The Montereau in Warren Woods retirement community broke ground Friday for a $3.5 million expansion on its 172-acre campus at 6800 S. Granite Ave.

The project will feature 12 garden homes on the north end of the grounds. Each home will be 1,450 square feet to 1,600 square feet with two bedrooms, a study, two outdoor patios and an attached two-car garage.

The garden homes will be constructed as six duplex structures with landscaping. They will form a neighborhood on the Montereau campus and blend with the existing Mediterranean style of architecture, officials said in a press release.

The homes were designed by Tanner Consulting of Tulsa. The builder is Cowen Construction of Tulsa.

More than half of the homes already have been reserved. The project is expected to be completed next summer. More information is available at 495-1500.

Montereau is a not-for-profit continuing care retirement community that is home to more than 400 residents. It now has 22 cottages and 232 independent living apartments, plus three health centers: assisted living, skilled nursing and a memory support unit.

Residents of the garden homes will have access to Montereau amenities, including three restaurants and a pub, a theater, swimming pool, fitness center, stocked lake, library, business and computer center, recreation lounge, garden beds, transportation, church services, housekeeping and a myriad of activities, the press release said.

Plans