Kingswood Renovation to Meet Growing Needs of Seniors

Kingswood Renovation to Meet Growing Needs of Seniors

By Diane Krauthamer

Big changes are coming to the Kingswood Senior Living Community in the near future. The community, which rests on 30 acres of land at 10000 Wornall Rd. will be adding new residences and enhancing a number of amenities as part of a $34.7 million redesign and expansion project.

According to Terri Moore, executive director of Kingswood, these changes will improve the quality of life for current residents, while responding to the growing need for more senior housing options in the Kansas City metro area.

“The residents want larger apartments, and there’s also a need for assisted living here in the South Kansas City area…There’s actually a shortage of it here, so that’s one of the reasons we decided to take this project on, as we felt we could meet the needs—not only of our current residents and our future residents, but of the greater Kansas City market as well,” Moore said.

“We wanted to give the residents options. So, it’s all about choice, and giving the residents more choices,” she added.

The changes include a vast redesign of one of the apartment buildings, in which the units will be converted into new assisted living suites and memory care residences for 67 seniors. There will also be 11 villas built on the campus, which Moore described as “spacious,” with full basements and two-car garages.

In addition to residences, a number of improvements will be made to the amenities and services at Kingswood, including: an expanded dining area with an outdoor terrace and a bistro downstairs; a wellness center with a cardio and strength-training room and an exercise room for yoga classes; a new chapel and spaces for the pastoral care staff; a health clinic for physical therapy and rehab services, with potential for visiting nurse practitioners and physicians to serve; and even a classroom for “Kingswood University”—an informal education series taught and attended by the residents, many of whom “were educators in the past and are well-traveled,” said Moore.

The redesign and expansion of Kingswood will be taking place in three phases over the next year or so. According to Moore, the first phase will likely be finished this August, and will include renovating the new dining room, the commons area, and giving the front entrance a facelift. The second phase will begin around September or October, with construction on the new assisted living and memory care units. The final phase will be the rest of the common areas and the wellness center, with a final completion date estimated around April or May of 2017.

“We have a very exciting future ahead of us, with all the new development and redevelopment that’s taking place here,” Moore said.

“With the money we are reinvesting into this community, we’re positioning ourselves to be able to continue our mission and serve residents well into the future. And that’s exciting for us,” she added.