I did an in-person tour of Whittier Glen Assisted Living. I looked at housing and they showed me activities. They walked with me to give a basic tour and showed me the communal spaces and the private rooms.
I think the layout was fine. I haven't seen the other ones, so I don't know how to compare them or what stood out. They mentioned that some of the building was getting renovated, which is rnice because when I first stepped in, I thought it looked kind of old and rundown, but I could see that they're making some improvements.
They, at least, tried to keep some activities out and people seemed relatively happy. Some of the residents, one of them in particular, were extremely enthusiastic about living there. It was nice to hear the stories about it. I didn't see anything like red flags or anything of that sort so that was comforting.
Some of the staff seemed very good. The one that was giving us the tour was enthusiastic and kind. Some of them seemed helpful too and the receptionist was nice. It's very obvious that we're touring the place so I'm not sure how genuine some of it is.
They showed me a room that would be a potential room if we were to rent there. It's just above our budget and that's the only reason why we haven't proceeded with it. The room was fine. I thought it works and I just think it's more of a cost issue. It just exceeded by a lot.
I think the rooms were all right and my father doesn't have a very high expectation for any kind of residence. They were very welcoming. They even have donuts on a table but I didn't want anything.
I felt the amenities were alright. I didn't know what to expect, but I thought some of it looked very old. A lot of the carpeting looked very old to me, some of the walls too and the elevator. I'm just maybe an optimistic person but I would think that since they were already in the process of replacing flooring and some of the rooms, I would imagine that down the line, it would be improved too. It wasn't clean to me, but it was being renovated, so I could tell that they were attempting to. There's a variety of things happening, I think that's the main reason why it's not very clean.
It's nice to know that they also had a shuttle service for people to get groceries. It seems like they were trying to create a sense of community. What I appreciate is that they don't make people feel trapped. I feel like they tried to make things work safely too by going within certain hours and prohibiting the seniors from using fire or any sort of fire-related equipment or just cooking on their own.
They were also trying to give flexibility to seniors, like maybe offering them one or two trips out to run an errand, like at grocery stores down the block or something, and accommodating people's diets and such.
The person that I talked to was quite helpful. One of my concerns was my dad being religious so he likes to burn incense, which is a fire hazard. She was very accommodating in that she followed up and checked up on us and did some research. She came up with the battery-operated kind of solution so he can maintain his incense practice, but at the same time, not use fire. I thought that was kind of thoughtful and considerate of them.
Provider Response
Truly appreciate your detailed review and indeed the carpets were old, and I am happy to update that all of our common hall areas where you saw the old carpets have now all been replaced with brand new hardwood look floors, yea! We have a very cheerful atmosphere and our seniors enjoy their time inside and outside; now the weather is cooling down, our lush-green courtyard is now being actively used too. I am glad you appreciate the incense holder I found for you and please know that is actually a natural one, not electric, it is just that incense sits inside so the incense cannot be a danger in such enclosed casing : ) I welcome you to come again anytime and hope Whittier Glen can be of service to your needs.
