Jefferson City area retirees will soon have a new housing option.
Primrose Retirement Communities is an Aberdeen, South Dakota company that operates 30 retirement communities in 15 states. It hopes to open an 84-unit retirement complex on Old Lohman Road in western Cole County by the end of the year.
Of those, there will be 40 assisted living units, 36 for independent living and eight duplexes.
"There's more and more of a demand for what we do," President BJ Schaefbauer said, adding that every day another 10,000 Americans turn 65. "We've been in the business a long time. We are passionate about what we do. We're very good at what we do."
Schaefbauer said he hopes construction will be finished in early to mid-December so the operation can open by the end of the December. When at full capacity in another 1 1/2 to 2 years, it will employ about 35 workers, a "good portion" of which will be full time, he said.
"We hire staff all locally," Schaefbauer said. "We want them to be from the community, familiar with the culture. We want to fit in, and it's worked well for us over the years."
The independent living and assisted living sections will be joined by a central area that will house a beauty salon, pub, library/business center, movie theater, bistro, chapel and a garden cafe dining area.
The main building is about 96,000 square feet, plus another 3,000 square feet for each of the four duplexes.
Rates haven't been set yet, but the independent living units will run around $3,000 a month, which covers utilities, cable and one meal a day, Schaefbauer said.
Leases are month to month, with a $500 deposit.
"We understand at this stage of life, things can change rather quickly. So we try to make that as easy as possible" to switch living arrangements, he said.
He said Primrose is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. The original Primrose retirement community in Aberdeen has a resident who has been with them from the beginning.
"She's 101 and still living. It's kind of unique that we can say very first resident is still around, so that's pretty cool," Schaefbauer said.