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Autumn Leaves Names New COO, Chief Administrative Officer

Memory care provider Autumn Leaves has named Jessica Akaah to the role of COO and current president John Barbee as its next chief administrative officer.

Akaah first came aboard at Autumn Leaves in 2007, when she served as executive director to the provider’s first Chicago-area community in Crystal Lake, Illinois. She was later promoted to regional director of operations, and after that worked as vice president of HR and vice president of operations.

Barbee joined Autumn Leaves in 2006, and opened 45 Autumn Leaves communities during his tenure. He was promoted to president in 2017, and will continue to work in that role in order to provide leadership, support and strategic advice, and oversee real estate and asset management. As chief administrative officer, he will be tasked with looking after shared services, which include legal, information technology, marketing, and human resources functions.

Caddis Appoints Vice President of Senior Living

Caddis has hired Tami Cumings as vice president of senior living and to oversee the operations and growth of its Heartis brand of senior living communities.

Prior to joining Caddis, Cumings worked for the Arbor Company as a senior vice president of sales and marketing. She has also worked as vice president of sales and marketing and vice president of operations for Sunrise Senior Living, COO for US Memory Care, and senior vice president of sales for A Place For Mom.

Charter Senior Living Names Vice President of Development and Strategy, Executive Director

Charter Senior Living has named Maura Feaheny vice president of development and strategy. Feaheny first joined the company as corporate director of integration and project manager toward the end of 2018.

Feaheny previously worked as vice president of plant operations for Senior Lifestyle Corporation, a position where she had oversight management responsibility for 187 senior housing communities.

Charter Senior Living also named Wanda Palumbo as executive director of its independent living, assisted living and memory care community in Hermitage, Tennessee.

Palumbo was previously the executive director of Uffelman Estates, a Holiday Retirement community in Clarksville, Tennessee.

Balfour Senior Living Appoints Vice President of Care and Wellness

Balfour Senior Living has hired Jeanette Allen as vice president of care and wellness.

Allen has more than 25 years of nursing experience in the skilled nursing and senior housing industries. She previously worked in regional and divisional nursing roles for a large senior living provider.

In her new capacity, Allen will help enhance Balfour’s electronic medical record (EMR) platform in addition to overseeing quality management programs and policies and procedures. She will also work alongside Balfour’s life enrichment, memory care and culinary teams.

Benchmark Announces New Regional Director of Sales, Executive Directors

Benchmark Senior Living has named Scott Bradshaw as its new regional director of sales, among other hiring announcements.

Bradshaw was previously a sales consultant for BeaconLive. He also has worked as a regional sales executive for Endo Pharmaceuticals and a relationship manager for Fidelity Investments.

Benchmark also named three new executive directors at communities in the Northeast:

Phil Lord is now executive director for Blenheim-Newport, a Benchmark assisted living and memory care community in Middletown, Rhode Island.
Linda Silveira has returned to Benchmark as executive director of Greenwich Farms at Warwick, an assisted living and memory care community in Warwick, Rhode Island.
Andrew Goshert was hired as executive director of Chestnut Park at Cleveland Circle, an assisted living and memory care community in Brighton, Massachusetts.

Erickson Names Executive Director for Virginia CCRC

Will Nance has assumed a new job as as executive director for Ashby Ponds, an Erickson Living continuing care retirement community (CCRC) in Ashburn, Virginia.

In his new role, Nance will oversee operations and resident satisfaction at the 132-acre campus that 1,300 older adults call home.

Nance first came aboard at Erickson Living in 1998, when he spent six years as the sales director at Greenspring, a sister community in northern Virginia. He later became associate executive director, and then as executive director. In 2011, Erickson promoted him to regional vice president of sales for Erickson Living.

Illinois Life Plan Community Welcomes New Leader

GreenFields of Geneva, a life plan community in Geneva, Illinois, has a new executive director in Tony Madl.

He previously worked a Resurrection Presence Health Care Systems, where he held an administrator in skilled long-term care role for 11 years.

Madl is not new to the GreenFields organization. He previously worked at with GreenFields’ sister community, Friendship Village Schaumburg, since 2012.

Oregon Community Names Executive Director

Farmington Square Gresham in Gresham, Oregon, has named Malina Souliyalaovong as its new executive director. F

As executive director, Souliyalaovong will oversee all aspects of community management.

Souliyalaovong has more than eight years of experience in the senior living industry, and previously worked as executive director for an Enlivant Senior Living community in Chicago.

Integral Announces Executive Director, Sales Director, Culinary Director, Sales and Marketing Assistant

Harbour Pointe Senior Living, an Integral Senior Living community in Mukilteo, Washington, is welcoming named Pam Dill as its executive director.

Dill previously was executive director at Welbrook South Bay assisted living and memory care and Whitter Place assisted living and memory care.

The Oak Cottage of Santa Barbara Memory Care, an Integral Senior Living community in Santa Barbara, California, has brought on Beth Olafsen as director of sales and marketing.

Prior to joining Integral, , Olafsen was the community relations director at Mariposa at Ellewood Shores and director of sales and marketing at Vineyard Heights Senior Living and Brookdale Senior Living.

Travanse Living at Wheaton, an Integral Senior Living community near Chicago, recently named Jerry De La Torre as its new director of culinary services.

In that new role, De La Torre will help create the menu, take and stock kitchen inventory and train, hire and manage kitchen staff. He previously served as food service director at HCR ManorCare Health Services.

Lastly, Integral also named Jeri Coates as sales and marketing assistant at Loma Clara, which is set to open this year.

Coates has nearly two decades of experience in sales, and most recently held the position of Sales Representative at AAA NCNU.

Virginia Community Hires Marketing Director

Friendship, a senior housing community in Roanoke, Virginia, has selected Stephanie Landes as its new director of marketing.

Landes’ experience in the senior living industry began 2011, when she worked as foundation director for Shenandoah Valley Westminster-Canterbury.

Springpoint Hires Assistant Executive Director for New Jersey Community

Springpoint Senior Living has hired an assistant executive director and administrator for the Oaks at Denville, a senior living community in Denville, New Jersey.

Russo previously worked as the administrator of Care One at Livingston and at Armenian Nursing and Rehabilitation Center before that.

Community Relations Director Joins Wingate Community in Massachusetts

Wingate Healthcare hired Alyson Smith as the director of community relations for One Wingate Way, a senior living community in Needham, Massachusetts.

Prior to taking her new role, Smith held several other positions in the senior living industry, including as a community sales director and life enrichment coordinator.

Lifespire of Virginia Names Director of Development

LifeSpire of Virginia named Jodi Leonard director of development for its benevolent arm, the VBH Foundation.

In her new role, Leonard will lead annual planning, relationship building and fundraising administration for the senior housing provider. Leonard first joined the VBH Foundation in 2015 as an annual fund manager.

The post Movers and Shakers: Autumn Leaves Names New COO; Caddis Hires VP of Senior Living appeared first on Senior Housing News.

Seasons Management Names New COO, Principal

Seasons Management has hired Dan Williams to serve as the company’s new COO and principal. In his new role, Williams will help the company fulfill its long-term growth plans.

Before joining Seasons, Williams was COO at Koelsch Communities, where he provided strategic planning as the company grew from less than 20 to more than 30 communities.

Seasons Management was founded in 1998 and has had a hand in the finance development, construction and operation of more than 250 senior housing properties.

Maplewood Senior Living Appoints Vice President of Nursing

Maplewood Senior Living recently named Stella Akopyants as its new vice president of nursing.

In her new role, Akopyants will oversee resident care and clinical services for Maplewood’s 15 communities. She’s also tasked with assessing resident, family, and staff needs, and developing operational plans for the delivery of the senior living provider’s clinical services and programs. She also will audit communities to ensure they’re meeting company, state and regulatory standards.

Akopyants brings to the role nearly 20 years of experience. She assumes the job immediately.

Kendal Chooses Replacement for Outgoing Leader at New York CCRC

James Antonucci Jr. was recently chosen serve as the next CEO and executive director of Kendal on Hudson, a life plan community affiliated with Kendal Corporation in Sleepy Hollow, New York.

Antonucci is set to on Sept. 1 succeed Patricia Doyle, who is retiring after working as the community’s CEO since it opened in 2005.

Previously, Antonucci served as executive director of Heron’s Key, an Emerald Communities Life Plan Community in Gig Harbor, Washington. He also was executive director of The Village, a Santa Fe Senior Living rental community in Gainesville, Florida.

Benchmark Community in Massachusetts Welcomes New Executive Director

Benchmark Senior Living on Clapboardtree, an assisted living and memory care community in Norwood, Massachusetts, has a new executive director.

Patrick Hardy is now responsible for overseeing the community’s operations and assisting prospective residents. Before joining Benchmark, Hardy oversaw Brookdale Senior Living properties in Dedham and Auburn, Massachusetts.

Hardy also was a portfolio administrator for State Street, a financial services firm in Boston. He has a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.

HRA Community Appoints Director of Hospitality

Harbor Retirement Associates (HRA) has named Ke’o Velasquez as director of hospitality for HarborChase of the Park Cities, a newly opened senior living community in Dallas.

Velasquez is trained in the culinary arts, having most recently worked as an executive sous chef at the Four Seasons Resort and Club Dallas at Las Colinas. In his new role, he will prepare dishes for residents that include chicken breasts, pork chops, jeweled wild rice and apple ginger compote. He will also incorporate fresh fruits and vegetables into each meal, along with herbs grown at the community.

HarborChase of the Park Cities has formal, private and casual dining settings. The community also has food theme nights, where residents can eat sushi, tacos or pasta.

HarborChase of the Park Cities is owned by Silverstone Healthcare Company, and operated by HRA.

Milwaukee CCRC Hires New Director of Hospitality

Carlos Matos is the new director of hospitality at Eastcastle Place, a life plan community managed by Life Care Services in Milwaukee.

As the director of hospitality, Matos is tasked with looking after the community’s dining services, which includes crafting menus and. He will also help achieve cleanliness and sanitation standards along with hiring and training people for the department.

Leo A Daly Promotes Rodebaugh to Lead Senior Living Division

Planning, architecture, engineering and interiors firm Leo A Daly recently promoted Michael Rodebaugh to lead its senior living design practice in the Southeast U.S.

In his new role, Rodebaugh will oversee design and business development for the firm’s senior living design practice throughout the region. He will lead a design team out of Leo A Daly’s West Palm Beach, Florida, office. Rodebaugh has 17 years of experience, and joined Leo A Daly in 2002. Before that, he focused on theatrical design at Zeidler Partnership.

Rodebaugh is currently the designer and project manager for the 215-unit Alton CCRC in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, as well the second phase of Sinai Residences community in Boca Raton, Florida.

Written by Tim Regan

The post Movers & Shakers: Seasons Management Names New COO, Principal appeared first on Senior Housing News.

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Construction: Planned

Omega Buys Land for Georgia Community

Omega Communities recently acquired 10 acres of land on the campus of Eagle’s Landing First Baptist Church in McDonough, Georgia, to develop a 200-bed independent living, assisted living and memory care community.

Construction drawings for the new community, Lake Vista at Eagle’s Landing, are about halfway done, and Omega hopes to break ground toward the end of this year. When complete, Lake Vista will be Omega’s sixth community, with four operating in Florida and Alabama and a fifth under development in Lady Lake, Florida.

Construction: In progress

Solvere to Manage Community Under Construction in Virginia

Solvere Senior Living will manage Aspire at Carriage Hill, a $31.6 million independent living community under construction in Henrico, Virginia.

The 148 one- and two-bedroom rental community will have amenities such as an indoor pool, salon and spa, fitness center, patio, gazebo, outdoor dining area with a fire pit, business center and Wi-Fi lounge, bistro, a full service bar and a dining room.

Bonaventure Realty Group is the community’s developer and owner, and J. Price Architecture is designing it. If all goes accoridng to plan, Aspire at Carriage Hill will open in May, 2019.

Discovery Breaks Ground on Florida Project

Discovery Senior Living held a groundbreaking ceremony for its newest independent living community, Discovery Village At Naples Independent Living in Naples, Florida.

As planned, the community will have one-, two- and three-bedroom apartment homes with access to a fitness center, clubhouse, club and bar, bistro and ice cream parlor, media center with cognitive brain fitness programs, a movie theater, heated pool and spa, and a beauty salon and barber shop.

Discovery Village At Naples Independent Living is scheduled to open in the fall of 2020.

Belmont Village Tops Out in Chicago

Belmont Village Senior Living recently topped out its seven-story senior living community under construction in in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood.

Contractor W.E. O’Neil completed the concrete structure with the final roof placement. Belmont’s plans call for a 120,500-square-foot property with 149 assisted living and memory care units.

The community is currently scheduled to open in the summer of 2019.

Riverwoods Starts Work for New Hampshire CCRC

The RiverWoods Group recently broke ground for RiverWoods Durham, a new continuing care retirement community (CCRC) in Durham, New Hampshire.

As planned, RiverWoods Durham is a non-profit CCRC with 150 independent apartments and a 72-bed health center on an 11-acre campus.

LeCesse Construction of New York is managing the project, with the community scheduled to open in 2019.

South Carolina Community to Expand

Rolling Green Village, a roughly 500-resident senior living community in Greenville, South Carolina, is celebrating its 33-year anniversary by breaking ground on a new expansion project on Aug. 25.

The redevelopment and expansion will include 60 new independent living apartments and 23 single homes and duplexes. The project also will include new dining venues and other multipurpose spaces.

Construction: Complete

Leisure Care Community Opens Near Denver

Leisure Care is managing a newly opened senior living community near Denver.

The six-floor community, Carillon at Belleview Station, has 163 independent living and assisted living apartments as well as 24 memory care suites.

Amenities include a wellness center with a salon and spa, fitness center and a 1,500 square-foot sky lounge with a bar and an outdoor terrace on the community’s top floor.

Residents of the new community will also get an Amazon Echo Dot, which allows them to listen to their schedules, menus, service plans and appointments.

Capitol Seniors Housing Opens New Jersey Location

Capitol Seniors Housing has opened a new assisted living and memory care community in Mountainside, New Jersey.

The $25 million community, Arbor Terrace Mountainside, has 79 residential suites and amenities for residents such as dining rooms, a library, a movie theater, an activity room, cafe, tavern, salon, spa and a wellness and fitness room.

The community was designed by Meyer Senior Living Studio.

Five Star Opening Four New Ageility Clinics in Washington

Five Star Senior Living (Nasdaq: FVE) is opening four of new Ageility Physical Therapy Solutions clinics throughout the state of Washington in August.

The clinics will be located in Shelton, Bremerton, Burlington and Mount Vernon, marking Ageility’s first operations in the Pacific Northwest. Ageility is Five Star’s rehab and wellness brand, and is centered on physical, occupational and speech therapy.

Five Star will continue to grow its Ageility Physical Therapy Solutions offerings throughout 2018.

LCS Community Now Open Near Chicago

The Carrington at Lincolnwood, a new independent living, assisted living and memory care operated by Life Care Services (LCS), has opened its doors in Lincolnwood, Illinois.

Amenities on the community’s 13-acre campus include an indoor aquatic and fitness center, multiple libraries, a hair salon and spa, gardens, dog-friendly areas and walking paths.

The first residents began moving into the community in April. Carrington at Lincolnwood’s monthly rates start at $2,800.

Other noteworthy projects:

Planned

— A senior living community in Ames, Iowa, has plans to nearly triple the size of its campus by adding 231 new units.

— Sunrise Senior Living has plans for an 80-unit senior living community in Vienna, Virginia.

— A new assisted living and memory care community could be in the cards for Mundelein, Illinois.

— Local officials in Roswell, Georgia, have given the go-ahead to plans for a 120-unit assisted living community.

— A senior living community in Xenia, Ohio, plans to expand by adding a new 51-unit apartment building.

— LCB Senior Living is seeking to open a 110-unit senior living community in South Lexington, Massachusetts .

— Plans for a 281-unit Clarendale community are moving ahead in the St. Louis suburb of Clayton.

— A planned 130-unit senior living project in Franklin, Tennessee, could move forward if local officials give their blessing to the project.

— Developer Senior Lifestyle is seeking to build a 125-unit assisted living and memory care community in River Forest, Illinois.

— A planning commission in Elk Grove, California, have given their blessing to plans for a new 151-unit senior living community.

In progress

— Construction has started for a new 98-unit independent and assisted living community in Roanoke, Virginia.

— Workers have broken ground on a 118-unit assisted living community in Biloxi, Mississippi.

Complete

— Benchmark Senior Living is managing a newly opened, 101-unit senior living community in Smithtown, New York.

— A collaboration between the two non-profit organizations has resulted in a new senior living community in Chardon, Ohio.

— A senior living community has wrapped up work on a new 40,000-square-foot wellness and community center in Ashland, Ohio.

— A senior living community with 79 units has arrived in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Written by Tim Regan

The post In the Pipeline: Capitol Seniors Housing’s New Community; Discovery Breaks Ground appeared first on Senior Housing News.

Benchmark Names Executive Director for Massachusetts Community

Benchmark Senior Living recently appointed Adam Manchester as the campus executive director of New Pond Village, a senior living community in Walpole, Massachusetts.

In his new role, Manchester will the community’s oversee day-to-day operations. Manchester has many years of experience in the senior living industry, and earned a Certified Director of Assisted Living (CDAL) credential from the Senior Living Certification Commission in 2017.

New Pond Village recently opened a new memory care expansion as part of of Benchmark’s $8 million investment in the community. The renovations also included an expansion of its independent and assisted living offerings.

Primrose Hires New Memory Care Coordinator

Primrose Retirement Communities has hired Sarah Viola as its new memory care coordinator.

Viola is now tasked with training staff how to provide care for people affected by dementia and Alzheimer’s, and oversee how Primrose memory care communities are applying a person-centered. As part of her new job, she will visit Primrose’s 35 communities across the U.S.

Viola, who earned a master’s degree in occupational therapy, previously worked in home health, long-term care, rehabilitation, acute care, and geriatric psychiatric settings.

Non-profit Colorado Community Adds Member to Board of Directors

Robert Atchley has joined the board of directors at Golden West, a non-profit independent and assisted senior living community in Boulder, Colorado.

Currently, Atchley is professor emeritus of gerontology at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, where he directed the Scripps Gerontology Center for 24 years.

Spring Arbor Parent Company HHHunt Welcomes New CFO

HHHunt, the residential real estate company behind the Spring Arbor Senior Living brand, has a new face in the C-suite. Todd Kobayashi joined the company Thursday as the company’s new CFO.

Kobayashi—who has more than a decade of experience financing and developing multifamily, senior housing and student housing properties—will succeed current HHHunt CFO James Crowder once he retires on Dec. 31, the company announced. Kobayashi will work alongside Crowder for the rest of this year to ensure a smooth transition.

In his new role, Kobayashi will look after financing for all HHHunt communities, and will work with all of the company’s divisions to ensure debt and equity are available for new investments. Previously, Kobayashi worked as the CFO of Kansas City-based Foutch Architecture & Development.

Larry Cohen to Retire as Capital Senior Living CEO, Stay On As Consultant

Capital Senior Living (NYSE: CSU) CEO Larry Cohen is retiring at the beginning of next year, the company announced Wednesday morning.

Cohen first joined the Dallas-based senior living operator 21 years ago, and served as CEO for 19 of those years. His retirement takes effect Jan. 1, 2019.

Written by Tim Regan

The post Movers & Shakers: Benchmark Senior Living, Primrose Retirement Communities appeared first on Senior Housing News.

Stephanie Handelson, whose resume includes leadership positions across several senior living providers, has been tapped as the new CEO of Greystone Healthcare Management.

In taking this position, Handelson will now lead a company that has a focus on skilled nursing. Tampa, Florida-based Greystone manages a portfolio of 28 skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) across the Sunshine State and does business as the Greystone Health Network. Handelson formally assumed the top spot on Monday, succeeding interim CEO Gerry Jenich.

Greystone Health Network runs home health and private duty home care agencies along with its brick-and-mortar rehab and assisted living properties. A subsidiary of the New York City-based health care financing giant Greystone, the operator has focused on both existing properties and new developments in Florida, including the opening of a $30 million resort-style property in Kendall, Fla. last year.

“With a strategic plan to continue expansion into new markets and broaden the reach of the Greystone Health Network, Stephanie’s specialized background in managing a large system of communities will be invaluable to the organization,” Greystone founder Steve Rosenberg said in a statement announcing Handelson’s hire.

Handelson brings an extensive pedigree in the private-pay senior living space, having spent five years as an executive at Sunrise Senior Living and eight more years as president and chief operating officer of Benchmark Senior Living. Before joining Greystone, she was the CEO of Harmony Senior Services, a role that she had recently accepted when she sat down with Senior Housing News to discuss her experience in the senior living industry back in May 2018.

At the time, she noted that senior housing had a choice to either enter the health care industry or stick to hospitality.

“I think people are making a choice either to provide it themselves or partner and the industry is going to have to pick,” Handelson said. “Do they want to play in the health care arena or not? If they want to stay on the hospitality side, that’s fine, but I don’t think they’re going to be able to play in the middle.”

She also touched on the pressures that leaders in the senior housing and care space face when attempting to balance margins with the mission of caring for vulnerable adults.

“I really believe that when you hang your shingle in this industry, you have to be committed to the people and to the product that you’re delivering — and executing on that belief that the family is really putting so much trust and faith in you regardless of how big the company is,” she said.

The post Veteran Senior Living Leader Handelson Named CEO of Greystone Health Network appeared first on Senior Housing News.

Benchmark Senior Living on Clapboardtree is located about 10 miles from Gillette Stadium, so it’s natural that many residents were thrilled when the New England Patriots won the Super Bowl in January. And just a few days later, they were excited to attend the parade in Boston celebrating the win — via virtual reality.

Virtual reality (VR) has generated a lot of buzz in recent years and is beginning to make greater inroads in senior living. Benchmark’s event at Clapboardtree highlights how VR already can add value to senior living and also suggests what the future may hold.

Serendipity was involved in bringing the virtual Patriots parade to Benchmark residents.

Rendever is a startup focused primarily on bringing VR technology into senior living settings, and the company is based in Boston. Right after the Patriots’ big win, Rendever CEO Kyle Rand was talking with a colleague, who suggested they try to film the parade for VR from a float. Through connections with startup accelerator MassChallenge, Rand quickly found himself in logistical discussions with the mayor’s office.

“Twenty-four hours later, one of our employees was on the parade with two VR cameras,” he told Senior Housing News. “Getting media passes is so hard [for these events], but the mission we’re pursuing is something that time and time again people are willing to align themselves for.”

Rendever already had a relationship with Benchmark, which is based in Waltham, Massachusetts and is one of the largest providers in the region, with nearly 60 communities. The company is planning to incorporate virtual reality in a new building that is going up, Adelaide of Newton Centre. While discussing this project with Benchmark Community Technology Specialist Tom Fitzpatrick, Rand mentioned filming the Super Bowl parade.

Plans were laid to bring that virtual parade to Clapboardtree.

“That was the planets aligning,” Fitzpatrick told SHN.

The two-hour event involved a mix of assisted living and memory care residents. A Rendever representative introduced the technology to the residents, explaining how they would don the VR headset and what they would experience.

“I think some residents were a bit skeptical … and as soon as they put the VR goggles on, they had a better understanding that they are transporting to that location, they can live and breathe that experience,” Fitzpatrick said.

The response was overwhelmingly positive — one resident even said that he spotted a relative in the crowd.

“A lot of staff members … their jaws were hanging there in awe that the residents were having such a great time, same with the family members there that day,” Fitzpatrick said.

Future directions

Already, senior living providers and other types of health care organizations have been experimenting with VR as a form of pain relief and to do a kind of reminiscence therapy, taking people to places like their childhood neighborhoods or destinations associated with positive memories.

This is one application of VR that Benchmark is exploring for the Adelaide of Newton Centre community, which will have a sort of “brain gym,” Fitzpatrick said.

But the Super Bowl parade shows that virtual reality is not limited to simulated trips to Paris or hikes in the woods, but can be deployed to keep residents engaged in exciting current events.

“The camera tech has really evolved,” Rand said. “Internal stabilization in cameras works so well that the post-processing is light-speed faster.”

This is what enabled Rendever to capture the parade footage and deliver it to the Benchmark community just a week later.

There’s even greater potential once 5G becomes a reality.

At that point, a resident’s family might be able to take a VR headset to a wedding or other event and essentially live-stream it. That is, someone in assisted living might be able to “attend” the wedding as it actually happens.

Benchmark already has piloted Rendever in a few communities, and now Fitzpatrick is contemplating new and innovative ways to expand these efforts and do more creative programming. For instance, it might be possible to create a multi-sensory experience by placing a resident’s feet in sand while they take a virtual trip to the beach.

Furthermore, the technology has potential sales and marketing applications, in facilitating virtual tours, he noted.

And the technology is not prohibitive from a cost perspective. The hardware is limited to the goggles and tablets, and beyond that it’s a subscription fee model, Fitzpatrick said. However, a building must have sufficient Wi-Fi.

Overall, Fitzpatrick looks forward to showcasing VR to Benchmark executive directors and seeing how the technology is utilized across the portfolio in the coming years.

“I think we’re just at the tip of the iceberg,” he said.

The post Benchmark Residents Experience Super Bowl Parade, Thanks to Latest Virtual Reality Tech appeared first on Senior Housing News.

Construction: Planned

New Blake Community Coming to Texas

Developer LifeCare Properties and operator Blake Management Group are collaborating on a new senior living project called The Blake at Waco in Waco, Texas.

The 112-unit assisted living and memory care community will have assisted living options including two-bedroom suites, one-bedroom suites and studios. For memory care residents, residences include studio and one-bedroom suites.

The community will also offer Walk with Me, Blake’s proprietary dementia care program.

Construction: In progress

Affinity Working on Community in North Carolina

Construction is underway for a new Affinity Living Group assisted living community in Kannapolis, North Carolina.

The community, The Landings of Cabarrus, will have 35 assisted living suites and 32 memory care beds with access to external courtyards, a theater with a chapel area, private dining rooms, private nooks and large common areas. Pets will be welcome at the community.

Workers are slated to wrap up construction for the community later this spring.

Work Underway For Alabama Community

Greenbrier Senior Living has announced that construction is ongoing for Longleaf Liberty Park, a senior living community in Vestavia Hills, Alabama.

The 95-unit community will have amenities that include a sports lounge, outdoor patios, multiple dining venues, fitness center, art studio, theater and a library.

The community is expected to open in August. Braemar Partners is developing the community, while Greenbrier Senior Living is slated to manage it.

Mission Senior Living Celebrates Groundbreaking in Nevada

Mission Senior Living recently celebrated the groundbreaking of the Mountain Lakes Estates Retirement Community in Reno, Nevada.

The community will have 130 apartment homes with access to common areas, a billiards room, fitness center and areas for outdoor gardening.

The community is currently on track to open in the spring of next year. Project partners include Pinnacle Architects, MSL Construction, Contract Interiors, Western Pacific Electric and Alpha Omega Mechanical.

Abby Development Starts Work in Arkansas

Abby Development recently broke ground on Pinnacle Groves, a 221-unit senior housing development in Rogers, Arkansas.

The community will offer independent living, assisted living and memory care services and amenities such as a stocked fishing lake, multiple landscaped courtyards with water features, walking trails, movie theaters, indoor swimming pool, pharmacy and general store, beauty salons, libraries and fitness center.

Independent living residents can choose from one- and two-bedroom apartments and two- and three- bedroom cottages, while assisted living resident options will include studio, one- and two-bedroom units. Additionally, the community’s memory care wing will offer private and semi-private floorplans.

Abby’s senior housing management division, Abby Senior Living, will manage the community once it opens.

Construction: Complete

LifeSpire Sets Opening Date for Virginia CCRC’s Expansion

LifeSpire of Virginia will hold a grand opening celebration on May 10 for a new building at The Culpeper, a continuing care retirement community (CCRC) in Culpeper, Virginia.

The new building is replacing an original brick structure that was built in the 1940s. Residents in that building are slated to transition to the new one in April.

Other noteworthy projects:

Planned

— A nonprofit senior living community is embarking on an $11 million expansion to add more assisted living units in Staunton, Virginia.

— Local officials in Union City, New Jersey, are mulling approvals for a 101-unit senior housing complex.

In progress

— Two projects from Benchmark Senior Living are under construction in Framingham and Marlborough, Massachusetts.

— Vantage Point Retirement Living has started work on a 160-unit senior living community in Limerick, Pennsylvania.

Complete

— Ballad Health and Signature HealthCare have opened a 107-unit assisted living and skilled nursing facility in Johnson City, Tennessee.

— Wegman Companies and Columbia Pacific are collaborating on a new senior living community with 140 beds in Hanover Township, Pennsylvania.

— The U.K.-based Acacia Care Group recently opened a 70-bed care home located in Leicestershire, England, according to an announcement. The community has its own pub called the Cobblers Arms, a cinema room, hairdressing salon and a library.

The post In the Pipeline: Blake Community Coming to Texas; Work Underway for New Affinity Property appeared first on Senior Housing News.

After a decade of whispers, trials, pilots and promise, virtual reality (VR) now seems on the precipice of a boom in senior housing and senior care settings.

A bevy of companies have cropped up over the past five years to tailor VR solutions directly to senior living. VR is now helping operators address age-old challenges such as resident isolation, dementia care and pain management, all of which is examined in the new Senior Housing News report, “Inside the Rise of Senior Living Virtual Reality.”

The VR usage expansion is the result of a convergence of trends. For one, boomers are more comfortable with technology than previous generations. Meanwhile, the technology itself is better and more affordable. And shifts in health care are incentivizing prevention and wellness and less reliance on medication, all of which VR can support.

Observing all these trends, operators are beginning to make significant investments both upfront and annually to bring VR to residents and staff. Westport, Connecticut-based Maplewood Senior Living, for instance, spent $104,000 to implement VR in its 13 assisted living communities, with eight headsets per community, and spends $320 per month per community — just under $50,000 annually — on content, training and ongoing support services, working with senior-centric VR company Rendever.

“Residents and their families really love having this as an activity option,” says Brian Geyser, Maplewood’s vice president of clinical innovation and population health. “It’s a social thing. They talk about the experiences later at dinner. To me, it helps with the happiness factor, which is a very important piece of what we offer.”

Resident happiness is one of three main benefits operators are finding with VR, and one of the three explored in the new report, which looks at the experiences of seven senior living operators at different points in their respective VR journeys, along with five leading VR vendors in the senior space.

Here is a look at the three ways operators are using virtual reality to deliver resident happiness and reduce social isolation.

Creating “physical” travel experiences

The potential impact VR can have on resident happiness is summed up by recent work from AARP. In November of 2017, the organization released a study examining Medicare spending data and found that social isolation among older adults “is associated with an estimated $6.7 billion in additional federal spending annually.”

“VR is a powerful tool for driving social connections in more intimate, immersive ways than traditional media,” AARP Innovations Labs Director Nigel Smith told Senior Housing News via email. “Examples include fostering connections between residents, connections with their caregivers and loved ones living outside of the senior housing setting and connections with strangers in the world. In so doing, VR can address some of the underlying needs of seniors and caregivers.”

There are essentially three different avenues for using VR to address resident happiness, all of which can be thought of as a form of travel.

The first, most basic one is physical travel — using VR to bring residents on journeys or experiences no longer available to them due to their physical capabilities. Vendors are doing this through pre-loaded travel scenarios, as well as original content. VR vendor MyndVR has an episodic series called “A Road to Remember” in which the company spent nine months filming the historic Route 66, which runs from Los Angeles to Chicago. It also films interactive tours of museums and zoos, and did an agricultural series for seniors in Kansas who grew up on or around farms.

“We have residents with limited mobility, or those who are no longer able to travel as they once did,” says Jacqueline Trost, vice president of marketing and communications Bloomfield Hills, Michigan-based American House Senior Living Communities, which is running an experiences program with Virtual Reality Rental. “Virtual reality allows them to have first experiences, or revisit locations and activities they hold near and dear.”

But more than just bringing people on trips they can no longer take, vendors are finding ways to bring people on trips they could never take. One prominent, recent example comes from Rendever’s partnership with Benchmark Senior Living and its community in Norwood, Massachusetts, in the heart of New England Patriots country.

After the Patriots won their most recent Super Bowl on February 3, 2019, Rendever wanted to bring Benchmark residents to the championship parade. Rather than just film it from the crowd, Rendever placed two virtual reality cameras on the Patriots’ parade float.

Residents who would not otherwise be able to attend the parade weren’t just given the “you are there” experience — they were given a “you are on the float” experience. And they did it together: Rendever travel experiences are done as a group, with all the users seeing the same scenes. To Rendever and its clients, that is the key to driving socialization and building intergenerational, communal experiences.

“Our residents were happily and actively engaged in the parade, looking for their favorite players and waving to the fans,” says Benchmark’s community technology specialist Tom Fitzpatrick. “They were in awe with the entire experience.”

Using reminiscence therapy to bring residents to their past

The second type of happiness-based travel is reminiscence therapy, transporting residents to their past. This is particularly important for residents in memory support, for whom the ability to verbalize memories can be limited.

There are two basic ways to deliver VR reminiscence therapy. Rendever is bringing seniors to their childhood homes and neighborhoods through a mix of techniques, such as Google Maps, or translating 2D family photos into immersive images.

MyndVR, meanwhile, is taking seniors to more general places in the past. The content that CEO Chris Brickler is most excited about falls into the reminiscence therapy category, blending memory support with music therapy for people with mild cognitive impairment. Playing music from the past for a person living with dementia can be a powerful form of therapy, so Brickler and MyndVR brought an audio experience into the VR sphere.

Rather than playing a Frank Sinatra song on an iPod for a person with dementia, MyndVR decided in 2018 to bring that person into a Frank Sinatra concert. They hired 35 actors to re-create a 1950s swing-jazz club, including a band playing “Fly Me To the Moon,” and filmed it all from the front row of the concert.

In April, MyndVR launched its MyndVR 2.0 initiative, and as a part of the company’s ongoing work, they are collecting data that they hope will lead to more usage, greater outcomes, greater affordability and eventually Medicare reimbursement. They just completed a national study around memory care, with 50% of participants showing positive reactions to the technology and only 25% responding negatively.

“That blew my mind,” Brickler says. “I didn’t think we would see that level of engagement in memory care, but we did.”

Bringing families together

The third type of travel delivering resident happiness is a form of familial bonding, with programs combating familial separation in two ways.

Among AARP’s newest VR ventures is Alcove VR, an intergenerational virtual reality app the organization launched in a collaboration with Rendever. The app joins seniors and their loved ones together in a virtual room, to let them feel more connected than phone calls or FaceTime sessions.

The second solution is to give VR cameras to family members so that they can film weddings, reunions, vacations and other family gatherings. These events are then stored as part of the content package that residents can watch.

“The industry is starting to realize that virtual reality is an avenue that really supports every single spoke of the senior living wheel,” says Kyle Rand, co-founder and CEO Rendever. “It’s really an avenue that tackles every major problem … and brings this industry into the light as an industry that is adopting tech.”

This article draws from the new report, “Inside the Rise of Senior Living Virtual Reality.” Click here to access the complete report, which includes exclusive pricing data showing what operators are spending on VR, never-before-published data and use cases that are driving these investments and in-depth looks into how operators use VR for resident happiness, resident health and staff retention.

The post As Virtual Reality Comes of Age, Senior Living Providers Dive In appeared first on Senior Housing News.

If the senior living industry wants to tap into the sizable middle market consumer demographic over the next decade, it’s going to take some truly unique operating models and financing structures — including some that haven’t been thought of yet.

Possible solutions include developing communities with shared rooms and fewer high-end amenities, embracing efficiencies to cut down on labor costs and leveraging new technology. The answer might also lie in developing more affordable senior living brands, a la the hospitality industry, or partnerships with Medicare Advantage insurers to help drive down the cost of care for residents.

And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

While there will be significant challenges related to rethinking the traditional senior living model — especially with regard to development and construction costs, equity and staffing — the emerging consensus among industry stakeholders is that now is the time to tease out new ideas.

‘Huge untapped market’

The number of middle-income seniors will almost double to 14.4 million by 2029, and 54% of them will not have the financial resources for private-pay senior living if today’s rates hold, according to research conducted by a team from the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC), NORC at the University of Chicago, Harvard Medical School and the University of Maryland School of Medicine.

Of that 14.4 million, 8% will have cognitive impairments, 60% will have mobility limitations and 20% will have high needs, which are defined as people living with three or more chronic conditions and one or more limitations in activities of daily living (ADLs), according to the NIC study.

At the same time, the age and income demographic is less likely to be married than today’s older adults, less likely to have pensions and will have fewer children, on average. All of these factors could affect how much these older Americans can afford and whether they’ll have family caregivers as they age.

If senior housing and care providers can find a way to reduce resident rates and out-of-pocket medical expenses by $15,000 a year, another 5.9 million older adults — or 12.5 million total — would be able to afford their services in 2029.

As big as the upside is, the risk of doing nothing is also vast. And if the senior living industry doesn’t try to solve the problem soon, regulators and policymakers likely will, warned NIC Founder and Strategic Advisor Bob Kramer during a NIC investor summit in New York City Tuesday.

“If this industry is only seen as caring about wealthy elders, there will be hell to pay,” Kramer said. “The reality is, this is a huge untapped market. It’s also going to be a huge social need … that is going to put an enormous and unsustainable pressure on our safety nets.”

For years, senior living providers have differentiated themselves from their competitors not with quality of care, but with pricey luxury amenities. This has only added to the cost of senior living, and it’s a mindset the industry will need to shed if it wants to get serious about tapping into the middle market, Kramer said.

“Both [to] your investor and your customer, you’re saying, I provide assisted living, but look at all these added bells and whistles,” Kramer told Senior Housing News in an interview after Tuesday’s event. “One theme today was the importance of starting with a price point that the middle market customer can afford and then figuring out in all of the different areas, how can you design to that price point?”

Middle market models

Already, there are some senior living providers — such as Seattle-based Leisure Care and Benchmark Senior Living, which is headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts — that are actively testing possible operating and financing concepts for reaching the middle market.

While the efforts from Leisure Care and Benchmark are still in their early stages, they may offer a window into how the industry at large can begin to tackle this problem in the coming years.

Currently, Benchmark has one community open and two more under construction that are aimed at reaching middle market residents. Annual rates for residents of these communities were targeted at around $50,000, with monthly rates starting at about $3,300.

“We’ve seen rents and costs continually increase and knew that there was an unserved middle that we wanted to see if we could tap into,” said Tom Grape, Benchmark’s founder and CEO, at Tuesday’s event. “We tried our first community as an experiment, to just sort of dip our toe into the water … and we’ve been very pleased with the success.”

To achieve lower costs, Benchmark first designed and built a smaller community than one of its more traditional offerings. The company also chose wood-frame construction to help keep construction costs low.

On the operations side, the provider was able to reduce its total staff by about 15% versus one of its traditional communities, through small efforts like not having a dining manager and reducing its activities staff.

Benchmark also marketed the property in a way that wasn’t focused on affordability.

“The way we marketed this was not as a lower-cost option, but as a high sociability option,” Grape said during the panel Tuesday. “Because of the more compact building size, the common areas have a great culture … and it’s really worked with slightly scaled back staffing.”

Despite the early success of Benchmark’s model, Grape said there’s more experimentation needed to really standardize what works and what doesn’t. On the whole, he believes it will take a new perspective on the traditional senior living model plus some brand-new ideas to develop a true middle-market product.

“My guess is there will be some parts of this that could be answered by tweaking the existing model, and I think other folks will approach it and have some success with entirely new models,” Grape told Senior Housing News. “Somebody’s going to figure it out, and I like to think we’re adaptive and nimble and as likely to figure it out as anybody else, if not better.”

For Leisure Care, efficiency is the name of the game, according to Judy Marczewski, the company’s CFO. To date, the company has opened three independent living communities geared toward the middle market, with its latest one in Raleigh, North Carolina, and a handful more in the works.

“We are really focused on efficiency, on very thoughtful design that has enabled us to reduce our staffing levels,” Marczewski said. “It’s in the kitchen design, it’s in the way the food is delivered, it’s in the menu design.”

These efficiencies allow the community to operate at significantly less cost versus the more traditional way, she added. The first of Leisure Care’s middle-market projects clocked in at around $26 million, or $200,000 per unit, in 2014.

With shared units, Benchmark’s first middle-market community was also able to achieve a similar cost per beds.

Technology could also factor into affordability by creating new efficiencies in staffing, said Gaurie Rodman, director of development services with Direct Supply Aptura, which provides senior living interior design and construction management expertise. She envisioned a day when a smart chandelier might provide Wi-Fi and therapeutic light while also tracking residents as they go about their day.

“There’s a lot of innovation going on that I think our industry has to be embracing,” Rodman said. “How we fund and how that gets capitalized is going to be the next conversation.”

The post Tapping into the Middle Market Requires Mix of New and Old Ideas appeared first on Senior Housing News.

Presbyterian Announces Sales and Marketing VP, Executive Director

Presbyterian Senior Living (PSL) has announced that Kristin Hambleton will lead the organization’s sales and marketing team. She fills a role previously held by Victoria Hess, who retired last year.

In her new role, Hambleton will oversee, direct and manage marketing, communications and census development. She will also oversee lead management systems and establish staff trainings and education for marketing and admissions employees, and direct marketing and sales staff for more than 30 PSL locations.

Hambleton has more than 25 years of sales, marketing, and management experience including a decade spent in the senior living industry. She previously worked as vice president of sales and business development for Continuum CRM, a company that offers senior living software solutions.

Additionally, Presbyterian also announced that Jeremy Schrader is the new executive director of Presbyterian Village at Hollidaysburg, a CCRC in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania.

As executive director, Schrader will manage the CCRC’s operations and marketing efforts.

Benchmark Announces Appointments in Connecticut, Massachusetts

Benchmark Senior Living has announced several staff appointments related to its operations in the Northeast U.S.

The company named Missy Ebner to the role of regional director of resident care. In that capacity, Ebner will oversee resident care for Benchmark’s independent living, assisted living, memory care and skilled nursing communities throughout the Northeast.

Before joining Benchmark, Ebner worked as regional director of health and wellness for Milestone Retirement Communities. She also spent time with Juniper Communities, Enlivant, Sunrise Senior Living and Emeritus.

Benchmark also named Allyson Sweeney as executive director of The Atrium at Rocky Hill, a memory care community in Rocky Hill, Connecticut.

She previously worked with Benchmark as associate executive director for The Arbors at Shelburne, a memory care community in Shelburne, Vermont. Sweeney is returning to the company in taking the executive director role.

Additionally, Benchmark named Rob Guinard as the director of community relations for The Branches of Marlboro, an assisted living and memory care community set for a November opening in Marlboro, Massachusetts.

Prior to joining The Branches, Guinard worked in the same capacity at Benchmark’s Shrewsbury Crossings community in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts. He also previously was director of business development for MedStar EMS.

Legacy Names Executive Director for Dallas Project

The Legacy Senior Communities named John Falldine as executive director of The Legacy Midtown Park, a rental continuing care retirement community (CCRC) under development in Dallas.

Before joining Legacy, Falldine was for about a decade the executive director of Edgemere Senior Living in Dallas. He has about two decades of experience overall.

The community is slated to open next year and bring with it multiple dining venues, a pub with a billiards table, golf simulator, underground parking and a fitness center, aerobics studio and aquatic center.

Senior Living Communities Hires in Indiana, North Carolina

Senior Living Communities has hired Justin English as an HR assistant at The Stratford, a CCRC in Carmel, Indiana.

English has years of previous experience within the senior living industry and will help grow the impact that The Stratford has on the local community.

The company also named Tammara Sweeney as social director for The Charlotte, a senior living community in the works in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Tammara comes from a sister community, Wellmore of Tega Cay, where she worked as a life enrichment leader for memory care residents.

Additionally, the company promoted one of its employees from a community in South Carolina to its home office.

Michael Zebrowski was promoted to vice president of facility services, Senior Living Communities announced. He previously worked at Brightwater, the company’s community in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

Integral Community in Texas Welcomes Executive Director

The Village at Mapleshade, an Integral Senior Living (ISL) community in Plano, Texas, has appointed Linda Craun-Lugar to the role of executive director.

As executive director, Craun-Lugar will manage the community’s day-to-day operations and workers, hire department heads and care staff and coordinate with the larger ISL management company.

Lugar previously worked as executive director at Sunrise Senior Living in Sterling, Virginia. She has over 20 years of experience in the senior living industry.

Solstice Appoints Regional Sales and Marketing Director

Solstice Senior Living, a joint venture of Integral Senior Living and NorthStar Healthcare Income, has hired David Lors as its regional director of sales and marketing.

His new role will task him with leading initiatives for 10 of Solstice’s 32 communities in Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, Missouri and New York.

Lors was previously a senior regional director of sales for senior living communities in Virginia and Ohio. He has 15 years of senior living experience, including leading sales and marketing in more than nine states and two countries.

Purchase College Community Names Marketing Team

Broadview Senior Living at Purchase College, a senior living community under development on the Purchase College campus in Harrison, New York, has named Ashley Wade, Amy Post and Raina Maasik Woo to its marketing team.

Ashley Wade will work as the community’s director of marketing, a role that will task her with managing marketing, public relations and sales programming for the community. Wade previously was executive director for Sycamore Creek Senior Living, an independent living community in Pickerington, Ohio.

The community also appointed to Amy Post the title of residency counselor. She is responsible for coordinating the community’s sale and move-in process. Prior to joining Broadview, Post worked as a retirement sales counselor for The Knolls, a life plan community in Valhalla, N.Y. She has 16 years of senior living experience.

Raina Maasik Woo, meanwhile, is working as the community’s marketing coordinator. In that role, Woo will aid community relations, establish referral relationships and recruit residents and their families into the community. Woo has 11 years of experience and previously worked as activities director for independent and assisted living residents at Five Star Premier Residences in Yonkers, New York.

Springpoint Names Regional Director of Major and Planned Gifts

Sean Flood has joined Springpoint Senior Living as the regional director of major and planned gifts for the Springpoint Senior Living Foundation.

Flood previously worked as the director of development for the Scholarship Fund for Inner-City Children in Newark, New Jersey.

Meridian Community Near D.C. Hires Director of Nursing

Chevy Chase House, a senior living community operated by Meridian Senior Living in Washington, D.C., has added Evelyn Donahue as its new director of nursing.

Donahue has more than 30 years of experience in health care, particularly in the areas of clinical nursing at the acute care and community levels, business development, health policy and advocacy and service. Previously, she worked as a dialysis facility administrator, national director of reimbursement, project manager and consultant.

Sodalis Hires VP of Sales

Sodalis Senior Living has welcomed Kelly Schwennesen as the company’s new vice president of sales and marketing.

Schwennesen will oversee the company’s expansions while rooting out new trends and maintaining the company’s culture. Her responsibilities include strategic planning and direction for sales and marketing services, such as the development of training for sales teams.

Schwennesen has 14 years of sales experience in the medical and senior living industries.

WesleyLife Hires VP of Information Solutions

Amber Wentz recently joined WesleyLife as vice president of information solutions. The role will help the organization better serve the older adults it aids.

Wentz previously worked for MercyOne Newton as a senior director responsible for information technology.

GlynnDevins Names VP of Research and Health Care Consulting

Lisa Legeer has joined GlynnDevins as senior vice president of research and healthcare consulting.

In her new role, Legeer will oversee market research and health care consulting for the marketing agency. Specifically, she will work on custom qualitative and quantitative consumer research, market demand and feasibility assessments and resident and employee satisfaction.

Before joining GlynnDevins, Legeer was a principal at Dixon Hughes Goodman, a public accounting firm headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. Overall, she has more than two decades of experience.

Murdock Hires Executive Creative Director

Murdock has named Jeremy Johnson as its executive creative director.

In his new role, Johnson will collaborate with copywriters, art directors and designers to build a tone and image for client brands. He will also manage all phases of the creative process, including providing clients with image development and print, direct mail, broadcast and digital products.

Johnson has worked as a creative professional in senior living for more than two decades, with the majority of that time spent working in senior living at GlynnDevins.

Bellwether Names Senior Vice President for New Senior Housing Group

Bellwether Enterprise Real Estate Capital, the commercial and multifamily mortgage banking subsidiary of Enterprise Community Investment, has hired Richard Lynn to lead its new senior housing group in its Chicago office.

He will be responsible for originating and placing commercial real estate loans for senior housing properties. Lynn has 30 years of experience in commercial real estate finance and investment banking. In doing so, he will work with individual, regional, and institutional owners at both for-profit and non-profit entities. Sources of capital will include Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, FHA, and life insurance company investors.

Lynn previously worked for Marcus and Millichap in senior housing investment sales.

HJ Sims Names VP of Investment Banking

HJ Sims has hired Thomas Bowden as vice president of investment banking.

In his new role, he will lead business development efforts in Virginia, the Carolinas and Georgia. Bowden previously worked for seven years as a vice president with BB&T Capital Markets.

HJ Sims also announced that Kerry Moynihan, senior vice president will co-lead its client relationships and business development efforts in Florida, alongside another senior vice president, Melissa Messina. Kerry is based in Orlando and has more than a decade of senior living banking experience.

The post Movers & Shakers: Presbyterian’s Sales and Marketing VP; Benchmark Names Resident Care Director appeared first on Senior Housing News.

Construction: In progress

CA Senior Living Starts Work on Community Near Philadelphia

CA Senior Living — the senior housing investment and development arm of CA Ventures — recently broke ground on Anthology of King of Prussia, a 192-unit senior living community in Wayne, Pennsylvania.

The 11-story building is slated to open in The Village at Valley Forge, a 122-acre mixed-use development. Independent and assisted living residences will range from 410 square foot studios to 1,200 square-foot two-bedroom apartments and come with design features such as quartz countertops, tile backsplashes, stainless steel appliances; nine-foot ceilings and washers and dryers.

Amenities will include multiple dining venues, a theater, library, family suite with private outdoor deck, game room, a fitness center, indoor pool, physical therapy room and a spa with salon services. On the memory care side, residents can use a family lounge, salon, library, activity rooms and an all-seasons room adjacent to the interior courtyard.

CA Senior Living’s new senior living operations division, Anthology Senior Living, is on board to manage the community. Wohlsen Construction Co. is serving as the project’s general contractor, while Perkins Eastman designed it.

If all goes according to plan, the community will open in late 2020.

Cadence Starts Work in Southern California

Cadence Living recently broke ground on Cadence at Rancho Cucamonga, a 97-unit community in Rancho Cucamonga, California.

The community, which is being developed in partnership with Coyne Development, will have independent living, assisted living and memory care units and amenities including a dog park, community garden, fitness center, salon, restaurant and bistro.

Cadence Living is is expanding its footprint throughout the U.S. south and west with projects underway or communities already open in communities in California, Arizona, Colorado, Georgia and Tennessee.

Work Underway for Civitas Project in Texas

Civitas Senior Living and LKP Ventures have broken ground on Harvest of Roanoke, a project in Roanoke, Texas.

The community will have 83 units within a building inspired by the local charm in Roanoke. Harvest of Roanoke is scheduled to welcome residents some time in the fall of 2020.

Confluent, HRA Break Ground in Florida

Confluent Senior Living and Harbor Retirement Associates (HRA) have started work for HarborChase of Stuart, an assisted living and memory care community in Stuart, Florida.

The 134-unit project will come with one- and two-bedroom units and amenities such as a salon and spa, fitness and wellness center, bar and lounge, a bistro, private dining room with an exhibition kitchen a secure courtyard with a dining area, putting green, pond and gardens.

Baker Barrios Architects is serving as the project’s architect, while The Douglas Company is the general contractor. HRA will manage the community once it opens in the summer of 2020.

Compass to Manage Community Coming Together in Oregon

Compass Senior Living is slated to manage The Landing, a senior living community under construction in Roseburg, Oregon.

The community will have 94 units and amenities such as a theater, courtyards, a bistro with a computer area a salon and barber shop and a library.

The Landing is jointly owned by Compass Senior Living, Paradigm Properties and a group of investors. Dustrud Architects designed the campus, while the contractor is Essex Construction.

Benchmark Community in Pennsylvania Starts Renovation Project

Wellington at Hershey’s Mill, a Benchmark Senior Living community in West Chester, Pennsylvania, is undergoing a major renovation project.

The first phase is already underway and includes the performing arts center and hallways. Slated for future renovations are the independent living residences, dining room, auditorium, concierge, reception desk and the common areas.

Tutera Remodeling Project Underway in Kansas

Tutera Senior Living & Health Care is overhauling The Atriums, a retirement community in Overland Park, Kansas.

Tutera is set to complete the first phase of a $1.5 million renovation this month. The scope of the work has included turning a common living area into an upscale, modernized dining and gathering place. Amenities and services now include a main dining area, community lounges, a pub, cards and billiards room, grand piano and a reading corner and more. Work first began last November.

Work for the project’s second phase is expected to wrap up in the next 12 to 18 months.

Construction: Complete

Kansas Community From Hunt and Principal Welcomes First Residents

Hunt Midwest and partner Principal Senior Living Group recently opened Benton House of Olathe, an assisted living and memory care community in Olathe, Kansas.

Included in the community are indoor and outdoor amenity spaces and 55 studio and one-bedroom apartment suites situated around two landscaped courtyards. The community also has a secured area for memory care residents.

This is Hunt Midwest and Principal Senior Living Group’s ninth Benton House community in the Kansas City metro area since the two companies entered the market in 2011.

Life Plan Community Opens in Orange County, California

Reata Glen, a new life plan community in Rancho Mission Viejo, California, is now open and welcoming residents.

Reata Glen has 480 independent living apartment homes in 20 different floor plans. Amenities include a movie theater, performing arts theater, fitness center and spa, an indoor pool, multiple dining venues, billiards and card rooms, gardening areas, and walking and cycling trails. The community will also have an adjacent health center with assisted living, memory care, and long-term care services.

W.E. O’Neil Construction and KTGY Group Architects + Planning were partners on the project.

Asbury Opens Assisted Living, Memory Care Residence in Tennessee

Asbury Place, an Asbury Communities property in Maryville, Tennessee, is opening a new assisted living and memory care residence on June 1.

The residence, dubbed The Beech, was built to emulate a private home rather than a more traditional senior living property.

United Methodist Opens Wellness Center in Michigan

United Methodist Retirement Communities (UMRC) and the UMRC Foundation have opened a new wellness center at the Chelsea Retirement Community in Chelsea, Michigan.

The new space has an indoor heated swimming pool with a wheelchair ramp, a lazy river, hot tub track and fitness equipment. The center’s construction was part of the UMRC Foundation’s Growing to Serve campaign, which raised over $27.7 million.

Affordable Senior Housing Opens in Florida

Housing Trust Group and Miami Jewish Health Systems recently held a grand opening for Douglas Gardens, a $36 million, 110-unit affordable senior housing community in Pembroke Pines, Florida.

The community is meant for older adults with incomes at or below 60% of area median income, with rents ranging from $405 to $953 a month. The community has a multipurpose room, a computer lab and a private courtyard with landscaped pathways and gardens.

Affordable Senior Housing Debuted in New York City

A 320-unit development for low-income seniors has opened in The Bronx, the borough in New York City.

The community has a health center and pharmacy, accessible gardens and laundry rooms and a mix of studios and one-bedroom floor plans.

Nonprofit developer West Side Federation for Senior and Supportive Housing is behind the project.

Other noteworthy projects:

Planned

— A new four-story senior housing complex is coming together in Los Angeles.

— Brightview Senior Living is seeking to build a 177-unit senior living community in Eatontown, New Jersey.

— Local officials are weighing whether to grand tax breaks for a $10 million assisted living project in Toledo, Iowa.

— A senior living community in Austin, Texas, is planning a $115 million expansion.

— A senior living community in Vernon, Vermont, is adopting the Green House model and planning a six-building expansion on its campus.

— A vacant office building near Milwaukee could be demolished to make way for a three-story assisted living community with 42 to 48 beds.

In progress

— Affinity Living Group is making progress on plans to open a new 62-bed assisted living community in Nashville.

Complete

— Atlantic Realty Companies held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its new 210-unit senior living project in Reston, Virginia.

— A new memory care community has opened in Aiken, South Carolina.

The post In the Pipeline: CA Ventures Project Near Philadelphia; HRA’s Next Florida Community appeared first on Senior Housing News.

Senior Living Communities Parent Company Names President

Maxwell Group, the parent company of Senior Living Communities, Wellmore and Live Long Well Care, has named Benjamin Thompson to the role of president.

Thompson has worked for Maxwell Group in 2011, most recently as an executive vice president. He first joined the company as a marketing and finance intern.

Springpoint Appoints Julia Zauner to VP of Marketing

Springpoint Senior Living promoted Julia Zauner to the role of vice president of marketing.

Zauner first joined Springpoint in 2010. Over the years, she has filled many roles and helped the company develop its marketing and brand strategies.

Before working for Springpoint, Zauner worked with full-service advertising agencies and media organizations and also managed her own marketing communications consulting business.

SRI Management Announces Names New Executive Directors

SRI Management has announced new executive directors for three of its Florida communities:

Lindsay Collins at Superior Residences of Clermont
Taylor Campbell at Seagrass Village of Fleming Island
Jordan Cook at The Beacon at Gulf Breeze

Collins served as the director of sales at Clermont for more than six years, while Campbell joined SRI as director of sales and marketing at Seagrass in 2017. Cook has had previous sales and operations experience with Alliance Senior Services and at The Baldwin House, an assisted living community.

Kendal CCRC Names CEO

The board of directors for Collington, a continuing care retirement community (CCRC) affiliated with The Kendal Corporation near Washington, D.C., has named Ann Gillespie as its CEO.

Gillespie will on July 1 succeed Marvell Adams Jr., who became Kendal’s COO after working at Collington for eight years.

Gillespie previously worked as a consultant and adviser. She also worked for Asbury Communities as the organization’s chief strategy officer in 2012.

Cadence Names Executive Director for New Arizona Community

Cadence Living has hired Wanda Tutelo as executive director of Acoya Mesa, a senior living community set to open this September in Mesa, Arizona.

Before coming aboard with Cadence, Tutelo worked for LIV Generations. Tutelo’s experience spans roughly 15 years in senior living and caregiving.

Oakmont Announces New Executive Director in California

Oakmont Senior Living is welcoming Gina Salman as executive director of Oakmont of Riverpark, a senior living community set to open this winter in Oxnard, California.

Salman previously worked as the executive director of Wellbrook at Valley Vista Assisted Living and Memory Care in Van Nuys, California.

Washington Community Welcomes Director of Marketing and Sales

Heron’s Key, a life plan community in Gig Harbor, Washington, has named Stacy Edwards as its new director of marketing and sales.

Edwards previously worked as director of business development for GYMGUYZ, a mobile personal training and fitness company.

Benchmark Community Names Director of Community Relations

Julie Dalton is now director of community relations for Harbor Point at Centerville, a Benchmark Senior Living memory care community in Centerville, Massachusetts.

Dalton previously worked for HopeHealth as development officer for its Hope Hospice and Hope Dementia and Alzheimer’s services.

LifeSpire of Virginia Appoints Corporate Controller

LifeSpire of Virginia named Tiffany Flora as the its corporate controller.

Flora now leads the organization’s accounting team. She’s also responsible for accounting information, production, compliance and management related to LifeSpire and its affiliates. She also monitors and manages LifeSpire’s cash position and its nonprofit foundation’s business affairs, in addition to other duties.

Monticello Asset Management Appoints Senior Managing Director

Private real estate and asset-based lender, servicer and manager Monticello Asset Management named F. Donald Kelly III to the role of senior managing director.

Kelly previously worked in Pacific Western Bank’s Healthcare Finance Group as a senior director. In that role, he helped originate over $1 billion in loans to senior housing and long-term care companies all over the U.S.

Harrison Street Grows Asset Management Group With Ventas Hire

Harrison Street has hired Dave Liu, as vice president of asset management.

In the new role, he will oversee investments in Harrison Street’s medical, life science and senior housing portfolios. Liu will report to Ben Mohns, who is the managing director and head of asset management for Harrison Street.

Liu most recently served as vice president of asset management at real estate investment trust Ventas (NYSE: VTR).

Capital One Adds to Long-Term Care Relationship Team

Capital One has named Dana Scheppmann and David Harper as regional relationship managers for its long-term care real estate lending team.

In their new roles, they will provide customized lending solutions to clients, with Scheppmann responsible for the U.S. Northeast and Harper to focus on the Southeast.

Scheppmann and Harper both joined Capital One in 2015.

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Construction: Planned

Cadence Living Plans Arizona Community

Cadence Living has purchased 7.7 acres of land in Chandler, Arizona, for the construction of a $46 million senior living community in a partnership with Global Senior Housing.

The community, Cadence at Ocotillo, will have 191 studio, one- and two-bedroom apartments and include multiple kinds of dining venues, walking paths, raised garden beds, a theater, art studio, swimming pool and a fitness center.

Workers are set to break ground on the project in the fall. Project partners on this project include Chandler based Whitneybell Perry as the architect and locally based Drive Development Partners as construction manager.

Active Adult Community Coming to North Carolina

A new active adult community is in the works for Cornelius, North Carolina.

The community, Cornelius Woods, will have for residents one- and two-bedroom condos and two- and three-bedroom villas. The community will also have amenities such as walking trails, a grilling and picnic area, fire pit, dog park, community garden. Residents will also have access to a community center with exercise room, event space, library and a dance floor.

Project leaders include Christy Allen, a local realtor; Wyatt Clark, Sr., founder of WAC Contracting and a partner in NC Homes and Associates; and Curt Needham, a partner in NC Homes and Associates.

Plans Finalized for New Margaritaville in Florida

Minto Communities USA, Margaritaville Holdings and the St. Joe Company (NYSE: JOE) have set in stone a joint venture to develop Latitude Margaritaville Watersound, an active adult community planned in Bay County Florida and inspired by the musical stylings of Jimmy Buffett.

The companies expect the project’s first phase to include about 3,500 homes with a sales center, community amenities and infrastructure.

Workers are set to break ground on the community by the end of 2019. The first two Latitude Margaritaville communities are located in Daytona Beach, Florida and Hilton Head, South Carolina.

Medcore, TNRG Plan Community in Oklahoma

MedCore Partners and The National Realty Group (TNRG) are developing a 188-unit senior living community in Norman, Oklahoma.

Integral Senior Living (ISL) will manage the community. Planned amenities include multiple dining venues, a bar and pub, wellness center with salon and spa, multiple activity spaces, fitness center, club rooms, theater, outdoor pool, dog park, walking paths and dedicated courtyard spaces.

The project’s first construction phase is set to break ground in January and open opening in the summer of 2021. A second phase will add 75 independent living residences and bring the total unit count to 263.

Pi Architects is designing the community, with civil design by SMC Consulting Engineers.

Construction: In progress

Ryan Cos. Breaks Ground on St. Louis Community

Ryan Companies US, Life Care Services and Harrison Street Real Estate Capital have announced the groundbreaking of a $120 million, 13-story community near St. Louis.

The community, Clarendale Clayton, will have 281 independent living, assisted living and memory care residences with one, two and three-bedroom units. Amenities an outdoor terrace with a view of the St. Louis Arch, multiple dining venues, a bistro, pub and billiards room, movie theater, wellness center, art studio, community room, garage parking, courtyards and outdoor patios.

Work for Clarendale Clayton will wrap up in the spring of 2021. Ryan Companies is the project’s developer and general contractor, while Ryan A+E and ACI Boland are the project’s architects. The civil engineer is Grimes Consulting, and Oculus and RDG Planning & Design are both providing interior design services.

Benchmark Community in Massachusetts Set for November Opening

The Branches of North Attleboro, a Benchmark Senior Living community in Marlboro, Massachusetts, is on track to open in November.

The Branches of Marlboro will have flexible floor plans for the 104 residents who will live there. Amenities include an outdoor patio with farmer’s porch, fire pit, beauty salon, library, fitness center and a bistro with all-day dining.

The community held a pre-opening celebration on June 11 to mark the community’s progress.

ISL, Hunt Midwest Mark Groundbreaking in Tennessee

Integral Senior Living (ISL) and Hunt Midwest have broken ground on The Capstone at Station Camp, an assisted living and memory care community with room for 114 residents in Gallatin, Tennessee.

Planned amenities include a great room, formal dining room, fitness center, bistro lounge, sunroom, walking trails, gazebo and dog park, with design elements inspired by the local area’s architecture.

Work on The Capstone at Station Camp is set to wrap up in August, 2020. Pi Architects is leading the design of the community, with Civil Site Design Group handling the project’s land planning and civil engineering. Hardaway Construction is the project’s general contractor.

Active Adult Community Coming Together in Texas

Construction is underway for North Star Georgetown, an active adult community with 210 resident in Georgetown, Texas.

Amenities include a clubhouse with an exercise room, yoga studio, community kitchen, dining, and theater and lounge alongside a pool, craft studio and game room.

Square One Consultants, Walker Real Estate, Pi Architects, Pat Berry Design and Skybeck Construction are all partners on the project.

Work Underway for Senior Living Community in Texas

Investcor Development and Integral Senior Living (ISL) have announced the start of construction on a new assisted living and memory care community with 92 units in San Marcos, Texas.

Residents will have access to amenities such as a walking loop, social lounge area with firepit, covered activity and dining plaza, an outdoor kitchen and raised accessible planters with storage for tools.

Pi Architects designed the community.

New Assisted Living Community Coming to Florida

Autumn Senior Living and Small Brothers are collaborating on a new assisted living community soon to be under construction in Clearwater, Florida.

The community’s first construction phase will ultimately have 84 units and 95 beds for assisted living and memory care services. Amenities include entertainment and dining areas, indoor and outdoor gathering places, an aqua-therapy pool, an outdoor garden and water features.

The first construction phase is set to begin in August and finish in the summer of 2020. The second phase will begin soon after.

The community’s architect is Curts Gaines Hall Jones Architects, with Cleveland Construction, a sister company of Small Brothers, as the construction manager.

Construction: Complete

Work Complete for Active Adult Community in Texas

Construction crews with KWA Construction have finished work for McDermott Park, a senior living community in Plano, Texas.

The 144-unit community also comes with a heated saltwater pool, fitness center, high-tech computer center, theater, coffee bar and indoor and outdoor lounge areas.

Portico Property Management is the project’s leasing team.

Capitol Seniors Housing Opens Maryland Community

Capitol Seniors Housing has announced the opening of Arbor Terrace Fulton, an assisted living and memory care community in Fulton, Maryland, near Washington, D.C.

The $27.5 million, 73,000-square-foot community has 86 apartments and access to amenities such as a bistro and sports lounge with an open-concept kitchen, library, theater room, art studio, salon and spa and a fitness and rehab room.

The Arbor Company is operating the community. BCT Architects designed the overall community, with interior design from the Faulkner Design Group.

Allegro Opens Florida High-Rise Community

Allegro Dadeland, a 23-story high-rise managed by Allegro Senior Living in Miami, has opened its doors to residents.

The 212-unit has three floors of amenities, including a dining room, bar, physician and wellness office and outdoor terraces. The community also has a penthouse level.

Originaly, Allegro Dadeland was intended to be an active adult community, but was switched to an independent living project after the project’s partners listened to feedback from the local market.

StudioSIX5 designed the community.

Expansion Complete at Tennessee Community

Workers with the Weitz Company have completed an expansion project at The Heritage at Brentwood, a senior living community managed by Life Care Services in Brentwood, Tennessee.

The expansion represented the fourth and final phase for the community and included five new buildings. The scope of the work included 108 residences and amenities such as a health center with a pool, expanded fitness center, group exercise area, day spa with massage room and a beauty salon.

Other additions included an expanded dining room with a display kitchen, underground parking, an auditorium, woodworking shop, outdoor courtyard and clubhouse.

Weitz was a joint venture partner on the latest phase alongside local construction firm Hannah Constructors. HFR Design designed the project.

MorningStar, Confluent Celebrate Opening in Colorado

MorningStar Senior Living and Confluent Senior Living have announced the grand opening of MorningStar of Arvada, a new independent living, assisted living and memory care community with 141 units in Arvada, Colorado.

Amenities include a pet-friendly environment, bistro dining venue, pool and spa, fitness center, theater, salon, club room, art studio, massage and therapy rooms, outdoor patio, putting green and courtyards.

Rosemann and Associates was the project’s architect, and Bradbury Stamm Construction served as as general contractor with Thoma-Holec Design as the interior designer.

Discovery Senior Living Holds Grand Opening in South Carolina

Discovery Senior Living has opened Discovery Village At Sandhill, a senior living community in Columbia, South Carolina.

The property has 187 apartment homes with full-size kitchens, stainless steel appliances wood cabinetry and walk-in closets. Residents also have access to multiple dining options with table service, an activities and crafts center, movie theater, beauty salon and spa with a barber shop, health and fitness center with personalized training and an indoor heated pool with retractable doors.

Arrive Architecture Group and M.B. Kahn Construction Co. were project partners.

Arrow Senior Living Opens Missouri Community

Arrow Senior Living recently held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for The Wildwood Senior Living in Joplin, Missouri.

The pet-friendly community has 143 apartments equipped with age-in-place design features such as walk-in showers with grab bars, wide doorways and kitchenettes with cabinet handles designed for easier pulling.

Amenities include a beauty salon, fitness center, movie theater and indoor pool. The community also has fall-detecting technology and predictive analytics that keep track of residents’ vital signs.

Erickson Living Opens New Residences at North Carolina Community

Windsor Run, a continuing care retirement community (CCRC) developed and managed by Erickson Living in Matthews, North Carolina, has opened a new independent living building.

The building has 101 apartment homes with open layouts, walk-in closets and kitchens with granite countertops and stainless steel appliances.

Resort Lifestyle Communities Announces Opening in Arizona

Resort Lifestyle Communities has opened Arrowhead Valley Retirement Resort, a new independent living community in Peoria, Arizona.

The community has 128 apartments in studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom floorplans, with at one monthly price including utilities and no buy-in fee or long-term leases. Amenities include an around-the-clock chef’s pantry, happy hour lounge and dining room, with access to health and wellness and travel programs.

Leisure Care Community to Open First Community in North Carolina

Treeo Raleigh, a community with 143 independent living units and managed by Leisure Care, is set to open its doors on June 27.

The community will have studio, one- bedroom and two-bedroom apartments for residents, with access to nearby shopping and dining.

This is Leisure Care’s first community in North Carolina.

Other noteworthy projects:

Planned

— A nonprofit is exploring the possibility of building a new senior living community in Greenbrier Valley, West Virginia.

In progress

— Compass Living is on track to open a new assisted living and memory care community in Rorseburg, Oregon next year.

— Legend Senior Living is building a 91-unit senior living community in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

— Optimus Senior Living is building a new 119-unit assisted living community in Ware, Massachusetts.

Complete

— Primrose has opened a new retirement community in Midland, Michigan.

The post In the Pipeline: New Margaritaville Plans Finalized; Leisure Care Enters North Carolina appeared first on Senior Housing News.

The first development for Benchmark Senior Living’s new urban-focused wellness division will be a mid-rise, active adult community in Philadelphia.

Benchmark Philadelphia, a joint venture between Waltham, Massachusetts-based Benchmark Wellness Management and Philadelphia-based developer, Brickstone Cos., will rise 24 stories and include 220 units ranging in size between 800 square feet and 1,400 square feet, according to a press release announcing the project.

Brickstone Cos. bought the site at 12th and Sansom Streets, currently a parking garage, in October 2015. The company has eyed redeveloping it for years, including a 2016 proposal for two buildings — one residential project and an office tower.

The site, in Philly’s Center City district, which has seen a flurry of new real estate development in recent years including new residential, retail and entertainment. Benchmark Philadelphia will target seniors age 62 and up who want to live near vibrant, mixed-use urban centers.

active adult senior housing — A rendering of Benchmark Philadelphia, an upcoming active adult community by Benchmark Wellness Management and Brickstone Cos. in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

“We hand-picked Philadelphia for our first development because its Center City revitalization has not only captured our attention but also the interest of local and suburban boomers who are passionate about living the lifestyle of their dreams,” Benchmark Wellness Management President and COO Denise McQuaide said in the announcement.

McQuaide, who previously served as president of Brickstone Cos.’ senior housing arm, Brickstone Senior Living and COO of Hebrew Senior Life, was hired to lead Benchmark Wellness Management in February.

Benchmark Wellness aims to capitalize on the long term care industry’s shift to wellness and prevention, with the dual objectives of extending residents’ length of stay and enriching their lives as they age. Benchmark operates a portfolio of 58 communities across Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and New York. Benchmark chairman and CEO Tom Grape told SHN last November the company intends to seek development opportunities along the eastern seaboard, as far south as northern Virginia.

Benchmark Philadelphia’s wellness components include a lifestyle and wellness concierge; a spa with massages, facials and skin care; a full-service salon and barber suite; an aquatic center with heated pool; yoga, outdoor adventure and movement classes; and a Pickleball court.

Dining will also feature prominently at Benchmark Philadelphia. Plans call for an indoor-outdoor rooftop bistro and lounge, as well as a farm-to-table restaurant on the fifth floor. Private car service will be available to ferry residents to Center City’s entertainment options and cultural landmarks.

The project is expected to be completed in 2023. The development team is in the early stages of planning.

The post Philadelphia Development Marks First Venture for Benchmark’s New Wellness Division appeared first on Senior Housing News.

JLL completes $2B HFF acquisition

Stockholders at Dallas-based capital services provider HFF (NYSE: HFF) last week approved a proposal by commercial real estate services firm JLL (NYSE: JLL) to buy HFF in a cash-and-stock transaction valued at $2 billion. News of the deal was first announced in March.

Both firms are active in the senior living space. In March, JLL also hired former Greystone Real Estate Advisors capital markets experts Mike Garbers and Cody Tremper as managing directors to focus on advising owners, investors and operators in the senior housing and skilled nursing industry.

Presbyterian Senior Living-Westminster Communities merger called off

Presbyterian Senior Living and Westminster Communities of Florida have discontinued discussions about the two organizations’ proposed merger. The merger talks were originally announced on April 29 and would have created the nation’s fifth-largest nonprofit senior housing operator.

Medcore Partners-led JV acquires Texas site for development

A joint venture of MedCore Partners, The National Realty Group (TNRG) and Watermark Retirement Communities closed on a 13.15-acre tract near Del Web’s Sun City Texas in Georgetown, Texas, and are engaged in the design of a 225-unit senior living community.

Phase I of the resort-style senior living campus will offer 125 independent living, 80 assisted living, and 20 memory care residences. Construction on the 270,000 square foot project is expected to begin in January 2020 for an anticipated opening date in Summer 2021. A second phase will add 90 independent living residences to the project, bringing the total unit count to 315.

Watermark will operate the community, when completed.

Washington Trust arranged $30M refinancing package for Benchmark Massachusetts CCRC

Washington Trust’s Commercial Banking Group recently provided $30 million to Benchmark Senior Living for the refinancing of its New Pond Village continuing care community in Walpole, Massachusetts.

The community, located 19 miles south of Boston, last year celebrated the completion of an $8 million renovation and the opening of its Mind & Memory neighborhood, becoming the first community in Walpole to offer support for those with Alzheimer’s or other cognitive impairment. Additional upgrades included new dining and common areas on the lower level.

Monarch Private Capital finances new affordable housing development in Georgia

Monarch Private Capital closed on low-income housing tax credit equity (LIHTC) for Harmony at Covington Senior Apartments, a $20 million affordable senior apartment community in Covington, Georgia.

The development will include 122 affordable rental housing units for low-income senior tenants. MPC has partnered with Hill Tide Development, Timshel Development, Gateway Development Corporation, and CRN Development on the project, which will receive first move-ins by the fourth quarter of 2020.

Chicago Pacific Founders acquires Texas, Arizona senior housing communities

Chicago Pacific Founders and its subsidiaries, Grace Management and CPF Living Communities, acquired The Ranch Estates at Scottsdale, a 101-unit senior living community in Scottsdale, Arizona. Formerly known as the Manor Estates at Scottsdale, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

CPF also acquired Woodhaven Village, a 157-unit independent living, assisted living and memory care community in Conroe, Texas, from a joint venture between Padua Realty Company and Paradigm Senior Living.

CBRE National Senior Housing Executive Vice President Lisa Widmier represented the seller, and CBRE National Senior Housing Vice Chairman Aron Will, First Vice President Austin Sacco and Vice President Tim Root arranged $37 million in acquisition financing on behalf of the buyer.

Grandbridge facilitates $63M construction bond financing

Grandbridge Seniors Housing and Healthcare Finance Group recently facilitated the closing of $62,295,000 in taxable and tax-exempt bonds under the 142(d) bond program administered by BB&T Capital Markets. The funds will be used to construct Bridgemoor of Plano, a 318-unit, age-restricted seniors housing community in Plano, Texas.

The transaction was referred to BB&T Capital Markets by Grandbridge Real Estate Capital Senior Vice President Richard Thomas, Vice President Meredith Davis and Vice President Kim Huffstutler.

Carnegie Capital arranges $29M Refinance for Vermont assisted living facility

Carnegie Capital Managing Partner JD Stettin arranged a $29 million bridge loan for a newly constructed, 80-unit assisted living and memory care facility in central Vermont. The loan will be used to refinance existing debt and carries a one-year, interest only term.

Cushman & Wakefield arranges $24M refinancing for Minnesota senior housing community

Cushman & Wakefield (NYSE: CWK) Senior Housing Capital Markets Executive Managing Director Jay Wagner, Associate Sam Dylag, and Analyst Jack Griffin arranged a $24.3 million refinancing package for The Waters of White Bear Lake, a 136-unit Class A independent living, assisted living and memory care community in the Minneapolis-St. Paul MSA.

The Waters of White Bear Lake is a joint venture between The Waters Senior Living and Harrison Street Real Estate Capital. The loan, which replaces construction debt, was provided by BMO Harris Bank’s healthcare real estate finance group, The BMO Harris team involved in the placement included Director Derek Zeller, Managing Director Imran Javaid, and Vice President Brian Vis.

Lancaster Pollard Completes $15M refinance for Ohio memory care community

Lancaster Pollard Mortgage Company Senior Vice President Brendan Healy, and Managing Directors Doug Harper and Casey Moore assisted The Ganzhorn Suites of Powell, a 64-unit memory care community in Powell, Ohio, in securing a $14.6 million cash out refinance through the Fannie Mae Seniors Housing program. The transaction provided fixed rate, non-recourse 12-year term financing.

Arizona senior mobile home park sells for $5.4M

Palms Mobile Home Park, an 89-lot senior living community in Apache Junction, Arizona, sold for $5.4 million. The sale was facilitated by the NAI Horizon Manufactured Housing Investments team of Senior Vice President Russ Warner, Associate Andrew Warner and intern Victoria Filice. NAI Horizon represented the seller, Christine G. Weech Testamentary Trust & Hyrum Newell Weech Testamentary Trust of Safford, Arizona. The buyer was First Exchange Company as Qualified Intermediary for White Sands MHC LLC c/o MHC Management Services LLC of Tampa, Florida.

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Welltower’s (NYSE: WELL) senior housing portfolio performance continued to pace strong earnings in the second quarter of 2019 — a period marked by a flurry of transactions.

Leadership of the Toledo, Ohio-based real estate investment trust put those deals in greater context during Wednesday’s earnings call. They were approached by a buyer who offered attractive terms for the Benchmark Senior Living portfolio, resulting in the $1.8 billion sale announced this week. They also shed some light on the decision to transition 20 Silverado memory care communities to a new operator, and weighed in on their position on building versus buying senior housing, given recently inked development partnerships.

In terms of the financial results for the quarter, Welltower reported total revenue of $1.32 billion, a 14.7% increase over Q2 2018. Rental income grew 10.1% to $385.6 million.

The strong performance allowed Welltower to report normalized funds from operations (FFO) of $1.05 per share, up from $1 per share a year prior.

Welltower’s strong first half of 2019 come against the backdrop of persistent headwinds across the senior housing landscape. A supply glut in certain markets has placed pressures on occupancy. The occupancy rate for U.S. senior housing communities declined slightly in the second quarter, according to data from the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC).

Last week, executives with another major senior housing REIT — Chicago-based Ventas — acknowledged that supply and operational headwinds in its senior housing operating portfolio (SHOP) tempered an otherwise solid Q2 earnings report. Welltower leaders noted it is dealing with the same upward pressures as other REITs, but that a markedly revamped asset portfolio is allowing for growth that is exceeding expectations.

“These results demonstrate once again the resilience of owning the highest quality senior housing and medical office portfolio in the industry, as well as a management team that had the conviction to make a series of tough decisions over the past few years that are clearly benefiting our shareholders today,” CEO Tom DeRosa said during an earnings call on Thursday.

Senior housing continues to outperform

Welltower’s overall same-store net operating income (NOI) increased 3.1% in Q2, led by 3.7% growth in its seniors housing triple-net portfolio (NNN) and a 3.1% increase in seniors housing operating portfolio (SHOP) growth. That performance was driven by 4.1% revenue growth, while same-store SHOP NOI grew 3.3% year-over-year.

Chief Investment Officer Shankh Mitra called these the strongest base fundamentals he has seen in years.

“We came into this year expecting a slow and steady recovery in our SHOP segment,” he said. “However, I have to admit, for two quarters in a row, our SHOP results have exceeded expectations.”

SHOP NOI growth has been consistent and broad-based, and Welltower has seen stronger performance in assisted living versus independent living and in major markets over smaller markets.

Sequential revenue per occupied room (RevPOR), meanwhile, increased 3.3% and outpaced compensation per occupied room by 50 basis points — the first time in five years that has happened.

On the expense side, Welltower’s UK properties have seen an uptick in contract labor and benefits as operators chase occupancy increases, while insurance costs are applying pressure to growth across the portfolio, and will continue to do so moving forward.

A packed transaction period

While Welltower was excited about the earnings, executives saved their most effusive praise for its second quarter transaction activity. The REIT completed $2.4 billion of proportionate real estate acquisitions across eight separate transactions in the quarter — at a blended yield of 5.4% — along with $152 million in development funding with an expected stabilized yield of 7.2%.

Welltower announced a blizzard of transactions on Wednesday, highlighted by its $1.8 billion disposition of 48 senior housing communities operated by Waltham, Massachusetts-based Benchmark Senior Living.

Benchmark declined to name the buyer in a statement to Senior Housing News, but Mitra called the deal a win-win for all parties. Benchmark and the new ownership will have an opportunity to drive rate growth while reinvesting in the portfolio. Welltower, meanwhile sold the portfolio at a price that generated solid returns for shareholders and allows the REIT to use the sale proceeds to bringing leverage back in-line with 2019 guidance.

“We received an offer we could not refuse,” Mitra said.

Welltower expanded its relationship with Bonita Springs, Florida-based Discovery Senior Living via a $237 million acquisition of three senior housing campuses in the Dallas-Fort Worth and Texas markets. It also signed an exclusive, $1 billion development deal with Discovery.

Welltower’s other senior housing activity included the $237 million acquisition of a 6-property Balfour Senior Living portfolio, and exclusivity on Balfour’s future acquisition and development pipeline.

The development options with Discovery and Balfour are not a sign that Welltower prefers building new communities over buying them, Mitra said. It is purely dependent on the pricing, as each comes with a set of risks, and Welltower ultimately considers the rate of return in its decision.

Mitra believes there are ample opportunities for Welltower to be strategic with its development and acquisition options, and noted the latter may provide a wider range of opportunity moving forward.

“There has been a lot of overbuilding in the market by people who are unfamiliar with the space and its intensive operational component,” he said.

The second quarter also saw Welltower enter into a new RIDEA relationship with Buffalo, New York-based Clover Management, and the REIT purchased the remaining 66% interest in a five-property Sunrise Senior Living portfolio.

These deals epitomized the work Welltower has done to reshape its senior housing portfolio, Mitra said. Whether through acquisitions, entering into operating partnerships or inking development deals, the REIT is looking to strategically add or remove assets from its ledger by studying what he calls “micromarkets.” Welltower is prioritizing the best locations and demographic trends in its target markets, and using those trends to predict where demand will be over the next 5-10 years.

“Markets and submarkets do not tell the whole story,” he said.

Welltower also offered context behind its decision in June to transition management of 20 memory care properties from Silverado to Frontier Management. The majority of those properties — 11 — are located in Texas, with the remainder spread across Arizona, Illinois, Utah and Wisconsin. But the properties were about two-thirds occupied when the deal was announced, according to Welltower.

Welltower believed that Frontier had the necessary expertise to effect a turnaround, raise occupancy and increase cash flow, Mitra said. Silverado, meanwhile, can focus on driving operations and revenues in its core California portfolio.

“We’re a performance-driven organization,” he said.

Analyst reaction to Welltower’s Q2 earnings varied. Its SHOP portfolio — which accounts for 50% of its total assets — continues to outperform the industry due to a favorable supply backdrop, Green Street Advisors Senior Analyst Lukas Hartwich said in a note to investors.

Conversely, BMO Capital Markets Managing Director John Kim was cautiously optimistic in his analysis. Kim called Welltower’s second quarter performance a mixed bag, beating consensus on normalized FFO by $0.01 and supported by the strong same-store cash NOI growth.

Kim’s optimism was tempered, however, by the Silverado-Frontier transitions, the removal of 47 assets from its SHOP same-store pool, and by Welltower’s lowering of full year 2019 FFO guidance by 0.6% to $4.15 at the midpoint.

Welltower stock closed trading Thursday up 0.7%, to $83.70 per share.

The post Welltower Posts Strong Senior Housing Numbers Amid Operator Reshuffles appeared first on Senior Housing News.

JLL advises Welltower on $1.8B Benchmark portfolio sale

JLL (NYSE: JLL) represented Welltower (NYSE: WELL) in the Toledo, Ohio-based REIT’s $1.8 billion disposition of 48 properties operated by Waltham, Massachusetts-based Benchmark Senior Living, to an unnamed buyer. The 4,137-unit portfolio consists of 48 assisted living properties located in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont and had $24 million of secured debt that was extinguished at closing.

The JLL Capital Markets team was led by Senior Managing Director and Co-Head of JLL’s Capital Markets Healthcare practice Ted Flagg.

The Ensign Group acquires California assisted living facility

The Ensign Group (NASDAQ: ENSG) acquired Mainplace Senior Living, a 91-bed assisted living facility in Orange, California. The terms of the deal were not disclosed, and the property will be managed under a triple-net lease.

Platinum Communities completes $5.5M acquisition of Wisconsin senior housing community

Platinum Communities acquired The Atrium of Racine, a senior housing community in Racine, Wisconsin, in a $5.5 million receivership sale. The complex includes a 74-unit independent living building and a 40-unit assisted living facility. Brookfield, Wisconsin-based Platinum Communities now owns and operates 320 assisted-living units and 74 independent-living apartments in Racine, Columbus, North Milwaukee, Oak Creek, Sheboygan, Slinger and Watertown.

A capital improvement plan is underway which will tackle repairs for the property, new landscaping and upgrades. Platinum Communities is immediately eliminating the buy-in process implemented under previous management.

Watermark assumes operations for Dallas assisted living community

Watermark Retirement Communities assumed operations of The Preston of the Park Cities, an assisted living and memory care community in Dallas, Texas. Formerly known as HarborChase of the Park Cities, the community features resort-style amenities and concierge service.

Memory Care is now provided through Watermark’s signature program The Gardens, whose caregivers are trained and certified in partnership with the National Council of Certified Dementia Practitioners. The community also offers The Bridge, an assisted living option for residents with slight cognitive impairments who would benefit from guided support by specially-trained cognitive experts.

CBRE National Senior Housing Vice Chairman Aron Will, First Vice President Austin Sacco and Vice President Tim Root represented the buyers, a joint venture of Silverstone Senior Living and Crescent Real Estate.

Senior Living Investment Brokerage assists in two assisted living sales

Senior Living Investment Brokerage Managing Director Jason Punzel was the sole broker in the sale of Ocean Park Memory Care, a 40-unit/55-bed memory care community in Brookings Oregon.

The seller is a REIT which is pruning its portfolio of non-core assets. The buyer is a regional operator with a strong presence in Oregon and several communities on the Oregon coast.

SLIB Managing Director Ryan Saul, Principal and Managing Director Jeff Binder and Senior Vice President Patrick Byrne were the sole brokers in the $8.2 million sale of Courtyard Estates of Peoria, a 100-unit supportive living facility in Peoria, Illinois. The community was 86% occupied at the time of sale.

Chicago Pacific Founders acquires Texas assisted living community

Chicago Pacific Founders and its subsidiaries, Grace Management and CPF Living Communities, acquired Twin Rivers Assisted Living and Memory Care, an 83-unit community in Richardson, Texas. This is the sixth acquisition by Chicago Pacific Founders in five weeks.

Grace Management will assume operations for the facility. Evans Senior Investments (ESI) represented the seller in the transaction. Chicago Pacific Founders were represented by CBRE National Senior Housing Vice Chairman Aron Will, First Vice President Austin Sacco and Vice President Tim Root, who secured a $13 million, 10-year floating rate loan through Freddie Mac to facilitate the purchase.

Senior Housing Management Assumes Operations of 5 Properties

Cedar Rapids, Iowa-based Senior Housing Management added five properties to its operating portfolio. The properties are owned by Healthcare Trust Inc. (HTI), a non-traded healthcare real estate investment trust based in Carlsbad, California.

The portfolio includes:

Arbor View, an assisted living and memory care community in Burlington, Wisconsin
Arcadian Cove, an assisted living facility in Richmond, Kentucky
The Atrium, a memory care community in Rockford, Illinois
Liberty Court, an assisted living and memory care community in Dixon, Illinois
Ramsey Woods, an assisted living and memory care community in Cudahy, Wisconsin

Senior Housing Management now manages nine HTI communities.

Bellwether Enterprise closes $3M loan for Atlanta senior apartments

Bellwether Enterprise Real Estate Capital, a subsidiary of Enterprise Community Investment, closed on a $2.94 million construction-to-permanent loan to build Scott Boulevard Senior Residences, an affordable senior housing community in Decatur, Georgia.

Scott Boulevard Senior Residences will include 90 one-bedroom apartments for seniors aged 62 and over, and 72 units will be reserved for residents earning less than 60% of the area median income. The building is part of Decatur Crossing, a retail and residential mixed-use development located just two miles north of the Decatur city center.

Blueprint brokers sale of Dallas memory care community

Blueprint Healthcare Real Estate Senior Managing Director Ben Firestone and General Counsel Joshua Salzman represented the seller in the sale of a 33-unit memory care community in Dallas, Texas. The community, located in the Turtle Creek neighborhood, was owned by a publicly traded REIT.

The buyer was Iris Senior Living, a Dallas-based owner-operator.

Kayne Anderson, Watermark secures $21M credit facility

A joint venture of Kayne Anderson Real Estate and Watermark Retirement Communities secured a $21 million credit facility the acquisition of a 108-bed assisted living and memory care community in Marana, Arizona.

BMO Harris Healthcare Real Estate Finance secured the credit facility on behalf of the joint venture.

1031 Crowdfunding completes $20.1M California assisted living/memory care facility acquisition

1031 Crowdfunding, through its affiliate 1031 CF Properties, acquired a 100-bed assisted living and memory care facility in Rancho Cucamonga, California. The purchase price was $20.1 million.

The property is operated by Meridian Senior Living.

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White Oak acquires 4 property senior housing portfolio

White Oak Healthcare REIT completed the acquisition of a four community, 482-bed senior housing portfolio which included two communities in Arkansas, one in Florida and one in Pennsylvania. The seller was Baltimore-based Capital Health Group (CHG), which retains a minority stake in the portfolio, completed renovations to the buildings and will continue to operate the properties via its management arm, Milestone Retirement Communities.

M&T Realty Capital Corporation Managing Directors Matt Pipitone and Steve Muth provided financing for the transaction. The portfolio consists of 104 independent living units, 230 assisted living units and 103 memory care units, and was 95% occupied at the time of sale.

White Oak announced in March it planned to invest up to $500 million in a mix of senior housing and skilled nursing properties, with a leveraged value of $1.5 billion.

BMO Harris arranges $90M credit facility

BMO Harris Healthcare Real Estate was the administrative agent and lead arranger on a $90 million acquisition loan for three senior housing communities in the mid-Atlantic region. The communities are a mix of assisted living and memory care units and are managed by The Arbor Company.

Lancaster Pollard arranges $49M financing for The Ridge Senior Living

Lancaster Pollard Vice President Ross Holland, and Managing Directors Doug Harper and Casey Moore arranged a $49.1 million financing package on behalf of The Ridge Senior Living. The loans, arranged through Fannie Mae’s senior housing program, will provide long-term financing for Ridge’s communities in Cottonwood, Utah and The Ridge Foothill in Salt Lake City, as well as a cash-out for the provider.

In another transaction, Lancaster Pollard Vice President Grant Goodman, along with Harper and Moore, assisted Vaca Valley Living in securing a $7.85 million Fannie Mae loan for its 50-unit senior living community in Vacaville, California. The proceeds will be used to recapitalize existing debt while delivering equity out for the operator.

CBRE arranges $34M refinancing for Blue Moon Capital Partners, LCS

CBRE National Senior Housing Vice Chairman Aron Will and First Vice President Austin Sacco secured a $34.1 million refinancing package on behalf of a joint venture of Blue Moon Capital Partners and LCS Real Estate for The Delaney at Parkway Lakes, a 207-unit independent living, assisted living and memory care community in Richmond, Texas.

The loan, secured from a national bank, carries a five-year, floating rate term with 36 months of interest only.

Cushman & Wakefield sells 2 Boston-area Benchmark communities

Cushman & Wakefield Senior Housing Capital Markets Vice Chairman Richard Swartz, Executive Managing Director Jay Wagner, Director Tim Hosmer, and Associate Chris Remeika advised a joint venture of Benchmark Senior Living and Oz Real Estate in the recapitalization of Benchmark Senior Living at Woburn, an 87-unit assisted living and memory care community in Woburn, Massachusetts; and Benchmark Senior Living on Clapboardtree, a Class-A, 90-unit assisted living and memory care community in Norwood, Massachusetts.

The fully stabilized portfolio offers 177 assisted living and memory care units. Benchmark Senior Living will continue to manage the communities.

TD Bank arranges $9M construction financing

TD Bank’s commercial real estate group arranged a $9 million loan on behalf of the Deerfield Beach Housing Authority (DBHA) and Smith and Henzy Advisory Group, for the renovation of the Palms of Deerfield Apartments, a 100-unit affordable senior apartment community in Deerfield Beach, Florida. The proceeds will be used for extensive renovations of the units, and residents will be moved to comparable units until their original apartments are completed.

Renovations began in July and are expected to be completed in July 2020.

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Welltower Names New CFO

Welltower (NYSE: WELL) has promoted Tim McHugh to become its next chief financial officer. He previously held the title of senior vice president of corporate finance.

McHugh replaces soon-to-be-former CFO John Goodey, who is set to leave the company on Sept. 20.

Goodey “returned to the United Kingdom to pursue another opportunity,” Welltower reported in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Watercrest Names Regional Director of Clinical Operations

Watercrest Senior Living Group has appointed Riane Bernard to the role of regional director of clinical operations.

Bernard will help develop and implement clinical procedures as Watercrest prepares to open multiple communities in the coming months and years. She also will help the company maintain care, programming and training standards.

Bernard, who has 17 years of experience overall, most recently worked at Senior Lifestyle as a clinical specialist.

English Meadows Appoints First COO

English Meadows Senior Living recently promoted Trista Wilson to become its first-ever COO.

In her new COO role, Wilson will oversee the entire English Meadows portfolio. Wilson previously worked as the campus administrator and executive director at the Abingdon Campus of English Meadows.

Wilson has more than 12 years experience in the senior living industry, and spent the previous four years at English Meadows.

Oakmont Senior Living Adds Regional Executive Chef Specialist, ED

Oakmont Senior Living recently named Andrew Moret to the position of regional executive chef specialist for the company’s central region. In his new role, Moret will support communities in central California and two in Las Vegas.

Moret joins a culinary team that includes Chef Rina Younan, vice president of culinary services.

Oakmont also appointed Ferdinand Buot as executive director of Oakmont of Varenna, a continuing care retirement community (CCRC) in Windsor, California.

Buot has more than two decades of experience at various companies, having worked as a nursing home administrator, CEO, health services administrator, regional operations resource director and executive director.

Lutheran Social Ministries Names New President, CEO

Jeff Branch is the new president and CEO of Lutheran Social Ministries of Maryland, the newly formed parent organization of faith-based, non-profit CCRCs Carroll Lutheran Village and The Lutheran Village at Miller’s Grant.

He succeeded Geary Milliken, who retired in June after 25 years in the role.

Branch previously worked as senior vice president at the Institute on Aging for Mather LifeWays. He also has worked as vice president of operations for Sunrise Senior Living.

Brookdale Board Nominates Independent Directors

Brookdale Senior Living’s board of directors recently nominated two new independent director candidates, Vicki Freed and Guy Sansone, to stand for election as directors at the company’s upcoming annual meeting of stockholders.

Freed currently works as Royal Caribbean International’s senior vice president of sales, trade support and service, while Sansone is a managing director and chairman of the Healthcare Industry Group at Alvarez & Marsal.

Two nominees put forth by activist shareholder and vocal critic Land & Buildings Investment Management — Jonathan Litt and James Flaherty — did not move forward in the nomination process, however.

Pathway Hires Memory Care Director

Pathway to Living has hired Julie Ackley as the director of its A Knew Day memory care program.

In her new role, Ackley will oversee Pathway’s entire memory care program. Sh has more than 18 years of experience in both long-term care and acute-care settings.

Ackley previously worked as a customer relationship manager for iN2L.

Benchmark Announces Leadership Appointments

Benchmark Senior Living has announced several new hirings and staff announcements.

The company named Frank Boasorte executive director of Sturges Ridge of Fairfield, an assisted living and memory care community in Fairfield, Connecticut. He previously worked as a regional director of operations for Benchmark, and most recently worked as vice president of operations for Milestone Retirement Communities’ northeast region.

In Newton, Massachusetts, Bechmark appointed Deepa Eberlin as the executive director of assisted living community Evans Park at Newton Corner. Eberlin replaces Todd Raymond who now works as the senior executive director for Evans Park’s sister community, Cabot Park Village.

Additionally, Melissa Moody has returned to Benchmark as resident care director for its Bedford Falls assisted living community in Bedford, New Hampshire.

Moody previously worked as a resident care director for LCB Senior Living. At Benchmark, she worked as a regional nurse specialist for seven years.

Springpoint Names Executive Director of New Jersey Community

Springpoint Senior Living today appointed Maquida Hanley as the new executive director of Watchung Terrace, an affordable housing community in Middlesex, New Jersey.

In her new role, Hanley is responsible for the direction, and daily operations of Watchung Terrace.

Hanley joined Springpoint in 2013 and most recently worked at Springpoint’s Friendship Gardens community in Howell, New Jersey as a resident services coordinator.

San Diego Life Plan Community Hires Restaurant Exec

Steve Floyd has joined San Diego’s The Glen at Scripps Ranch life plan community as the community’s new food and beverage manager.

In his new role, Floyd will be responsible for all food operations, including financial management, developing and implementing quality control systems, employee team building and designing and costing menus. He will work closely with the community’s new executive chef, David Burke.

Floyd previously was the executive chef and operations director for the Brigantine Family of Restaurants in San Diego, where he supervised the culinary operations of 16 outlets with three different concepts.

SRG Names Executive Chef for Texas Community

Senior Resource Group (SRG) has hired executive chef Seth Tucker to oversee kitchen operations at Maravilla at The Domain, a forthcoming senior living community in Austin, Texas.

In his new role, Tucker will design menus and consult with residents’ physicians and health care personnel or dietary specialists. He also will work with vendors to purchase produce, seafood and meats directly from local farms as often as possible.

Tucker previously worked at Lost Creek Country Club and Twin Creeks Country Club.

John Knox Village Gets New Marketing Director

Kim Morgan-Vagnuolo is the new director of marketing for John Knox Village, a life plan community in Pompano Beach, Florida.

The life plan community is planning a multi-phase, more than $100-million expansion project that is set to include 150 apartment homes.

EUA Bolsters Project Development Team

Kurt Peterson has joined the Eppstein Uhen Architects (EUA) project development team.

In his new role, Peterson will help advance relationships for the firm. Before he joined EUA, Peterson worked at Baker Tilly Capital as a national director of business development.

Aloe Care Health Names Senior Vice President of Strategic Partnerships

Aloe Care Health has hired Bern Terry as vice president of strategic partnerships.

Terry previously served as the business development lead for Philips Lifeline. Before that, he was the head of health care partnerships at CareLinx, a company that was acquired by Generali Global Assistance.

Aloe Care has a wearable-free, communication and safety solution that’s currently in beta.

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High labor costs are among the top issues impacting the senior living industry. But raising wages also may help solve a host of other ills — not only improving recruitment and retention, but driving occupancy and higher rates.

The subject of a living wage was one of several actionable strategies for workforce development and retention under discussion Thursday morning during the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC) fall conference in Chicago. Industry leaders from Benchmark Senior Living, Asbury Communities and Vi Living all weighed in.

A living wage is one way a provider can invest in improving the quality of its workforce, Activated Insights CEO and panel moderator Jacquelyn Kung said. Activated Insights conducts the annual Great Place to Work survey and works with Forbes on its Best Workplaces in Aging Services list.

This year’s list included input from 223,183 employees working in the U.S. senior housing and in-home care sectors. Activated Insights’ data showed that providers with improved workplace culture showed an 11% improvement in employee trust among the top quintile of providers that took the survey, as well as an 8% reduction in employee turnover.

An improved workplace culture also correlated to an average 90% occupancy rate among the top decile of providers in the survey, and a 5% increase in average rates.

Kung compared the performances of the top quintile of providers to Southwest Airlines, which began investing more in its workforce in the late 90s. That strategy has resulted in higher earnings, profits and improved stock performance.

A living wage is a key to retention at Asbury Communities. The Fredericksburg, Maryland-based nonprofit provider has a portfolio of seven communities.

No Asbury employee earns a wage that is less than what would be a living wage in a community’s market, Chief Human Resources & Compliance Officer Juan Manuel Ocasio-Colon said during the panel. At one community, paying a living wage made a huge impact on retention, with some job descriptions seeing a 60% reduction in turnover.

“A living wage is a values-based decision, versus a market-driven one,” Ocasio said.

Some providers are being more mindful of the average wage in a market, and are tracking rates within and outside senior living, Benchmark Senior Living founder, Chairman and CEO Tom Grape said. The Waltham, Massachusetts-based provider, which has a portfolio of 58 communities, does comparative market studies to measure where its communities rank in wage in its markets, and has raised the minimum wage in areas where it was lagging.

“You have to be competitive with the Walmarts and emphasize that we have a higher calling,” Grape said.

In a tight labor market, providers have realized that workers have leverage in where they choose to work, Akhira McPherson, staff development manager at Vi Living at Lakeside Village in Lantana, Florida, said. Chicago-based Vi is known for high-end CCRCs, and has a portfolio of 10 communities.

Lakeside Village looks to competitors to study what wages the market will bear, and is willing to pay a premium based on experience. Vi Living is able to retain its staff due to a solid combination of pay and benefits. That results in word of mouth which helps to establish a pipeline of new talent.

“It’s not the wage itself, but what the skillset can earn in the market,” McPherson said.

The idea of paying higher wages to reduce costs is something that runs counter to standard investor thinking. Many investors do not think about the broader employment landscape in a market when pushing back on wage hikes, and need to understand that a community is not only competing with other communities in a given market for talent, Grape said.

Private equity giant KKR recently invested in Benchmark to the tune of $1.8 billion, acquiring an ownership interest previously held by real estate investment trust Welltower (NYSE: WELL) Discussions about higher wages are ongoing and market-dependent, but Grape is insistent that Benchmark will pay a living wage to its employees.

“Our commitment is to the workers,” he said.

Asbury’s commitment to paying staff a living wage came out of what it learned from the Great Place to Work survey, Ocasio said. When the company made the commitment, its executive team took no base salary increases and agreed to performance-based incentives, instead.

“This gave everyone skin in the game,” Ocasio said.

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