The proposed interior of Autumn at Brandon is depicted in this artist's rendering.

When Florida-based Autumn Senior Living opens three new communities in early 2018, they will offer a new concept for the company, what it is calling I-Lite Assisted Living.

The “I” stands for independent.

“The goal of I-Lite is to create a discrete way of providing residents assisted living services,” Autumn Senior Living CEO Jim Soper told McKnight’s Senior Living. “I-Lite also serves our goal of allowing our residents to ‘age in place’ rather than moving them each time their level of care advances.”

The three new communities under construction are Autumn of Brandon in Brandon, FL; Atrium at Autumn in Sarasota, FL; and Autumn of Westchase in Tampa, FL. The Brandon and Tampa properties will offer memory care and I-Lite in one building, whereas Atrium at Autumn will offer I-Lite exclusively on the same campus as Autumn of Sarasota, a memory care community. The memory care residences were designed in cooperation with the University of South Florida Health Byrd Alzheimer’s Institute.

Combined, the new communities represent $100 million in capital investments and will offer almost 400 residences and more than 200 permanent jobs, according to Autumn Senior Living.

Around-the-clock nursing care is included for all I-Lite residents, Soper said, and concierge care will begin as soon as they move in.

“A concierge care professional spends eight hours a day coordinating the evaluation of their personal needs and preferences,” he said. “We want to ensure residents acclimate well, are aware of all the exciting services, programs and options available to them and are familiar with both the facility and other residents.”

Care will be personalized to residents’ needs and desires, said Soper (pictured). Among evaluations performed will be those related to gait, walkers and wheelchairs, bed elevation, depth perception, medications, activities of daily living capabilities, food preferences and dislikes, activity preferences, quality-of-life issues that are important to each resident, and clothing.

On-site medical care, including neurologists, medical directors and therapists, also will be available, Soper said, and residents can participate in fitness programs and daily live music and entertainment. “We even have a resident committee to properly represent our members,” he said.

All staff members will have been trained by the Byrd Alzheimer’s Institute, Soper said, and also will be trained in CPR, resident care, dementia care, medical technology, emergency preparedness, fire safety, infection control and resident rights.

Another feature of the communities will be their cafes and restaurants, he said. “The restaurants will serve delicious old-time favorites, like beef tenderloin, and fabulous, healthy choices, including Mediterranean and gluten-free menus.”

The team at the assisted living facility development and management company collectively has managed 45 properties totaling 3,600 residences over the past four decades. In addition to Autumn at Sarasota, Autumn Senior Living currently operates an assisted living community in Largo and is planning three additional communities in Florida — in Clearwater, Osprey and Vero Beach — and has plans for Canada as well.

Read more about the integration of health services into assisted living in the related articles listed below.