Merrill Gardens

Totally disappointed with this community, when we toured saw several staff members at the nursing station all looking at their cell phones and not paying attention to the elderly people next to the station. The apartments are the smallest that I have seen in the area, the prices are high and expect for the few elderly around the nursing station, there was no other elderly walking or doing anything within the community. It was like a ghost town. Looked like a lot of stuff on the activities calendar, but no one attending anything that we saw during our visit.

Great location. Cute town. Unfortunately it was dark, narrow halls & doorways. Windows were small for natural lighting. Some bedrooms had no windows. Woodwork gouged from wheelchairs scrubbing doorways to bedrooms. 4 - 6 inch thresholds into bedrooms. The smell of urine was through assisted living and memory care areas.

It would have been beneficial knowing Sheldon Park is only private pay before the point of signing on the dotted line. I will be moving Mom soon.

Adequate and safe enough but nothing special. Definitely lots of room to improve on many things such as : menus (food is cheap and not always hot and not much variety or healthy options) cleanliness of rooms (there is mold around sink in bathroom) and they seems to just do the bare bones basic cleaning, laundry service, and atmosphere (please have things such as background music during meals rather than silence) -standard instrumental relaxing music would lighten the mood, outdoor garden area, hallways-more lounge chairs or more colorful art to help seniors quickly recognize their hallway/room, reception desk clerk on duty for longer evening hours is needed. If you have dietary needs beware- they are not always good at following. Basically an ok place if you can’t afford any better but seems expensive for what you get. And we also found the bills confusing -had issues with being charged for medications no longer taking, etc, so check your bills carefully.

Did not care for this one, the memory care floor smelled as soon as we entered it.

When Mom firsst got there, courtyard at bern village. I called to speak to her, i live in Mass. And was told i could not speak to her nor could i come for a visit. I asked who said this and they said it was my sister's decision. Shes POA. I Hired an atty just to find out that was against the law. All of a sudden they changed their tune and i was able to come for a visit.. buyer beware.... ..

My parents recently spent three months at Sheldon Park Senior Living facility. Staff were always professional, friendly and helpful, but in the end it was the poor food, high costs, and lack of dependable transportation that led them to leave. My parents complained about the food being unappealing, sometimes cold, with limited choices, and not freshly prepared. Transportation was only available two days a week and then primarily for doctor’s visits. After a short stay in the Memory Care unit, my parents moved to a 1 bedroom Assisted Living apartment. For the high cost, it didn’t seem like much assistance was actually being provided besides doing their laundry for them. It cost an additional $430 a month for them to take care of my mother’s medications. My personal pet peeve was the confusing monthly bills from the facility. It seemed like they were designed to confuse an accountant and I can’t imagine that very many of the residents were able to make heads or tails of their bills without assistance. Luckily my mother’s health and mobility improved enough they were able to return to their previous independent living facility.

I scheduled a time to tour this facility and when I got there I saw about 5 employees talking amongst themselves. I waited for them to stop and help me. They didn’t even notice I was there. So, I sat down and waited for a while. Finally, I just decided to just walk around the facility. I went into people’s rooms, to the cafeteria, the dining hall, and I even went into the kitchen! After 1 and a half hours of just roaming around not one person asked me for help. I left and decided to call the facility. When I spoke with the recruiter, she said she had been waiting for me. I told her what happened and that I changed my mind, she offered to cut the very large $4,200 entrance fee in half that isn’t refundable. I was planning to take my Mother to this facility but after my experience, I decided not to. If I’m just a stranger walking in and giving myself my own tour, I think that they would have been very inattentive when it comes to my Mother. Don’t get me wrong, it is a great facility and I heard great things but my experience made me not want to bring her there.

The moment I walk into the lobby, I was smacked in the face with the strongest... How do I say...nothing else comes to mind but...geriatric smell. Total turn off. Nice people but too down home for us. Bedrooms are narrow.

Our visit here was nice but we were not impressed. In the room we saw, the cupboards were too high. We could not reach it. The community was more smaller and we were looking for a big place. .

They forget to give my mother-in-law her meds/not on time & this costs extra. Things we buy her disappear, Several incompetent caregivers (although Maria is really sweet & helpful). Several employees are very difficult to understand. One disappeared while my mother-in-law was passed out, waiting for paramedics. Thank God for the home care nurse that was visiting and discovered her. The prices are ridiculous. Many concerns...

I was not confident with the care of my father while at Merrill Gardens at First Hill. I have since moved him back home. Their food was okay but the food for family members to join them at meals was expensive. I only saw people watching TV, no activities. I would tell others to really consider if they want to put a loved one in a nursing home before doing so.

I was not thrilled with Village place. They really courted us in the beginning, calling us, twice a day, and trying to be friendly, and very helpful. We decided on Village Place. Sarah couldn't have been nicer, she said that she would be there and stay and help get my loved one oriented. But that's not what happened, she was transported, and sat in reception and no one wanted to help us, and Sarah wasn't there, and didn't follow through with what she told us she would do. This seems to be the theme of our experience. I strongly feel that the senior staff could have handled us and our situation with a little more compassion, and class. The aides and the maintenance people were just as nice and helpful as they could be. I would not recommend them for anyone. I think the staff needs some sensitivity training. I also think they have some in there that shouldn't be, and cause chaos and commotion on a regular basis.

These people are corporate through and through. Our mom is there now and she complains about Sunshine Villa always being short-handed with caregivers. They don't train the new caregivers enough because they have a high turnover and the new people don't know what the old caregivers used to do. This leaves my mom having to tell new people over and over how she has to have things done. Sunshine Villa will nickel and dime you to death. They raise their rates yearly and then they have this point system that they are constantly adding to the points so that they get even more money out of you monthly. The food is not good. For the amount of money my mom is paying you should be eating like you are out at a fancy restaurant and not at a school cafeteria. I never see any fresh fruit or vegetables -everything is canned. When you have a problem the staff just sugar coats their answers. They never give you any real reasons just excuses. We are looking for alternatives now for my mom and will move her as soon as we find a more suitable care facility.

Shared spaces and pool area well-kept. Staff friendly. Rooms shown were small and cramped. Long, narrow, dark halls were uninviting and dreary. Noted numerous small maintenance issues that made us question the upkeep of the facility.

Only one elevator. Dining room was to structured. Set meal times so don't arrive late. Appears everyone wears a name tag. Expensive.

My Dad has lived at Merrill Gardens at Gilroy for 3 + years. Initially, when it was Village Green, we were very pleased with the management and care taken with residents. However, after Merrill Gardens took over, the facility, management, and care given the residents has declined, while the cost continues to rise. My review below is generally not good. However, it does not apply to all work staff and all caregivers. Some do quite well. My overall impression is that this facility is not a warm, caring facility. Rather, it appears to care mostly about profit. The management is currently poor. The manager does not know or show any personal interest in any of the residents. The employees hired (care givers and waiters, housekeepers, etc.) generally have very little of the training that should be required for working with elders who need assistance. If someone falls, they can plan to spend some time on the ground before someone comes to their aid. If someone is sick, it may be hours before the resident nurse (if there is one) checks on them. If they are restricted to their room (in case they are ill), food doesn't show up in a timely manner. The resident may need to call and request food repeatedly before finally getting some. Also, they are then told that they need to pay for the food that is delivered to their room. Initially, laundry once a week was covered in the room price. Now, residents must pay for each load of laundry. The launderers are careless with the laundry. They will wash rugs with delicates. The washing machines are not maintained and are dirty. Weekly room cleaning is included in the price. However, there are some housecleaners that don't even know how to clean a toilet. The food is generally good. However, there are days when the people order food and it never gets to their table. On occasion, residents leave the dining room without their dinners. At night time the staff disappears and if a resident buzzes for help, the call is not always answered. It appears that no one monitors the phones or the doors. Initially, residents were taken to their doctor appointments up to three days a week. That service is now limited to one day a week. Sometimes it is difficult for the residents to get to a doctor. This review is very negative, but the management is negative. Overall, I feel that the staff is under trained, under paid, and just doesn't care about the residents. The corporation seems mainly interested in padding their bottom line at the expense of the residents. Initially, I would have given this facility at least four stars. However, there are many problems that need to be addressed, and competent, friendly management is a must. This is the residents' home and they should be made to feel like it is their home. Merrill Gardens at Gilroy has some work to do! If I was making the decision now in choosing a residence for my parent, I would not choose this facility.

should give better "assistance" to the ones in greater need. people should not be slouched over in chairs ALL day. how many staff members just walk by. People who have a hard time eating should be helped. If food is all over them and the floor, they obviously need help. instead of sitting in a chair yourself staring, give them a hand.

We did not have a good experience with The Legacy at Georgetown. It started out as a very nice place, but over the course of a year really went downhill. They had a lot of staff turnover, and ended up very understaffed. We stuck it out with them for quite a while, but they never came through on the promises they made to improve things. Eventually we moved our loved one to a different place, it just didn't feel safe here.

I did not feel comfortable and welcome. They told me that I didn't qualify, without even checking to see my financial situation. I just didn't feel comfortable there, the community was not very diverse, culturally.