Gale Morgan,
senior vice president of sales, Mather

Mather is marking its entry into the commonwealth of Virginia as vertical construction is set to begin on The Mather at Tysons in northern Virginia. The company already operates life plan communities (also known as continuing care retirement communities) in Illinois and Arizona.

Gale Morgan, senior vice president of sales, told the McKnight’s Business Daily that the Mather began local infrastructure construction, such as widening the streets and putting in a stoplight, in March 2021. Vertical construction is getting underway now that grading and other site work preparations were finished in the fall.

The Mather at Tysons’ 179-unit building and a 114-unit building — both for residents aged 62 or more years — will be connected at the third through the fifth floors. Third-floor amenity spaces in the connector building will include a fitness center, spa, indoor pool, three restaurants, outdoor terraces and art studio. The fourth and fifth floors will house skilled nursing, assisted living and memory care residents.

Once they move in, residents will be able to occupy an apartment “for life,” Mather CEO and President Mary Leary previously told the McKnight’s Business Daily, but it’ll be neither a rental nor a purchase. Residents will pay an upfront entrance fee at move-in; if/when they move out, 90% of the entrance fee will be refunded, she said. Residents will  be assessed a monthly service fee.

As of Tuesday, Morgan said, the life plan community had deposits for 223 units. “That’s a great number for us to be at,” she added.

The average age of future residents that have placed a deposit at The Mather at Tysons is 73 years, according to Morgan. “So, we really are seeing that next generation,” she said. “It’s really resonating.”

The Mather at Tyson is close to restaurants, retail shops, entertainment and outdoor spaces, according to the company. The community also is a half-mile from the D.C. Metro line, and residents will be able to take a shuttle bus from home to the rail and head into the city if they choose to do so.

The first phase of vertical construction is expected to be completed, with residents moving in, during the first quarter of 2024, Gale said.