Longtime Boulder business Fruehauf's Patio is relocating to Westminster this month, and in its place, the city may get something it needs desperately: affordable housing.

Real estate developer Don Altman acquired the property in March for $4.5 million, according to Boulder County property records. Academy Senior Living is a co-owner of this and another planned development at 311 Mapleton St.

The building at 1665 33rd St. was built in 1977 and '78 by the Fruehauf family to house their nursery business. But Fruehauf's pivoted away from garden and into patio furniture sales; the store hasn't sold plants in a decade, said general manger and chief executive Mariah Mayhew, and its new layout was less conducive to selling patio furniture.

Today, it claims to be the largest outdoor furniture store in Colorado. Mayhew said at least half its business comes from Denver. A move to Westminster allowed the shop to find 40,000 square feet of space, a tall order in Boulder County.

"We're really sad to be leaving Boulder," Mayhew said. "We've been here for 40 years, but when you step back and look at the bigger picture, it makes more sense."

Fruehauf's plans to open at 6795 W 88th Ave. by Feb. 1.

With the loss may come a gain for Boulder. The Academy has filed plans with the city for a mixed-use development that would include room for restaurant and retail, a care facility and 100 affordable senior dwellings. The project is meant to fulfill Boulder's affordable housing requirements for the 311 Mapleton project, which is also working its way through the city's approval process.

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The projects' developer, Michael Bosma of Rubicon Development, said details such as start and completion date, price and breakdown of unit size and type were "largely still undetermined." He declined an interview but said via email that he is "actively working" with the city "to determine affordability levels of this project."

Bosma added that he hoped to have a hearing before the planning board "sometime before the end of March."

There is a dire need for affordable senior housing within the city of Boulder, said Kristen Jones, director of Evans Senior Investments, which advises owners of senior housing developments.

"Given what has happened with the local housing markets, it's very expensive for folks on fixed incomes," Jones said. But the majority of projects locally have been constructed in Longmont, Lafayette and Louisville, "where there's more affordable land."

Boulder County has added hundreds of senior housing units in recent years, yet options for lower-income elderly residents are still slim. Elisabeth Borden, owner of Boulder-based senior housing market analysis company The Highland Group, told the Camera and Times-Call in September that only a handful of communities in the area accept Medicaid.

The average independent living unit in the Denver metro costs $3,193 per month, according to data from Jones' company.

"I feel like the more cities are starting to take this seriously as the cost of living and rents increase," Jones said. Boulder adding 100 units of affordable, senior-specific housing, is "a huge deal."

Shay Castle: 303-473-1626, castles@dailycamera.com or twitter.com/shayshinecastle