SRM Development LLC, a Spokane-based development company, has secured $20 million in capital through a private placement with investors.

The developer, which focuses on senior housing, multifamily housing, and commercial buildings, will use SRM Senior Housing Fund 1, alongside SRM Development’s own investment and its operating partners, to support as many as six senior housing projects in the western U.S.

“This is a new fund that we put together to pursue new opportunities in (senior housing), specifically the opportunities we’re looking for are ground-up construction of assisted-living and memory-care facilities,” says Ryan Leong, principal of real estate, finance, and operations at SRM.

Leong says potential investors responded so enthusiastically that the original offering was increased by $5 million.

“Initially, we targeted to raise $15 million, but we had so much investor interest that we increased to $20 million,” Leong says. “We had a great response from our investor group and those we explained the opportunity to, so we were very pleased with how all that came together. I think it’s a testament to what people see as the future of growth for the industry.”

SRM has identified four development sites, all in California, for senior housing developments. Leong estimates those projects will be completed by the end of 2021.

The first of those projects, to be located in Milpitas, Calif., will include 199 assisted living and memory care units. Construction of the $99 million project already has begun and is expected to wrap up in 2020. The other three projects, located in Culver City, Cypress, and San Diego, will create a total of 400 units; construction of those projects is expected to begin next year.

He says most of the company’s development activities are in major metropolitan areas on the West Coast. According to SRM’s website, the developer has built over 1,000 senior housing units in Washington, California, and Nevada.

SRM was founded here in 2000. In 2007, the company and founders of Spokane law firm Dunn & Black PS jointly purchased for $3.9 million the Grant Building, at 111 N. Post, where SRM Development is headquartered. In recent years, however, the company’s developments have been outside of the Spokane area.

Leong says the company isn’t looking currently to do any senior housing developments here, although that could change.

“We feel like Spokane has some pretty good communities already, and areas that we’ve focused on for new development are ones that really don’t have sufficient senior housing supply,” Leong says. “There’s a growing need for senior housing and we certainly expect that as soon as we complete the pipeline of projects for this fund, we’ll be looking for new opportunities, and certainly, being based here, Spokane is a potential target.”