Dima Amro | Memphis Commercial Appeal
Construction at The Farms at Bailey Station is making headway, with the medical center nearing its opening and the next phase of residents moving in soon.
The $290 million senior living community in Collierville will allow residents to move into some of the 176 apartments in the fall, and by the end of the year, 25 of 63 homes will be occupied.
Mary Cross, sales director for The Farms at Bailey Station, said currently 80% of houses and apartments, seen from Houston Levee, are reserved and more people are inquiring about the 37-acre development at 3382 Grand Central Circle East. as it nears completion.
“I can’t tell you how many people have said to me, ‘What is that? Is it a hotel? Is it a casino?'” said Michelle Vincent, executive vice president of Retirement Companies of America.
The Farms at Bailey Station, developed and managed by Retirement Companies of America, is for adults 55 and older and includes housing, a three-story clubhouse and a health campus.
Vincent and her father Charles Trammell, president of Retirement Companies of America, would travel to retirement facilities around the United States and photograph details they wanted to feature in the Collierville project.
“We just took everything we saw and liked and put it into this one community,” Vincent said.
Retirement Companies of America also manages Kirby Pines LifeCare Community, a senior community in Memphis similar to the Collierville campus.
The Jordan River Health Center, a medical center on campus, is expected to begin accepting patients this summer. The health center has 60 private nursing suites, 52 private assisted-living suites, 32 memory care suites for patients with dementia and Alzheimer’s, and 4,300 square feet of inpatient and outpatient rehab facility.
The health center, named after the Jordan River in the Middle East, is available to anyone but members of The Farms at Bailey Station are a priority.
The apartments sit around “Central Park” with an outdoor kitchen, fire pits, croquet and bocce courts, a dog park and an event lawn with a stage. The apartments also connect to the clubhouse, which features five restaurants directed by a Florida-based manager, a theater, a hair salon, a clinic and a gym.
Cross said 17 families currently live on-site, and by 2023 all homes and apartments will be occupied.
“It’s really meant to be like you go on a permanent vacation,” Vincent said. “This is a continuing care, or a lifecare, community. On one campus you’ve got everything you need.”
Vincent said apartments start at $265,000 and can go up to around $684,000, while houses cost between $545,000 and $800,000 depending on floor plans and living accommodations.
Each house is two stories and features an elevator, garage, a master bedroom, master bathroom, kitchen, living room, dining room and extra space depending on the floor plan for things like a game area or storage room.
One garden home had hardwood floors on the first level along with the master bedroom, master bathroom, an extra room, a half bathroom and storage closets. The second level featured carpeted floors with three rooms, an attic, a full bathroom and half bathroom, a walk-in closet and closets for storage.
Members pay an entrance fee, a one-time investment to live on the campus for the rest of their lives, and a monthly fee that covers maintenance, bi-weekly housekeeping, use of the clubhouse and dining.
“What we want people to do when they move here is spend less time cleaning, maintaining, cooking and housework and more time going to the restaurants,
enjoying the amenities, walking or just lock the door and go out of town,” Vincent said.
Currently, about 500 people work on building The Farms at Bailey Station six days a week, and Vincent expects to create around 275 jobs.
