Multi-Housing News - October 2008 - (Page 18)

cient transportation, it creates some strong drivers for developments like Mirabella,” says Los. The project requires approximately 460,000 square feet of above-grade space, which made its design far more vertical than past PRS projects. “However, we don’t have the long corridors associated with low-rise buildings,” observes Los. “Residents can step off the elevators and be right at the front door of their living units. This is particularly relevant as our seniors age in place in our facility.” CCRC development holds a lot of potential, but it demands a higher level of “articulation” than for high-end condominiums or apartments, according to Rick Mazza, PRS’s vice president of business development and planning. “Can an experienced condo developer succeed in our market? It’s possible,” says Mazza. “But besides the ownership structure, CCRCs are purpose-built with an entirely different level of healthcare amenities. While many condos today are mixed-use, they are more geared toward the living space than the amenities,” continues Mazza. “However, facilities like Mirabella will eventually become much more common, as baby boomers look to coordinate their own health services and not burden their children. Typically, a wealthier, more demanding client will require the one-stop health services that a standard condo cannot provide.” MHN Document management Centralized reporting Online leasing Contact center Online payments Resident screening Accounting Resident portal Revenue management Renter’s insurance Resident utility billing Utility invoice processing IP-Connected entertainment & communications Green: The color of money Several years ago, Tom Becker, CEO of PRS, committed to building LEED-certified continuing care retirement communities whenever possible. The sustainable materials and design techniques used in the company’s planned Platinum-level Mirabella are a testament to Becker’s vision. Just as impressive is the buy-in Becker received from key executives within the company. Rick Mazza, PRS’s vice president of business development and planning, is a good example. By his own admission, Mazza is a “numbers guy” with a strong financial background. However, his depth of knowledge in the area of sustainable materials and building practices is noteworthy. “I have to admit that when it came to the value and upside of LEED certification, I was more difficult to convince,” recalls Mazza. “But justifying sustainability from a purely financial, return-on-investment perspective, I have to say it’s what our customers want and we’ll do it all day long.” Jeff Los, principal of Ankrom Moisan Architects and designer of Mirabella, agrees with Mazza on both points. “Rick is the dollars-and-cents guy, and we Complicated. The many ways it pays to have a truly integrated software solution. In the beginning, there was “rent roll” software. Then came accounting – followed by leasing, facilities management, screening, billing, marketing and beyond. The result was what you still see today: patchedtogether systems that combine software from different companies, with all the associated problems and costs. In other words, “interfaced” instead of truly integrated. In 2000, RealPage set out to engineer something very different: the world’s first complete, pre-integrated suite that lets you simply “plug in” the things you need, and have them work perfectly together. Today, nothing else comes close. You avoid the burdensome programming, consulting and downtime necessary to make applications “talk” to one another. You work with a single shared pool of data, rather than separate silos of inconsistent information. (There’s no redundant data entry, either.) 18 October 2008 | Multi-Housing News | Producer of Multi-Housing World

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Multi-Housing News - October 2008

Multi-Housing News - October 2008
Contents
From the Editor
MHN TV Premieres
Market Pulse
Special Report: MHN 2008 Design Awards
Development & Design: Mirabella
Market Report: Chicago, Kansas City
Property Management: Tracking Residents’ Tech Wish Lists
Finance: Freddie Mac/Fannie Mae
Tech Report: Marketing Web sites
Products: Appliances

Multi-Housing News - October 2008