Nadia Kozak. Photo: Chris Emeott
New cooperative provides active living experiences.
Nadia Kozak’s life is in transition. She dreams of getting out of the city without giving up access to groceries, restaurants and a sense of community. She lives in a house but is ready to give up some of the fuss that entails. “I want to get back to single-level living,” Kozak says. “I want to be able to lock the door and go.”
As she imagined what the next phase of her life would look like, the Golden Valley resident learned about Artessa Cooperative at Mound Harbor, a proposed 62+ cooperative living community on Auditors Road in Mound. She was intrigued. “It was far enough out of the city but still on the lakes,” she says.
In addition to being uniquely situated off Cooks Bay and Lost Lake Harbor, the four-story, 52-unit cooperative will be adjacent to downtown Mound and the Dakota Rail Regional Trail. That notion strongly appealed to Kozak. “I like to bike and walk,” she says.
Mound Harbor joins a fleet of more than 40 senior cooperatives that Lifestyle Communities has developed across the Midwest. (At press time, ground was set to be broken in the previous months.) It is also currently developing active living communities in Golden Valley, Maple Grove and Shakopee.
While the zip codes may vary, the mission remains the same—boutique-size buildings in amenity-rich locations with a neighborhood feel all designed to attract residents interested in active adult living. “That’s the mantra,” says Dena Meyer, president of Lifestyle Communities. “The site has to be walkable, first and foremost.”
“It’s all about community,” Meyer says. “We’re specifically looking for smaller sites where people want to be.” She says that 70 percent of its residents previously lived within five miles of the developments. They generally range in age from 62–72, Meyer says. “They want maintenance-free, one-level living. They want to pursue their passions, [and] they want to work, volunteer, be engaged and they want their lifestyle and housing choice to avail that, too,” she says.
Meyer says the company makes that possible by listening to what potential residents want and stacking the developments with loads of amenities from pickleball courts and fitness studios to maker spaces and technology hubs. Mound Harbor also includes access to 10 city-maintained boat slips and storage for kayaks and e-bikes. “Every time I made the drive out, I loved it even more,” Kozak says.
Rendering of Artessa, featuring two private pickleball courts for members and green space.
Meyer says the “magic” of Artessa developments is bringing together people who are looking for a similar lifestyle in their senior years. “It’s about the clubs and committees that form,” she says. “Vitality skyrockets.”
Kozak, who just qualified for Artessa’s age threshold, is looking forward to being part of a similarly-minded community. She’s already spent time getting to know her future neighbors. “It’s not a senior living center,” Kozak says. “This is a community, and I can tell Mound Harbor’s going to be an active community.”
Artessa
Facebook: Artessa Living
Instagram: @artessaliving
