COEUR d’ALENE — Orchard Ridge, a senior living community in Coeur d’Alene, broke ground on new independent living apartments during a ceremony Tuesday.  

Dozens of people gathered on the Orchard Ridge campus for the groundbreaking ceremony, including building designers, former and current Orchard Ridge board members, and representatives from Ginno Construction and BankCDA, both of which are involved in the project.  

The new building, called The Arbor, will include 31 new apartments, including two-bedroom floorplan options. 

“The Arbor will be an extension of the work we already do for the over 230 seniors currently living at Orchard Ridge,” said Ann Johnson, executive director at Orchard Ridge. “The new project will create more jobs, more housing for seniors and more options for our community as the demand for housing continues.” 

Mark Grabenstein, a former administrator for Orchard Ridge, gave a blessing just before the official groundbreaking, describing the project as “not just a physical building but also an act of faith and commitment.” 

The current campus has 154 one-bedroom apartments for low-income seniors and 69 assisted living and memory-care units.  

“The tragedy of only offering low-income independent housing is that there are often those who have their spouse in assisted living but are forced to live miles away because they do not qualify as low income and thus cannot live on campus,” Johnson said.  

The two-bedroom option that will be available at The Arbor will encourage couples to live together — or near each other — within the Orchard Ridge community.  

“The project matches with our mission to provide faith-based, loving homes that honor older adults,” Johnson said during Tuesday’s ceremony.