Brookdale Cedar Springs

Brian

The things I did not like about Brookdale Cedar Springs was the distance from my son and the laundry facilities. I would have to cart all my laundry down to the facility. They have a friendly staff. I had Thanksgiving dinner and it was delicious. The chef even came out. She went to all the tables, she also visited ours, and we talked. The food was excellent. She was very knowledgeable and she and I struck up quite a conversation because I lived in Europe and she knew a lot of European food. So, we were on a very good basis there. The apartment was just an older unit and it's very lengthy to travel. If you cannot walk a lot, it's kind of a downer. The distance to the dining room is down a long hallway and then up a long hallway. It's that type of thing.

Emily

We toured Brookdale Cedar Springs. It was great. I was so excited at this point when they showed me everything. I was very excited. I think that the room itself is what kind of turned my mother off because it was like just one room. Then you put your bed in there in the living room and everything. She couldn't see herself living in a room, per se. I talked with the sales marketing guy, and he told me that they actually were making a bedroom separate from the living room. They had some rooms that were like that. He felt that he could help me out with that situation and possibly put her there, instead of putting her in a one room. I'm anxious to go and actually get to see that myself. Hopefully, I will be able to look at that room as well, in case mom was to change her mind. Basically one of the main reasons I liked it is convenience. She would be on Spring Avenue and would be close enough to me that if I went to town to Decatur every day, I would be able to visit her. I could take her anywhere she wanted to go. Plus, I like the fact that this community center does not care about you having a checking account. They just let you pay to live there in an apartment or something, and it's just very free. They're not going to take control of your savings accounts or checking accounts, and they don't care what you have. I liked that about the place. They have activities going all the time. You have a cafeteria that has hot lunch and supper each day. They have a beauty shop. I fixed my mom at my mom's house because she owned a beauty shop. I actually can fix her hair every day in that beauty shop, and they would have no obligations to that. There's a laundry room. You're able to use the laundry room each and every time that you want to. There are so many good things about it. There's outdoor patios and stuff. If you decided to go out and sit out on the patio, you could. It's a wonderful place. I feel like that would be the place I would choose. It's clean. They have the assistance and people that help see after you. They've got handrails on each hallway. If residents need help walking, they can hold on to the rail. It's just an extremely super place, and they've always got something going on with the holidays, bingo, and cards. That's an everyday thing if that's what you wish. I did not eat there, but I did get an idea of what they were having. They were fixing to serve lunch one day while I was there, and so I did see the residents sitting at the tables and they were being served. It's not something that you have to go through a cafeteria line. You sit down at the table, and they bring it to you.

Brenda

I went to Brookdale Cedar Springs. I liked it. They showed me the one bedroom; it was nice. They said they will put in linoleum. He said it would be updated, but it was OK. It was clean. I mean, I could live there like it was. He showed me a studio and a one bedroom. They had a gardening table. They had a library. They had laundry services. He just toured me all over the place, and they had a pond. He showed me a dining area, where you're served. I would give them a three because the other place had more to offer and had cable and telephone included. Brookdale charges $35 for this, but they charge less than the other place for rent. The staff was very nice. He showed me where the activities were. They had a movie planned that night, and he gave me a good tour.

Annette

Brookdale Cedar Springs is independent living. They're not licensed for assisted living, but their setup is very similar to assisted living. It was assisted living until about a year ago. They have rooms that are in the same building as the dining room, so those are very much like assisted living, and they have a nurse there who sets up care plans for the residents. The staff was very helpful, answered all my questions, and called me afterwards to follow up. That's the place I was going to try to have my mom go to until she said she didn't want to move during COVID. I was very pleased with it. That's the place that I chose that I would want my mom to be on the budget that we have to be on. I had a good feeling about it. I liked the people who worked there. Everything was very clean, newly remodeled, and fresh. The staff was warm, friendly, and accommodating. They had transportation to doctors' appointments and shopping, and they had other activities for the residents. Everything was within close walking distance. They had relaxing areas and a library and everything was close together with easy access. There was also a nice outdoor area. It's set off from the main road, so it's kind of a pleasant neighborhood type environment instead of the city feel. It felt like a slower pace area.

KAS

Brookdale Cedar Springs has been very helpful. They're a little bit short on their maintenance people, but they come as quickly as they could. Everything else is quite good. I've heard from different residents that there aren't very many activities, and they let someone go who was on top of activities. My apartment is very nice and has a lot of closet and storage space. My master bedroom is bigger than the townhouse where I was. I'm on the second floor and I have a private balcony, and my living room is very nice. They're doing renovations. The food is quite good. We have two out of three meals a day paid for, cable TV, mailroom, nice kitchen, and a small full size refrigerator. I'm quite happy here.

Margaret

Brookdale Cedar Springs has independent living, assisted living, and hospice care, and you don't have to move out of your apartment. It's wonderful. You get two meals a day, there are rides to take you places, and if I have to go to the doctor I just need to tell them beforehand. The people are very kind and nice, and they clean once a week. I just tell them my problem and they come over and take care of it. They're very proficient. They have a button that I'm supposed to hit every day to tell them I'm alive. They're very sweet and everybody's very helpful. I'm in a separate housing area that's separate from the apartments. I have a backyard with trees, two bedrooms, a living room, and a full kitchen. I have a cat and they don't have a problem with animals. I really like it here. The food is very nice and they come to the table like waiters. They have different choices or you can get a sandwich. They have a ton of activities. It costs a lot more than where I was, but you get the meals, coordinated activities, maid service once a week, and if I get sick they will bring the meal to me. It feels like home and like everything I wanted.