CHARTWELL WESCOTT AIMS TO SERVE EDMONTON SENIORS
Premium-class retirement community offers range services to suit spectrum of needs
As retirement residences go, one of Edmonton’s newest is not exactly the type your grandparents might have lived in.
With car and shuttle service, day trips and outings, a movie theatre, a library, and an open-seating dining room serving lunch and dinner, the Chartwell Wescott has the feel of an all-inclusive vacation resort — there’s even an indoor saltwater pool.
“We don’t bring in cookie-cutter offerings,” said Maxime Camerlain, vice-president of real estate integration for Chartwell Retirement Residences. “We actually look at the neighbourhood and we build in relation to that. So we’re very proud of it.”
The Chartwell Wescott, now under construction in the Ambleside in Windermere neighbourhood in Edmonton’s southwest, will feature 107 suites, comprised of 11 studios, 64 one-bedroom units, 16 one-bedroom plus den, and 16 two-bedroom offerings when it’s completed in early 2019.
“There’s going to be a multitude of amenities and services,” added Camerlain. “It’s going to be a premium-class retirement home for Edmonton.”
Additional amenities include the following offerings: a place of worship, art studio, card room, billiards area, computer lounge, and a kids zone to keep younger visitors occupied. The Wescott is also pet friendly and will have a dog wash spa.
“These amenities are quite in tune with the times,” said Camerlain. “I think people will be impressed and surprised with the level and quality of service that will be brought there.”
The three-storey building broke ground in the fall of 2017 and will feature design touches reminiscent of famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright when it’s finished.
“It’s all based around a Prairiestyle design, it’s a Frank Lloyd Wright inspiration,” said Camerlain, pointing to Wright’s Prairie work: houses that have low horizontal lines so that they blend in with the adjacent flat landscape.
At the Wescott there will be a focus on earthy colour palates and stained wooden finishes, while dramatic horizontal lines are indicative of flat, wide expanses of land. The overall effect was specifically designed to contribute to the residence’s warmth and charm.
Above and beyond the 107 residential suites, the Wescott will have 30 Memory Living suites on the building ’s north end, geared toward assisting those with cognitive impairment.
“This is a best-in-class offering of Memory Living care that we’re bringing to Edmonton — this is actually the first one we’re bringing to the province,” said Camerlain, who noted that the units will have a dining area, as well as space dedicated to cognitive activities and outdoor enjoyment. “It’s really about the experience that we’re able to provide from the care to the staff there.”
The goal, Camerlain said, is to provide those with dementia a safe and supportive space that will provide each resident with a sense of purpose, as well as giving family members a unique support network.
INITIAL REACTION
“People are surprised. They don’t realize all that is included,” said April Williamson, a retirement living consultant for the Wescott. She points to weekly housekeeping and air conditioning as some of the features that the monthly rental fee covers. “We’re making it very uncomplicated for residents and very easy to budget.”
For Rose Mazur and her husband John, the Wescott checked off all the boxes they were looking for in a new home. Even though John selected the Wescott before Rose had a chance to see it, it was love at first sight when she finally visited the Wescott’s presentation centre and was able to learn more about their future living accommodations.
“It’s lovely. I’m so glad John chose it, and it will serve us perfectly,” said Rose.
“We’re just north of West Edmonton Mall now, but we have to clean the snow — it’s getting too hard.”
The Mazurs have chosen a onebedroom plus den unit at the Wescott, and while they looked at other retirement residence possibilities Rose said the Wescott trumped the others.
“We’re not looking anywhere else. My husband told the other places that we won’t be coming.”
CHARTWELL WESCOTT Q&A
The Chartwell Wescott, with its presentation centre at #102-16224 Ellerslie Rd. SW, is one of two new retirement residences that Mississauga, Ontario-based Chartwell is building in the Edmonton region, the other being the Chartwell Emerald Hills.
Once these two new residences are opened Chartwell will operate eight residences in the greater Edmonton area, including one in Morinville.
Responses are from Maxime Camerlain, vice-president of real estate integration for Chartwell Retirement Residences.
Why Edmonton?
The way the city is expanding, the way it is developing, it is creating some good opportunities and we wanted to be in the forefront of that.
Why Ambleside in Windermere?
It has everything that we look for in a neighbourhood. We look for areas that are active, that are growing, that have a lot of activities, have movie theatres, have groceries, and retail. We try to find areas where people want to be.
Rental or condo?
We are a fully 100 per cent rental complex. (Pricing starts at about $2,600 per month for a studio, rising to about $4,150 per month for a two-bedroom unit.)
Target demographic?
Typically what we see, we don’t discriminate, but what we see is people that will come in and around 70 to 75 (years old). Anyone wanting to live independently but also wanting to have hasslefree living, where you don’t have to make your meals or take care of anything, that’s what we offer. Project cost?
This is a $48-million project and it’s creating 150 jobs in the area on a temporary basis for construction, and will create 45 permanent jobs as well.