New retiree community settling in Lexington | The State

A new community for retirees is coming to Lexington.

Plans call for the $47 million project to open in spring 2017 next door to the neighborhood around the Golden Hills Golf and Country Club in the center of town.

The development will offer assisted living, Alzheimer’s care, nursing service and rehabilitation for residents in its apartments and cottages, according to an announcement from developer Wellmore of Charlotte.

Its 200 apartments and cottages will have room for about 250 residents, company officials said.

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Town officials previously turned down other commercial projects on the site out of concern about worsening traffic congestion on U.S. 378.

But the upscale project is “a lot more palatable,” Mayor Steve MacDougall said.

This project includes a new entry lane into the development that town officials say should be sufficient to handle minimal traffic expected.

The community appears likely to be a good neighbor, said Marty Lefkowitz, president of the Golden Hills Homeowner Association.

Developers were cooperative, such as adding a landscaped buffer that adjoining homeowners wanted, he said.

The project is estimated to create about 140 jobs, company officials said.