A new retirement community is slated for Bismarck.

Maple View, a memory center, and The View, a retirement community, are scheduled to open in 2007. The facilities will provide a range of options for seniors, from independent living to assisted living. The memory center will open first in spring 2007 and the retirement community will open in fall 2007.

"As you can see by our ad campaign, we like to have fun," COO Rob Kondos said, referring to advertisements featuring seniors laughing and participating in "youthful" activities.

The Bismarck facility is at Montreal and 43rd Avenue. The memory center will have 24 beds, with 24 employees. The View will have 93 beds and 55 employees. Combined, it will spend about $930,000 a year on payroll.

The facility in Bismarck, and identical facilities in Minot and Grand Forks, are managed by GPC Properties. The management company will spend $65 million to $70 million to construct the facilities in the three cities. The retirement community in Minot is the first to open this summer.

In addition to the usual amenities found at modern retirement communities, such as gym, pool and hair salon, The View will have a pub. Beside usual health care services, Maple View will provide Montessori-based activities for its residents.

"It's a cultural change in what we're used to seeing," Health Services Director Penni Weston said.

The memory center staff will be trained and certified in Montessori Based Dementia Programming. It is adapted from the children's hands-on learning activities used in Montessori education. The Montessori method relies on self-paced activities that build on a person's strengths.

The facility is teaming with University of Mary occupational therapy to study the effectiveness of Montessori on its patients.

Weston, who is the administrator for the Bismarck facility, said she hopes to extend the programming from its residents to an adult day program in the future.

The condos in The View range from $85,000 to $106,000. If a person opts to buy, then sells, it can be sold back to the facility or put on the market, Kondos said.

The Bismarck facilities are similar in concept to another retirement community, the Waterford on West Century Avenue.

Kondos said the main differences are ownership and how assisted living services are delivered.

The View offers rental and purchase options for its condos. If a person needs assisted living services, it is brought to their home, instead of moving to a condo in a designated assisted living area.

The Waterford has 12 cottages that are owner-occupied. The apartments are rentals. When the cottages are sold, they are marketed by Waterford, and Waterford buys them back after a year, Waterford Community Relations Manager Reva Kautz said.

At The View, the condo owner can put it on the market or sell it to the facility, Kondos said.

Assisted living apartments at the Waterford are on three floors on one part of a building.

"If a resident is living on the way north end of the building, we would request them to move to get services," Kautz said.

But Waterford does make accommodations for its residents, executive director Arlene Farnsworth said.

The Waterford also has a memory care center with 20 private rooms. The programs are person-centered, Farnsworth said.