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Construction on Shaker Pointe at Carondelet - a not-for-profit senior housing community sponsored by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet - will begin in June, the Town of Colonie planning board confirmed last week.

The sisters' mission is to serve the neighbor, said Sister Lauren VanDermark, CSJ, one of the project coordinators. Shaker Pointe will provide housing options for seniors

not eligible for subsidized housing. Residents can choose from more than 70 cost plans.

A tax-exempt, government-issued bond will cover the estimated $45 million construction costs.

The main building of Shaker Pointe, to be located off of Delatour Road in Colonie, will mimic the Round Stone Barn at Hancock Shaker Village in Massachusetts. The 30-acre facility, 70 percent of which will remain green space, will feature housing options including cottages, courtyard apartments and standard apartments.

A common building connected to the apartment complex will offer a fitness center and pool, recreational rooms, a convenience store, salons and restaurants.

Shaker Pointe will also offer religious re-sources for all faiths and a meditation room in the common building, Sister Lauren said. Developers expect the facility to open at the end of 2012.

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