael Leonard, a vice president for senior housing finance with JLL in Minneapolis. The building will have a number of community spaces and amenities, but Dominium’s filing makes no mention of dining, housekeeping and other services that have long been common in senior developments.

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