Nonprofit Opens Arms to Aging Baby Boomers
As more baby boomers hit retirement age, the number of Americans who are 65 and older is expected to more than double--to 69 million by 2030.
When that tsunami hits the beach, Southern California Presbyterian Homes plans to be ready.
The Glendale-based nonprofit group already operates 25 low-income apartments, assisted-living and retirement centers, but the group is in the midst of a building boom in preparation for the onslaught of retirees.
“There is a huge bulge of baby boomers who are going to hit the secondary retirement market,” said Gregory Bearce, executive vice president. “You’re going to see astronomically high levels of need.”
Last year alone, the group built two assisted-living centers--one in Glendale and one in Orange--and two low-income senior housing projects, one in Glendale and one in Watts.
Meanwhile, Presbyterian Homes has four low-income housing complexes under construction in Venice, Pasadena, Norco and Dallas. The group is also planning a $70-million, 180-unit retirement community in Las Vegas, the new retirement mecca.
“It’s a national magnet for seniors,” said Scott Mitchell, project manager for development. “There is no personal income tax, the weather is great and seniors love those $1.99 buffets.”
Founded in 1955, the group serves 2,800 seniors at five upscale retirement communities, four assisted-living facilities, two skilled-nursing homes and 14 low-income apartment projects. The nondenominational group also offers other services such as adult day care and in-home care for seniors.
Forget the stereotypes about nonprofits being poor or afraid to compete--SCPH is neither. The group took in $63.1 million in revenue last year and goes head to head with the likes of Marriott and Hilton in the competition to serve affluent seniors.
But unlike its for-profit competitors, it can afford to be more mission-oriented. It also serves the low-income seniors who are largely ignored in a for-profit world.
“We don’t have investors to keep happy, so the majority of the money we make goes back into patient care,” said Wanda James, corporate director of marketing.
At the high end of the group’s offerings are its five “continuing care retirement communities” (CCRCs) in Glendale, Bradbury, Irvine, La Jolla and Escondido.
The self-contained retirement communities cater to affluent seniors, such as retired doctors, lawyers and executives. Residents enjoy hotel-like accommodations such as maid service, restaurant-style dining, fitness centers, pools, spas and putting greens.
However, the accommodations don’t come cheap.
Entrance fees start at $35,000 for a studio apartment at some facilities and run as high as $400,000 for a two-bedroom apartment at the White Sands of La Jolla, the group’s crown jewel, built right on the beach.
Residents pay an additional monthly fee that starts at $1,500 and covers meals and maid service. The fee increases to as much as $3,500 if they require more extensive assistance or nursing care.
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Margaret Fuad, 87, said it’s worth it knowing her needs will be taken care of as she ages. Fuad lives at Windsor Manor, a retirement home on East Windsor Road in Glendale built in 1937 and taken over by SCPH in 1959.
Fuad and her late husband bought their Visalia home years ago, and like many California seniors, she had accumulated substantial equity. When she sold her home, she was able to use some of the proceeds to cover her entrance fee at Windsor Manor.
“This is a high-class place, but it’s not cheap,” she said.
Like all of the group’s CCRCs, Windsor Manor has three levels of care--independent living for active seniors, assisted living for folks who need help with daily tasks such as dressing or bathing and skilled nursing for people who can no longer live on their own.
“When you reach a certain stage and you need help, the nurses will come right to your room,” said Fuad, whose husband, Hilmi, died in 1994. “If you become bedridden, there’s skilled nursing. It’s very reassuring.”
As part of their contract with SCPH, seniors are guaranteed that they’ll be able to live out their days at the same retirement community. If a resident outlives his or her savings, the group’s charitable arm, the SCPH Foundation, will pick up the tab.
Paul Hadley, 86, said he and his wife decided to move into Windsor Manor three years ago after it became too much to take care of his home and garden in addition to working. A professor emeritus at USC, Hadley still commutes to work four days a week as administrator of the university’s emeriti program.
When Hadley mentions he lives in a retirement community, people often assume he’s in a nursing home. On the contrary, he and his wife live in a regular apartment, except they don’t have to worry about cooking, cleaning or shopping for groceries.
“The ambience is rather surprisingly upbeat,” he said. “Although people are getting older and have ailments, you very seldom hear them talking about it.”
A few blocks away is “Kirkwood at Glendale,” an 89-unit assisted-living complex in the 300 block of Hilltop Drive. There, visitors step into a hotel-like foyer and are greeted by “Tweezers,” a cat who is the home’s mascot.
Residents are waited on in an elegant dining room with linen tablecloths and napkins. They choose their meals from regular menus with such offerings as Cornish hens, short ribs and halibut.
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Martin Torres, director of dining services, said the mostly affluent residents are sophisticated consumers. Most have dined in the finest restaurants, so he has to be on his toes.
“My philosophy is there’s no cooking better than homemade, so that’s what we focus on,” said Torres, who also pampers the residents with fresh-baked cookies every day and his own homemade tamales.
The apartments, which include kitchenettes, start at $2,183 a month for a small studio and range up to $4,192 for a one-bedroom with den. The price includes meals, housekeeping and basic laundry service. The home also has a gold-colored Cadillac to shuttle seniors to appointments.
Residents who need help with bathing, dressing or other essentials pay between $350 and $700 a month extra, depending on their particular needs.
The Kirkwood facility was opened in July, and so far only 19 of 89 apartments are occupied. However, Nancy Jordan, director of marketing, said the facility is filling at the expected pace, given the long lead time it takes for seniors to move into assisted living.
“The average move-in rate is about three months after the first visit,” she said. “Most people have lived in their homes for 40 years, so this is a big step.”
The competition to build upscale retirement housing is fierce, with for-profit companies scrambling after affluent seniors, said Bearce, the executive vice president of SCPH.
Industry leaders such as Hilton and Marriott have the cash to build new retirement communities and then carry a loss until the property becomes self-sustaining or can be turned over for a profit.
Presbyterian Homes, on the other hand, has to take a much more cautious approach, making sure it doesn’t pay too much for the land and carefully weighing each project before moving forward.
“When we do it, we’re there for life,” Bearce said. “It’s not about making a profit or turning [the property] over. The whole emphasis we have is on the program, what we can do for these people.”
The group already has options on property in Las Vegas, where it hopes to build its newest CCRC, but it may be several years before the project moves forward, he said.
Southern California seniors, in particular, tend to be more affluent because many have accumulated substantial equity in their homes, Bearce said.
Seniors elsewhere in the country are generally not so lucky, he said, and SCPH hopes to build more low-income housing where the need is most pressing. In fact, most of the group’s existing complexes have a two-year waiting list.
“The need is phenomenally large,” said Bearce. “So many people are living on Social Security income and can’t afford good quality housing.”
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SCPH has five affordable housing projects in Glendale and the rest are scattered throughout Southern California, including Santa Clarita, Norco, Duarte, Long Beach and Fountain Valley.
The federal Department of Housing and Urban Development provides SCPH with grants to help build the apartments and subsidizes the rent, so seniors pay no more than a third of their income.
Bearce is especially proud of the 64-unit low-income apartment complex that the nonprofit is building in Venice.
“It’s a prime location right on the beach,” said Bearce. “It’s phenomenal that people who don’t have much money are going to be able to enjoy a million-dollar view.”
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WEB LINKS
https://www.agenet.com: AgeNet Eldercare Network. An Internet business-to-business and marketing company aimed at the senior market.
https://www.hollywood4seniors.com: Hollywood4Seniors, a public service Web site for seniors, sponsored by Los Angeles County Department of Health Services. A wealth of information in several languages for seniors and caregivers, including local resources, activities and nursing homes.
https://www.seniorhousing.net: Senior Housing network. Lists nursing homes by region, community, types of programs, other resources.
https://www.canhr.org: California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform. A nonprofit advocacy organization. Site includes information on more than 1,400 nursing homes in California, organized by county; lawyer referrals; patient rights; Medi-Cal information; pension rights.
https://www.calregistry.com: California Registry, a state-licensed free referral agency for seniors and their families. Provides senior housing information, counseling, referrals and facility evaluations. Includes facilities for Alzheimer’s and stroke patients, assisted living and nursing homes.
Sites subject to change.
