GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- The Beacon Hill at Eastgate Retirement Community says it will add new residences and world-class amenities for seniors when it expands its West End facility.
It will be the third major expansion project there, with 103 one- and two-bedroom independent living spaces being added. The expansion will also include the redevelopment of Beacon Hill at Eastgate’s original site, which is home to the retirement community’s assisted living and memory care residences.
Here are more details from a Sabo P.R. news release:
Spurred by strong demand and the growing needs of seniors in the Grand Rapids area, the proposed 400,000-square-foot West End expansion will be an extension of the retirement community’s existing campus, allowing residents full use of all campus amenities. The third major expansion project launched in the past decade, West End at Beacon Hill will add 103 brand-new one- and two-bedroom independent living residences, bringing the total to 299. The expansion will also include the redevelopment of Beacon Hill at Eastgate’s original site, which is home to the retirement community’s assisted living and memory care residences.
Beacon Hill at Eastgate offers a host of services that give seniors access to high-quality care and an enriching, fulfilling lifestyle. West End will include robust natural green spaces, terraces and gardens and other amenities designed to blend modern convenience and comfort with natural beauty and strengthen connection with the Eastgate neighborhood.
The grounds will be open for residents as well as the surrounding community to enjoy various intra-campus walking paths. Currently, there are approximately 2.5 acres of space on Beacon Hill's campus that are open to the neighborhood. After the expansion, this space will increase to approximately 3.5 acres. Residents and neighbors will continue to have access to existing and new amenities, such as the pond and courtyard walkways, pickleball courts, community gardens, formal gardens, multi-generational playground, The Grove Performance Park, a bakery and coffee shop and several outdoor neighborhood green spaces.
“Our latest expansion will allow us to provide our unsurpassed care, world-class amenities and award-winning culinary program to even more seniors in the community,” President and CEO Jeff Huegli said. “With the addition of West End, we will continue to combine beautiful settings with innovative, personalized services that allow our residents to live their best lives. The expansion will also create new fulfilling jobs for the community and provide additional meaningful opportunities for our neighbors to enjoy our property, utilize our public spaces and dine with us.
“We never stop looking forward and have always been deliberate with our growth, listening to our residents and members of our community to truly understand what they want. We are grateful for the continued interest in our care model, which blends compassion and a commitment to treating residents with dignity in a warm, enriching atmosphere.”
The new independent living residences will be built along Plymouth Avenue and Boston Street and feature modern Tudor architecture inspired by the surrounding neighborhood that will integrate with natural green spaces. The one- and two-bedroom independent living apartments will range from 1,100-1,700 square feet.
The health care center, which currently houses 71 assisted living and memory support residences, will be reconstructed behind its current space at 1845 Boston St. SE. West End will feature 48 brand-new assisted living apartments, 14 high-acuity assisted living apartments and 15 memory care apartments. Future phases of the project include constructing an additional 51 independent living apartment homes.
To promote accessibility and community between residents across the continuum of care, West End will be connected to the main campus by an indoor terrarium walking bridge framed by floor-to-ceiling windows.
Construction is slated to begin in 2026, with the expansion expected to be completed in 2028. Greenbrier Development, a Dallas-based developer that specializes in senior living and has been a partner in previous expansions, will serve as the developer. PRDG, a Dallas-based architect that specializes in senior living design, will serve as the architect.
To help guide the expansion, Beacon Hill at Eastgate partnered with Grand Rapids-based Seamless Ventures to dig deep into the changing wants and needs of seniors through a series of walkthroughs, workshops and interviews with residents, community members on the waiting list, staff and other stakeholders in the community. The 18-month research project sought to understand and inform state-of-the-art experiential, wellness and social needs so Beacon Hill at Eastgate could create people-centered – rather than building-centered – designs that place residents, staff and community first.
“People are at the heart of everything we do, and we want to ensure West End and all future projects are built around the individual needs we’ve identified from these real-life conversations,” Huegli said. “Throughout this planning process, we’ve surrounded ourselves with partners who have the shared vision to help us develop an incredible state-of-the-art environment that allows our current and future residents to age gracefully and live optimally.”
Beacon Hill at Eastgate opened in 1959 as Michigan Christian Home, which housed retired missionaries and pastors from area Baptist churches. After several additions, Michigan Christian Home was renamed to Beacon Hill at Eastgate in 2005 and acquired the adjacent vacated property of the former Metro Health Hospital, which is now home to the retirement community’s main campus and independent living residences.
Beacon Hill at Eastgate is a distinctive, nonprofit, continuing care retirement community nestled in the established and vibrant Eastgate neighborhood. Residents enjoy a daily experience of fine cuisine, rich relationships and a broad range of amenities, including on-site restaurants, an indoor pool and state-of-the-art fitness center, art and exercise classes, among many others. The nonprofit offers personalized care for the mind, body and spirit to ensure residents can lead a healthy, fulfilling lifestyle while enjoying retirement.
Beacon Hill at Eastgate earned a spot on U.S. News & World Report’s 2024 Best Nursing Homes list and has been recognized as one of the best 2024 continuing care retirement communities in the country by Newsweek.
To learn more about West End at Beacon Hill, visit WestEndGR.org.
About Beacon Hill at Eastgate
Beacon Hill at Eastgate is home, family and security, dedicated to engaging seniors in an active and fulfilling retirement. Its state-of-the-art campus is a life plan retirement community that offers the complete continuum of care on one campus, including independent living, assisted living, memory care and skilled nursing and rehabilitation. Beacon Hill integrates a more highly defined service model characterized by best practices in the areas of social and clinical services with excellence in hospitality.
For more information, visit BeaconHillGR.org.
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A rendering of the West End expansion planned for Beacon Hill. Photo: Source: Sabo P.R.