Stuart Lodge assisted-living facility expected to have residents by 2014

 

Cynthia Washam  8:40 PM, Jan 28, 2013 health | local | stuart

 

STUART — One of Martin County's biggest assisted-living facilities is expected to welcome its first residents early in 2014, a dozen years after Stuart resident Sheila Kurtz set her heart on building the senior home.

 

Within weeks, developer Living Well Lodges will break ground on the Palm Beach Road site, south of J.D. Parker Elementary School. The Stuart Lodge will have 95, one- and two-bedroom units and serve seniors who need some help with their day-to-day lives, yet not the advanced medical care of a nursing home.

 

"It's all come together," Kurtz said. "I couldn't be happier."

 

Kurtz and her late husband bought the three-acre site when they moved to Stuart in 2002. The nurse and former home-care administrator planned then to use her expertise to create an assisted-living facility. But her plans were delayed, first by her husband's illness then his death two years ago, followed by her involvement caring for an elderly aunt. Kurtz's dream became possible recently, when Tavares-based Living Well Lodges bought the property. The developer opened its first assisted-living facility three years ago in Tavares and is building one in Clermont. Kurtz is involved in the Stuart Lodge as an investor.

 

"The demand here is good and it's growing," said Tom Hofmeister, managing partner with Living Well Lodges and contractor for the assisted-living facility.

 

He expects the Stuart Lodge to attract local seniors and non-locals drawn to the area by adult children already living here.  Hofmeister promises all the amenities of a major assisted-living facility including a library, exercise room, spa, chapel, garden and outdoor barbecue, communal lounges and dining rooms, art room, "man cave" complete with pool table and big-screen TV, even a room for pets residents can "borrow" for some cuddling time.

 

"I'm anti-institutional," Hofmeister said. "Elderly people want to live in something they can call home."

 

He said he doesn't know what the new facility will charge residents, only that it would be typical for the area. According to the Council on Aging of Martin County, most charge $30,000 to $42,000 per year.

 

Despite his description of a strong market, Hofmeister acknowledges the slow economy has taken a bite out of assisted living.

 

"We're seeing a trend in people coming in later," he said. "The average stay has dropped from three years to a year and a half."

 

Hofmeister expects Stuart Lodge to start marketing and accepting resident applications in about six months, a half year before the first residents move into their new home.