Our Community
Lynnwood Building was constructed in the late 1960’s as an apartment complex, with shared utilities and common areas. In the 1980’s apartments were purchased by individuals and became managed as a Condominium. The Lynnwood Condominium Homeowners Association (HOA) was incorporated in 1982, in order to manage all the commonly held areas and services. The HOA is considered a Domestic Non-profit Corporation. The HOA has a five-member Board of Directors. The incorporation and bylaws empower the board to hire a management company to tend to regular maintenance of the common areas, collect HOA dues, and pay bills for the common area services.
This is a community of senior residents (62 years and older) who enjoy independent living in a beautiful neighborhood that offers an abundance of opportunities for getting involved to whatever extent you desire. The Lynnwood is, by law, allowed to operate as a building which is restricted to independently living residents 62 years old and older. The ONLY exceptions are for guests of up to 30 days, and caretakers of the resident. By federal law, the association cannot make any exceptions.
Please take time to get to know your neighbors, the layout and operation of the building, most of which is described in the following pages. There are social groups open to all residents to get acquainted with the Lynnwood community involving various activities, seasonal picnics, or you can even start your own interest group if you desire. The lobby makes a nice informal setting for gathering, and the outside courtyard also offers opportunities for gathering. The recently re-landscaped courtyard is a popular meeting location and contains several seating and garden areas.
The Lynnwood contains 45 individually owned condominiums, some of which are leased and the rest owner-occupied. There is a 5-member board of directors elected by the owners (the Lynnwood Association) to create and maintain the annual budget, create by-laws, and plan improvements for the building, while protecting the assets of the association. Day-to-day maintenance of the common areas and accounting is handled by Gatewest Property Management (Gatewest), who is employed by the association. Various other contractors are employed for cleaning, snow removal, landscaping and other building improvement projects. You will probably see many of the same faces around the building doing these chores, so stop and introduce yourself. They are also friendly, dedicated valuable members of the Lynnwood community. There is no on-site paid staff. The Lynnwood is NOT an assisted or ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) compliant building. It would be nearly impossible to convert it or bring it up to current ADA standards. There are stairways, steeper than normal ramps and other barriers that preclude being fully accessible.
If you notice anything amiss or in need of repair, please let the building management know and it will be dealt with as soon as possible. Please contact them right away if you see something that needs immediate attention, such as a broken window or leaking plumbing (see Building Management). The suggestion box is for ideas that you want to present to the board for consideration.
Remember that the Lynnwood is a community, and like any other, can only be as good as its residents want it to be. So, be respectful of your neighbors (including those living above and below you) and consider how noise or other activities may impact them. Observe quiet times in the evenings and at night, and do your best to make this the kind of community that one would want to be part of.
A one-page directory of building residents, condo unit number, and phone numbers is distributed to all residents and updated as needed. This list is not publicly posted or available to the general public. You can be excluded from the list if desired.
In the past there were several events that were organized by volunteers in the building. Covid changed the ability to have social events for several years. If there were residents that would like to organize events, please contact a board member. Examples of these optional past events were: a Labor Day Picnic (small fee for food and drink); A Holiday Stroll; Monthly Monday Luncheons; Tuesday Coffee Hour in the lobby.
Our Building
The Lynnwood was built in 1965 on the site of one of Missoula’s old mansions. Built by Edward Bonner, a Missoula lumber baron, in 1891, the home occupied the entire block where the Lynnwood now sits. Bonner and his wife subsequently gifted it to Lenita Bonner upon her marriage to Dr. Spottswood. Lenita lived there until 1959, when it went up for sale. Missoula had the opportunity to buy the magnificent Victorian home for $100,000, but they balked and, as tragically happened to so many wonderful old buildings in the “modern” 1950s and 60s, the Bonner- Spottswood mansion was razed.
Originally built as an apartment building and later converted into condominiums, the Lynnwood has stood the passage of time quite well and is in excellent structural shape, but has a few quirks and oddities like anyone else of that age. Possibly the first thing that you may notice is that we literally throw our garbage out the window (into the dumpster). At one time the building had a central garbage chute, with openings on each floor. Likely due to sanitation and fire concerns, this was abandoned at some point and the current system was put in its place (more about that later)
Another oddity is seen in the roof of the parking garage. Very soon after the building was constructed, it was observed that the roof of the parking garage leaked at each concrete seam. While this created no structural problem, it was a nuisance, and a water collection system was installed to keep the leaking water off of parked cars. This had worked surprisingly well over the years, but knowing full well that this is only addressing a symptom of a much larger issue, the board hired a structural engineer for a complete analysis of the garage roof system prior to re- landscaping the courtyard above. That resulted in a major waterproofing and landscaping project with a waterproof barrier and drainage system and a courtyard more usable for residents.
You will probably quickly get used to the occasional clink and clank that the heating system makes as pipes expand and contract. Depending on your hearing, it is more noticeable in some parts of the building than others. Just consider it the building’s way of welcoming you to the neighborhood, or the old Spotswood mansion talking.
Neighborhood
Hopefully you will get to know the neighborhood, as it offers many amenities. There are free and low-cost classes and lectures covering a wide variety of topics available for seniors and the general public at the University of Montana. The university also offers plenty of sporting events, and concerts for any musical taste. If you like to dine out, there are dozens of restaurants, coffee houses, bakeries, ice cream shops and cafes within walking distance and even more farther downtown. If you like a really good beer, there are microbreweries a short walk away and more yet downtown. The Lynnwood is close to the Clark Fork River, its system of walking bridges and interconnecting trails and events held in the riverfront parks all summer long, including the weekly farmers’ markets.
Downtown is a short walk with all of its shops, businesses. The Missoula Public Library is nearby. Missoula’s indy movie theater, The Roxy, is only 3 blocks away on Higgins Avenue. For groceries, Orange Street Foods is a great locally owned neighborhood store on Orange Street between 5th and 6th streets, and Grizzly Grocery has a basic selection of goods on Higgins and Beckwith. You can spend many hours at the city’s oldest record and gift shop, Rockin' Rudy’s, and still not see everything.
Missoula’s Senior Citizen’s Center is about 4 blocks away on Higgins and 5th, with their own off-street parking lot. They offer a variety of activities from exercise classes, to bingo, and other games and dances. They also offer a daily hot lunch. They publish a monthly newsletter Blazing Trails. For more information their phone number is (406) 543-7154.
If you want to go somewhere farther, Missoula’s entire bus system, Mountain Line, can take you almost anywhere in town for free with stops 2 blocks away on either 6th or Higgins. Special services are also available for seniors.
Missoula Aging Services is a well established non-profit organization whose focus is the “independence, dignity and health of older adults and those who care for them.” They provide information, resources, support, and coordination for a wide variety of senior services. Additional information in included in this packet.