The Best Independent Living Communities in Knox County, TN

"I toured Canterfield of Oak Ridge. It was very nice. The people were very nice. I thought it was a good place. My tour was not during one of their activities or anything, so several of the residents were just sitting around eating breakfast. However, they have some gardening areas where people can go out and do some gardening. I saw the living spaces in the memory care. They're a little bit different because there are no doors in the closet and things like that, but they were a good size, and the bathrooms were nice. They had nice walk-in showers with seats. It was a nice area. Everything was good and clean when I was there. Everything was nice and smelled nice."

"I think the main reason that I chose The Lodge at Shannondale was that it has a swimming pool. I like to do water aerobics and stuff like that, and they do have that there. They also have a physical therapy department. They have a lady that comes in and gives you a massage. If you want this, you have to pay extra. They also have a podiatrist that comes in every three months. They have a coffee shop. The rooms are very nice. They have three different one-bedrooms, and they have two-bedrooms. You pay a membership fee first, but then your monthly payment is lower than the other places that I visited. The staff was so friendly. Everybody was just so friendly, had smiles on their faces, and just very nice. They introduced themselves to me, and that was very good. The rooms were fairly spacious. They either have a patio or balcony. I have a dog, and dogs are allowed. They have a dog park there, too. They have a nurse on staff 24 hours. If you need help with your medication, they will help you. There is a call button in the room that you press every morning to let them know that you're out of bed. There's a lot of security there. There's a chaplain on staff. I really like all that. The room was very nice. This is a positive thing to me, but you don't have a stove or a cooktop in the room. You have to go get your meals, and I think that makes you more social; you don't just sit in your room. They have a microwave and a convection oven."

"I did a tour of Shannondale Knoxville. I think they had a payment plan that you pay the lump sum upfront and then you pay a smaller amount later on. Then you can stay with the facility as you get older and less able to do things, you can continue. They had the health care and the facility to continue to stay with the assisted part. You don't have to like to pick up and go to a new place. So, they have other forms of care there as well. They have a good selection of activities, and it was centrally located, near shopping areas and stuff like that. The facility is very nice. It was newer and very well-maintained, and the community seemed very warm and welcoming. Their decor was nice and it kind of felt more like an indoor community. Sort of like in Florida. When you walk around, a lot of the shops are not like malls, but they're more outdoor entrances, but it was all under a covering. So, it kind of felt like you could go to the town, but you were still covered indoors and in their community. That's because it kind of felt like a small-town atmosphere. The person who gave me the tour was a lady, and I cannot remember her name, but she was wonderful. She did a really fine job of explaining and answering any questions. She was very nice. It was kind of cool like the hair salon, it's sort of like going down the street. Then you could go to that particular store. There was a beauty shop there, and then they had the barber shop as a separate one. Then they had like a little restaurant-type thing, so you felt like you were maybe on vacation somewhere. There's like a pizza shop and then they had other restaurants with other food, and they had different themes in the street area. It was all under an overhang, but they had trees and clocks. It was nice, like a park, with park benches and stuff. So, it didn't feel like you were in an assisted living facility. It's kind of blended. It's just nice that you have the options, and then if you end up in nursing care, there's another section for that. But they're all kind of connected. So, if you had friends that needed more care, you had to go to the nursing care. But if you had friends in independent living or assisted living, you could go visit them because they were kind of connected."

"I visited Parkview West Knoxville, an independent living place, and they were very clean. They had large closets, walk-in showers, balconies, and patios in each unit. It had a huge, clean, and very neat dining area. There's an activity area and a theater that shows a different movie every night. They also have live entertainment three times a week."

"I moved in and it is great. The staff is wonderful. They have a library, they have an exercise room, and they also have a lady that comes around and assesses you, and if they think that you need to go and get some exercise or physical therapy. I know they have bingo, and they have wine night. They also have planned trips, and if you have a doctor's appointment, they will get you there and back here again. I think they have a piano bar once a week, and I think they have like singalongs. They have a patio area, a courtyard, and they have a front porch; it's very nice."

"I moved to Broadway Towers. I like it because the people are friendly, and it's like a second home. The neighbors are friendly. It's just like a big family. It's all completely furnished with appliances and even a washer and dryer. They do occasionally have get-togethers down in a community room, where all of us make meals and gather. There are a lot of places around for shopping, and I like that, too. The staff is very friendly and nice. They do have activities, but I don't participate a lot in that, but you can go down to the game room and play cards."

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"I will be moving into Park Place of Fountain City. What I liked the most was the atmosphere. Everybody seemed to enjoy themselves there. I had one person who's lived there since December of last year and she was saying how nice the place was. I went to a party last Friday night there and was very well received, and was very happy with the people there. I had dinner at the party, and the food was delicious. I was impressed with the staff. The whole place was clean. I felt that out of all of the places, and I had looked at probably seven or eight, this one stood out in my mind that that's where I wanted to move. They're sending me a November calendar, so I have an idea of what they will be having in November. They have a lot going on at the building and they have a lot of trips to different stores and things. I'm very impressed with the place."

"I moved into Prime at West Knoxville. This place I have chosen has everything under the sun. It is beautiful and well-maintained. Everything in it is just pristine. I have great amenities. The food is quite good, and it supplies me with the needs of a diabetic, so it has everything I need. And the staff are really, really nice, all of them. I have a small bedroom, but adequate, a living room, and a kitchen. The kitchen has a full-size refrigerator with an ice maker, a dishwasher, a microwave, and a nice oven. It's a really upgraded kitchen. It has a granite countertop. Then, in the hall, there is a washer and dryer, which is standard size and stackable. They're really nice. There is a balcony, big enough to have flowers and a rocking chair, and that's very nice. Everything in the apartment is above the standard grade. Everything is nice. The floors and everything in here are just above the average. And the hallways are beautiful, wide, and the decorations - everything is above your standard. Prime is a good name for it."

"I toured Park Place of West Knoxville. The staff was very warm, and the residents seemed to be very, very happy with their place. I was teasing the gal because after about five women said, 'Oh, you're going to love it here,' I said, 'Seriously, what are you discounting the rent to stay?' But they were just saying how much they enjoyed it. And the gal that gave us the tour has been there 14 years, which was impressive. It's a little old facility, but it seemed well cared for. It's a very nice place. They have a variety of rooms. They have a studio and a one-bedroom that does not include a range or a dishwasher, but has everything else. And then there's laundry down the hall. And then the one-bedroom deluxe was about 100 square feet bigger. They're nice-sized apartments, and that include a range and a dishwasher. Of course, they're sought after, so they don't have an opening in those a lot, too. I wish they would have had a few more outside spaces, but it's kind of in the heart of everything. The staff who gave the tour was lovely and very personable. You get two meals a day. You go down and get your own breakfast, which is kind of a continental breakfast. Then you get a menu supper in their dining area. You can purchase lunch for $3 if you want it. The place looked clean, and everything looked well taken care of even though it was older."

"I liked the open floor plan at The Villages of Farragut and the fact that each unit had either a screen porch or a sunroom. The marketing person was wonderful. She was very knowledgeable, gave a very thorough tour, and contacted a couple of people so that I could see their units. The living atmosphere seemed to be very pleasant."

"When I went to see Viva Senior Living at Oak Ridge, I was pretty impressed by the building, the people, and the activities they offered. The staff was very nice. They're lovely, lovely people. The common areas were very spacious, clean, and very nice. The staff members were wonderful. I didn't get to see any of the rooms. However, the facilities are lovely. Physically, it's beautiful, it's clean, and it's modern. They seem to have everything they need, like entertainment and activities. There was some kind of a buffet thing going on. It was an open house for visitors, and the food was good. It was not exceptional, but it was adequate and nicely prepared."

"We visited Asbury Place Maryville a couple of years ago. We thought it was very nice. It certainly covers all bases that allow independent living in the single homes, if you need more help a little later you can move into the assisted living unit, and then if you get sick and need to be in a nursing home, it provides that also. We were looking at all of it as much as we could. We looked at plans for new stuff. I'm legally blind, so I can't drive, and my husband is 86 years old, so the transportation situation was very good. It was things like that we were looking at as much as the independent home because we're both able to take care of the house. We have friends that live there. It's just about anything you could ask for. They were just so cordial and so nice. It was a very pleasant visit. The staff were very cordial. They answered all the questions that we had. We knew quite a bit about it before we went from our friends. They were very, very nice. I thought the independent living was a 5; they were very nice homes. Our friends said that the food is very good, although they cook in their home most of the time. But on occasion when I go over, the food is inexpensive. You just have to let them know that you want to eat the dinner meal or whatever, and they make arrangements for you to do that. It was like $4 or $5 for a meal, and in today's world, that's very inexpensive. They have lots of activities for the people to participate in like crafts, playing games, as well as shopping, going to the doctor, and going on excursions."

"The thing I like most about Parkview Maryville is how competent, courteous, friendly, and nice the workers are here. They give us breakfast and dinner seven days a week. You can buy lunch for $6. They clean our room once a week and wash our sheets and towels. We're responsible for our personal laundry unless you want to pay them to do it, but we do everything else. There's no assisted living here. We have a very nice beauty and barbershop with two ladies working. We have exercise classes, a fitness room, and a theater where they show movies and bring in people to do concerts. We have lots of activities from our activity director. They take us on trips, to the grocery store, to doctor's appointments, and to get our nails done. There is card playing. There are plenty of activities, making things, fun shows, and games. It's a beautiful facility."