Continuing Care Retirement Communities Communities in Birmingham, AL

"St. Martin's In the Pines was very, very nice. The staff was extremely nice and welcoming. We just visited there, and they gave us a packet. We had a friend of ours that lived there. They showed us her apartment. It was super nice. All the amenities are within the building, and Mother would have never had to get out of the building. She has elevator access or she could use the stairs, but they prefer that most of them use the elevator to prevent falling. They have activities. They have independent assisted, and nursing home care. They have a studio apartment. We had a friend that was living there, so we went in and looked at the space. However, my mom preferred a 1-bedroom. She was going from my 3-bedroom house into a studio and it bothered her a little bit. She saw how much room that this friend of ours had and it was 490 square feet. The staff was great. The person that lived there has been there for quite some time, and she told us how amazing the staff was, and she wouldn't tell us that if they were not so."

"Galleria Woods is impressive. I took the tour with Anne. I had more individual questions that I wanted to ask, and that's why I wanted to go back and speak to them, but it would be a wasted effort because there was no way I could afford their prices unless I got a loan. That doesn't seem practical for me, but the place was very nice, well-managed, and well-taken care of. They have a gym, a library, a salon, and everything you would expect. They're even going to be offering a movie theater. They also have a gazebo and lovely apartments. They took us through a two- bedroom and a one-bedroom that are both available. If I had my preference, I would snap up that two-bedroom apartment immediately. The staff was excellent and was super. Anne was thoughtful, informative, and caring. I think she would be a good person to interact with in getting more detailed information. She sent me a text message and said she would be willing to meet with me specifically one day next week. They're very good at what they do. They had an advertising luncheon and it was very, very good. We had filet mignon. It was very nice and it was delicious, but I doubt that represents the daily fare for a regular lunch menu. If we base it on the pricing of the community, it should be good."

"We toured the Morningside of Vestavia Hills. I liked the cordialness of the person taking us around. We stopped and met with several of the residents. It was very pleasing, and they were very professional and had great meals. It was just very eye-opening. The interesting thing that we did learn to separate from this thing is that independent living doesn't mean you can't live there if you're in a wheelchair or anything, so that was encouraging. They were just very informative, very professional, and very pleasant. We would suggest people take a good look at that. The building is older."

"I like everything about the Kirkwood by the River memory care unit. There were a lot of activities going on and a lot of happy people and residents. I saw so many friendly staff, they had a chapel inside and it was just very well organized. Even one of the owners was there, interacting with the residents. I met the chaplain and it just seemed that everyone was just super, super friendly. The staff was very hands-on with the residents, very happy in their jobs, and seem to love the residents. They're going through a renovation, adding some memory care units. The rooms were rather small and needed to be updated, and that's what they're going to do. It was very clean."

"My mom will be moving into Plantation Manor Retirement Community. It was very homey and well-kept. Everyone was happy. The room was very clean. The staff were very friendly. They were very interested in the residents and what they needed. They had bingo. Some residents were watching TV. The dining area was clean, but I didn't see people eating at that time. I met with the director and the other assistants. They were very friendly."