Memory care facility moves forward

Company specializes in care of patients with dementia and Alzheimer’s

Avon Planning Commission approved Dec. 19 a general development plan for a proposed memory care facility.

The Ganzhorn Suites of Avon would be a 51,130 square foot facility would be located off Health Campus Boulevard and would provide specialized care for individuals with Alzheimer’s Disease and dementia in 68 units.

“We specialize in memory care,” said founder Eleanor Alvarez. “We are a specialized assisted living center and we care just for people that have Alzheimer’s and other diseases that cause dementia. We have set new standards for caring for this disease. Our mission and vision is to be the primary provider of comprehensive memory care services in a fully supportive setting.”

Headquartered in the Columbus suburb of Powell, Ganzhorn Suites opened their first building in 2016 and are aiming to have an Avon location completed by 2020 with construction beginning in April of 2019.

“We are really the market leader in memory care in the Columbus area,” Alvarez said. “We are excited to propose one of our centers here in Avon.”

The design of the units follows the household model with 16 units in four separate households along with four semi-private units.

“The smaller spaces really help people to feel more comfortable and more at ease. When folks have memory care issues, being in a large building is disorienting,” Alvarez said.

The company has a close collaboration with Ohio State University’s neurology department with Dr. Douglas Scharre serving as their medical director. A Board Certified neurologist, Scharre specializes in clinical research in dementia and Alzheimer’s disease and helped Ganzhorn develop protocols.

With Ohio State collaboration, residents are able to participate in clinical trials at Ohio State.

“We’re very excited about that relationship and it really does set us apart,” Alvarez said.

As the company looks at coming to Avon, Alvarez said Ganzhorn has had some discussions with The Cleveland Clinic about a potential partnership, playing a similar role as Ohio State at their Powell facility.

The project is expected to come back to planning commission for consideration of the final development plan.

In other business, the planning commission heard the first presentation of the final development for a proposed Chase Bank at 36200 Detroit Road.

Economic Development Director Pam Fechter said the city is working on resolving a few minor issues with the project and it will come back to planning commission later.

“The smaller spaces really help people to feel more comfortable and more at ease.”

— Ganzhorn Suites founder Eleanor Alvarez