The Best Independent Living Communities in Dakota County, MN

"My mother was a patient there. The staff was compassionate and caring. The leadership was attentive to suggestions for improvement. The rooms are small and the amount of natural light was limited. The food was good. "

"Elim Shores is a nice facility. However, there is no dishwasher. They need to update their kitchen. Otherwise, they seem like a nice bunch of people. They don't have meals there. You have to cook your own, which is fine, but the kitchen is kind of small."

"I toured Oakdale Commons. As far as someplace to live and everything, it was a better location. I liked everything else, but it was just a little bit on the iffy side, too. The problem is, where it was at was pretty good for the most part, but you have to get through some parts that aren't that great to get to it. As far as the facilities themselves, I had no complaints. The person who gave the tour was nice. She showed me around. She showed me all the facilities, all the public facilities, and everything."

"We chose Covenant Living of Golden Valley. We liked how happy everyone was, the involvement of people in the community, and the interactions that people had with each other. The residents were just interactive, happy, and welcoming. It just depends which room you get. Some have laundry, some don't, and it depends on the size of the room. But one thing about them, there's a buy-in option, but you can redecorate your room how you want it before you move in."

"My dad moved into Benedictine Windermere Way. When you walk into it, it is so inviting. They always have fresh coffee and water there, and the staff is pleasant. The food was great. The facility is very clean. There's an activity calendar, and there's always something going on. They have bingo, and they have a bar place. They have a movie night. They play cards. They play left and right, and they play dice. They have a puzzle room, a library room, and a workout room. My dad has a studio, and I was impressed that he had a stove, a fridge, and lots of cupboards in the studio. They have a huge chapel. It's spacious, friendly, well-kept, and they have security."

"I moved my mother to Ridgepointe Senior Housing. It is a great place. She loves it and she's very happy there. The staff is very friendly, they food is awesome, and the atmosphere is great. "

"My father-in-law will be moving into Ecumen Seasons at Maplewood. The staff seemed really, really open and welcoming to people. When we did the tour, the residents seemed happy to be there. The residents said good things about it. It was very well cared for, and the price seemed good. His room has a single bedroom and a nice living room. It is a really nice size, and it looks like it has been well maintained. They have a chapel, which was a really big deal for him. It looks like they have a lot of activities in the dining area. Attached to his room, he's got a little deck that overlooks wetlands. I like the location and friendliness of staff. He also knows someone who's already a resident there."

"My friend will be moving to Benedictine Living. The food was fantastic and the rooms were awesome. I toured the memory care unit and it was the nicest one I've seen yet. It was spacious, bright, and cheerful. The people seemed nice. They were very helpful and they were not pushy. They knew that they had a good place to sell, and so they were forthcoming on anything. They had a workout room and sort of a makeshift space that they used for church and different services and stuff. They showed me the library. They had a quilting group that displayed quilts, which made it look and feel homey. The elevators were conveniently located plus I liked that they had stairs. If you wanted to walk up the stairs, you could walk up the stairs for exercise up or down. I liked how it was extremely secure. You couldn't just walk on and off the street. You had to either call somebody that is there or you talk to the office and they would allow you in. I liked how they're not hovering out the front door trying to make the residents there feel like they're being watched all the time. I loved the dining room area. I also liked how they could convert it into other usable space. I loved the view that my friend would have from her room. I liked the proximity of the actual building being right next to a line of medical clinics and a hospital. The biggest selling point was that they were the only ones in Northfield that had memory care on the premises. When I looked at the information as to what their upcoming events were, they would take them shopping, bowling, and to different places in the community for lunch."

"The rooms are older and small. The care is moderately good. The biggest complaint is that we purchased new comfortable clothing for him and within a week all but one item we purchased “disappeared” never to be seen again. They also “lost” a sweatshirt that was very dear to him. It is obvious that they randomly distribute clothing to other patients as we often arrived and he was wearing items that were not his own. I would be very wary of this place."

"For your money, Cornerstone Assisted Living and Memory Care is probably the best deal. They're significantly lower priced than the two places in Maple Grove. The apartments themselves are as good as the other two, but they don't have some of the fancy stuff. I had a meal there and it was pretty good. The dining area was small. I don't know if that was the time, but it seemed a little crowded when I was there. They had everything I would need. The staff was pretty good at presenting. Of the four I went to, she was probably the best."

"We toured Oak Ridge Place. What I liked about it was the staff, friendly staff, and very knowledgeable. We were able to meet some, and what is important to us is they have nurses 24/7. We got to meet the person that's in charge of the dining room, which is really nice, and some of the residents. It was just a very pleasant, pleasant place. She took us to three different apartments and stuff, and a very, very nice, very open layout and stuff. I was really very pleased about the way the restrooms were, how much more safe it is for a person to take a shower with all the handles, and the cut out where they don't have to go over a tub, they can just walk into it. It was really nice. I liked the storage area that they had, so it was just a really nice place. They are pet friendly. The maintenance, they're 24/7 also. If you have problems, there's staff there, if you need them for questions. But one of the things that was really nice is that each resident gets one of those alert bracelets or a watch. If something should happen immediately, in the rooms themselves, there's like two or three buttons that they can push for immediate response from the staff there. I love that the mailboxes were indoors and not out. I thought that was really awesome."

"I moved to Bay Harbor of River Falls. It's wonderful. All the people that live there are very nice, and they have wonderful activities every day. I enjoy it very much. The food is excellent. Yesterday, we had music in the afternoon and bingo. The dining area, they're remodeling it right now, and it's very clean and very nice. I like my room very much. They send somebody in once a week for 15 minutes to do the floors, the sink, and the bathroom."

"We went to Eagan Pointe, which is a new place here in the city. It seems very nice, new, and beautiful. They only had a studio apartment available in assisted living and that was not going to be big enough for my aunt-in-law. Eagan Pointe is a beautiful community that's well-situated architecturally. They have done a lot with the piece of ground they're on. The staff was very welcoming and professional. It is close to us, so we would possibly consider them. "

"I toured The Legends of Apple Valley Apartments. I really like it there. They have a lot of different opportunities for seniors. For the staff, I was on their list twice, and then they said they didn't have my name. They have a library and a gym."