Midlothian Manor
The Lake County Housing Authority (LCHA) has owned Midlothian Manor since 2001 as part of its non‑federally funded housing inventory. Under LCHA ownership, the property has continually been used as an assisted living/supportive housing facility. Residents of Midlothian Manor lived in individual apartments and shared a common space in which they could receive services from an on-site service provider. For a number of years, the occupants were low‑income seniors, often with disabilities. On-site services included meals, social events, and light housekeeping.
For many years, the facility operated at a loss. It was never federally subsidized which caused the occupancy rate to be perpetually low. In 2010, the Housing Authority decided to close the building although they continue to maintain the building and property. Since the closure, LCHA has worked diligently to reoccupy the property and continue its use as an assisted living/supportive housing facility, the only practical use for the property given its design. LCHA explored redesigning the units with a licensed architect to increase the size of the units and create kitchenettes. The design would have decreased the number of units. They also worked with a number of developers on the potential for building a new assisted living/supportive housing development on the land also with no viable project. There were a number of unsolicited offers to purchase the building and property but at a lower than the market price. Discussions and proposals were sought from a number of nonprofit groups that could provide the needed on-site services. To name a few, they engaged in preliminary discussions with PADS Lake County, Youth Build Lake County, A Safe Place, Lambs Farm, Lake County Center for Independent Living and the complete list of members of the Lake County Homeless Coalition. None resulted in accord.
With changing demographics and market conditions, LCHA identified an increase in the population of homeless individuals and families in Lake County. At the same time, HUD pledged a commitment to end homelessness within communities throughout the country. Further, LCHA endeavors to follow the guidance from the Lake County Consolidated Plan which provides a vision for housing and community development in Lake County. In unification, by a Memorandum of Action, the LCHA Board partnered with Lake County Community Development and the Lake County Coalition for the Homeless on the Zero: 2016 Campaign to end Veteran homelessness by December 31, 2015, and to end chronic homelessness for individuals by December 31, 2016.
In response to these needs, LCHA determined the best re-use of Midlothian Manor was to house the homeless with the support of a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing permanent supportive housing, and comprehensive supportive services to those experiencing homelessness in Lake County, Illinois. Therefore, in the summer of 2014, Lake County Housing Authority issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for Not‑for‑Profit Agencies Serving Homeless Individuals to occupy Midlothian Manor.
The response to the RFP came from PADS Lake County who is proposing to utilize the space for assisted living under a supportive housing project. Single individuals experiencing homelessness and in need of affordable housing coupled with supportive services, would be occupying the units. Services on-site would include case management, behavioral health services, medical/psychiatric services, and other life skills training to ensure continued stability in housing. Furthermore, the assisted living facility would be staffed 24/7.
FEARS vs FACTS
There is some misinformation circulating about the proposed PADS Permanent Supportive Housing location in Lake Zurich, causing fear among some residents. Discussions with the LCHA, PADS, and LZPD have helped to identify the FACTS, which help to dispel some of these FEARS.
| FEAR | FACT |
| No one will be monitoring the residents. | There will be a staff member on duty 24/7. During regular business hours, there will be a masters level clinician and counselor at the residence. In addition, an APN (Advanced Practice Nurse) will be available to manage and prescribe any needed medication. |
| Residents may be able to leave at any time and might end up walking into people’s backyards. | There is a curfew. That does not mean that if someone steps outside to see the moon, get fresh air, smoke a cigarette, etc. that the community needs to turn them in. Everyone deserves fresh air and a little freedom. |
| No supportive services will be available for the residents. | On-site services will be available for case management, behavioral health services, medical/psychiatric services, and other life skills training. |
| We don’t know what kind of residents will move in. | There is a vetting process used to select individuals who would be best suited for this type of program. It is anticipated that residents will be age 55 and older. They have a disability diagnosis and have been selected because they would do well in this type of housing environment. |
| EVERYONE who owns a home in the area, who has children that attend May Whitney or Lake Zurich High School, who walk their dogs or jog through local neighborhoods, or whose livelihood depends on their local business operations, should be concerned. | These residents are not hardened criminals, sexual predators, or child molesters. The mental illnesses they might be dealing with vary, but are not of the severity that would warrant or necessitate institutionalization. All of the organizations involved have been doing this a long time, and the vetting process for residents is done with the best interests of both the residents and the community in mind. |
| Residents won’t have any form of transportation. | Residents will have transportation available to them, and the staff can also run to the store if needed. |
| If LZPD is called to the facility for some reason, they might not be able to handle the situation, or be able to respond to other LZ residents' needs. | LZPD is trained in fielding calls that may involve individuals with mental illness (e.g. crisis intervention, de-escalation training). LZPD has the appropriate staff on hand to support all residents. |
To learn more about Lake County PADS, visit their site HERE
To view floor plans – click here.
To view Landscaping survey – Click Here.