Independent Living Communities in Rochester, MN

"My mother has moved here. So far, it's pretty good. We moved in during the winter months, so it's a little more restrictive as far as them being able to get outside and walk and get exercise. One of my mom's strong suits, before she moved there, was the ability to get out, walk around, and be outside, and we're still working on that part. I like the staff. It looks like they have a little music, they have a church, and I've seen them do craft-type activities where they make things for special occasions. They have different social things. The food is pretty good."

"I toured the Arbor Terrace Senior Living. What I like best is as my mother fails, they're going to continue to keep her. They won't push her out the door. It was amazing. I met other employees, and I was welcomed very nicely. It has a clean, safe, and friendly environment. It's two miles from where I live, it's within two miles of St. Mary's Mayo clinic, and it's right in the area where you can get anything you need."

"What a great place to live! Besides the beautiful grounds, and the potential for a city park to be built behind the facility, there are always fun activities going on, and very friendly staff to meet your needs. The most exciting amenity is the well-appointed wellness center, with a luxurious warm water swimming and exercise pool. The food has improved over the past two years, so that it now is almost like a high quality restaurant. The laundries are community, not individual, but that's not difficult to manage. The common areas have been recently updated. Though not lavish, they are quite comfortable and conducive to interaction between residents. Shorewood has won awards for several years for best retirement living in Rochester. I agree! "

"My mom is in a one-bedroom apartment at Benedictine Madonna Towers. She has a refrigerator, a microwave, and a stove in her kitchen. Right across from that, she has her pantry/closet. The grounds are nice. If a person wants to, they could provide raised garden beds for them. The building itself is fine. The concern I have is there's only two elevators for all of those people there. There are 11 floors and that is concerning to me in case of fire. Last summer, one elevator was shut down for months. Then while they fixed that, the other elevator was shut down, too; everything turned out OK. Bobbi is the LPN that works there, and she is awesome. She works very hard, and those residents are her people. There are a couple of good health care workers, but there are also others who are just there to get some money, but I think they have better staff now. They have exercise classes every day (like Sit and Be Fit). There is a nice exercise room and movies. They also have people come in and sing or play instruments for them or do people's fingernails. Their activities are good."

"When we were looking for help with our mom who had Alzheimer's, we knew we had found the best Rochester had to offer at the The Waters on Mayowood! The high ceilings and beautiful rooms/community areas didn't make you feel like you were in a nursing home. Fireplaces, pool table, exercise room, 2 kitchens, etc were all in great shape! The staff took the time to learn what mom's like/dislikes were and made every effort to support her independence. The food was chef prepared and she could select what she wanted from tasty choices! The pet therapy, music therapy, massage therapy, field trips, guest musicians, and twice a day activity always gave her something to look forward to. Everyone she interacted with during her 4 years in the Specialty Care unit were caring, competent, and loved on her. They were just the best! Let me save you the time and hassle of touring multiple memory care places. If you want the best for your loved one, don't look any further than The Waters on Mayowood in Rochester!"

"I toured Forte Living at Rochester, MN. I guess I liked it because it was new and it was very open and bright, which is what I was looking for. The person who gave the tour was very knowledgeable and very caring and very, very open to looking at different types of units that might be more suitable for me, and just willing to work with me. The apartments were all new. So, it was a very, very updated, very modern headquarters. It was just the arrangement and everything was nice. Everybody had a washer and dryer. There were lots of amenities, yoga, exercise classes, games, and social events very much geared to the age of 55 and up."