Trulee Evanston is a 9-story, LEED silver, senior community that offers a continuum of care with 45 independent living, 83 assisted living, and 35 memory care living units. Programming and amenities focus on the relationship between interior and exterior spaces and establishing technology, culinary and local business partnerships to engage the building and its residents with the community in which it is located. Filling out a blighted, triangular parcel of land, the “L” shaped residential floors sit above a 2-story base that contains a lobby, parking, and the primary amenity spaces, setting back on the upper floors. The resultant spaces provide landscaped and secure outdoor spaces for living and alfresco dining. The exterior is a streamlined modern composition of stone, three colors of brick and large windows, designed to hold its own on the busy urban site and emit a feeling of permanence, strength, and hospitality, welcoming to the residents as well as the community.
Trulee was committed to a community focus that included workforce development, community engagement, and local hiring, working with the City of Evanston and community-based groups to address local hiring needs, participating in MBE/WBE city meetings, and working with the local government to help the city identify hiring challenges. Trulee contributed money to the affordable housing fund of Evanston, has two occupied affordable housing units on site, and has contributed to the Bike Share program DIVVY. Trulee worked to build a relationship with the adjacent Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church. At that time, the church’s services were on pause due to the global pandemic. A natural partnership resulted, as the GC was able to rent Mt. Zion’s adjacent house and lot during construction providing a necessary influx of revenue to the congregation during a time when donations were down. This relationship grew and capital improvements were provided to their site for their benefit. It was a win for everyone involved and a relationship that was driven by the concept of “helping your neighbor”.
