32-unit senior development opens in Shell Knob

Ozark Villas Apartments, a 32-unit rental housing development for seniors, opened April 24 in Shell Knob.

Ozark Villas consists of 32 two-bedroom/1.5 bath units with a clubhouse/leasing office. The units, grouped in eight four-plex buildings, are furnished with central heating/air, washer/dryer, refrigerator, stove, microwave, dishwasher and ceiling fans.

"These apartments are a tribute to the people of Shell Knob and Barry County who never let obstacles impede their goal," said Nancy Farmer, Missouri Housing Development Commission commissioner and state treasurer who presided over opening ceremonies. "It is also a tribute to partnerships. No one agency or group would have been able to build these apartments. All of the groups who partnered to develop this apartment complex are winners today, but the true winners are the residents who now have a quality, safe, affordable and attractive home."

MHDC financing includes a $2.5 million loan at 0 percent for 40 years.

The development also was the first complex approved by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources to use the revolutionary Conventional Wetlands System for waste disposal. This system is viewed as having a considerable amount of potential in rural areas where it is not economical or practical to construct and operate highly engineered waste water systems.

The Central Crossing Senior Center Corporation also is constructing a Senior Nutrition Center adjacent to the apartments through cooperation with the Missouri Department of Aging and the Department of Economic Development.