A Colorado Springs skilled care facility broke ground on an expansion that will make it the first in the state to offer all private rooms, private televisions and phone as well as wireless Internet — features it sees as a trend demanded by aging Baby Boomers.
“Not having a private room is one of the biggest objections people have to living in an institution,” said Janet Burns, executive director of the non-profit Sunny Vista Living Center, which will open the expanded facility in the summer for 2012. “They feel like they’re going back to college, sharing a dorm room. When you’re 80 or 85, that thought is abhorrent to a lot of people.”
Aiming to provide greater privacy and independence, units in the new 116-bed facility will also feature private bathrooms. Even public areas will be constructed with more intimate and specific uses in mind, such as small dining areas and activity rooms.
The center’s 92 current residents have priority for the new rooms, but the expansion will allow for new residents as well.
“Because we’re a stand-alone non-profit, we have the flexibility to do this,” Burns said. “For a large corporation, it’s going to be harder to move on this. But I do think, if you’re going to compete in the future you have to figure out how to do this.”
