Local developers Edward Feinberg and Rex Ruthman are seeking to address the Albany area's shortage of independent living options for "active adults" - e.g. those 55 and older - by developing two large cottage-style apartment developments - Van Dyke Spinney is a planned 229-unit cottage style apartment complex located off of Van Dyke Rd. in Bethlehem and Spinney at Pond View is a comparable 180-unit complex located near Miller Rd. in Schodack. The project cost for the the Van Dyke Spinney project is $30 million. The baby boomer generation is living longer and healthier than prior generations, with good savings and pensions as a general rule, yet there is a shortage of available housing to meet the changing needs and desires of this group as they enter their golden years and seek right-sized, maintenance-free living. As a result, the "active adult" housing niche is emerging as one of the most promising residential housing markets in the world. Feinberg and Ruthman have been involved in residential single and multifamily development for over 20 years, and in the process of working with groups in communities, with government and private agencies, and with community leaders, it became apparent that housing needs and wants for adult living were changing. Aiming to fill the great and growing demand for senior housing in the Capital Region, Feinberg and Ruthman have limited both facilities to residents who are at least 55 years old, and seek to appeal to homeowners who want to "right size" their housing, adopt a maintenance-free lifestyle in a community of their peers, and enjoy a variety of personal, social, and cultural opportunities. They recognize this is a rapidly growing market that is underserved within this locality, and although the traditional family housing market has experienced a downturn of late, senior housing has remained lucrative. Feinberg and Ruthman feel that an entirely new generation is emerging as middle age became a longer and healthier part of active life and effectively divided the family-raising years from the independent active years, thereafter. These model developments will provide quality, affordable housing for healthy, active seniors, who are still very much engaged in their extended leisure, work or retirement pursuits, yet free from the expense and burdens of maintaining the old family home. Stantec was hired to assist in developing their vision for a new generation active adult community consisting of affordable homes, with each family home including a garage, porch, patio, bedrooms, yard, but all part of and maintained by a committed community.