Atlanta’s senior living communities offer a full list of engaging activities and amenities.

By Amy Selby

When you think about living out your golden years, most of us would like a quiet home set close to a landscape that offers opportunities for recreation. Maybe it’s a cabin in the mountains or a beachside cottage, but the idea is a retirement locale that allows for an active social life. That’s exactly what Herb Godfrey wanted when he decided to retire in style. After his wife’s passing, Godfrey and his son set out to find a community that offered a maintenance-free home and a social outlet with a range of activities and amenities. The pair settled on Parc at Duluth, an independent living apartment community for seniors. “I knew that I couldn’t live by myself,” says Godfrey. “I’ve got to be where people and activities are, which my son fully understood.”

Godfrey’s desire to live out an active and social lifestyle mirrors the sentiments of many seniors. Independent living communities offer seniors the tools to maintain their independence, engage in social and civic activities while living in a maintenance-free home. Today’s retirement home communities are not the drab, clinical dwellings of the past. Instead, you’ll find that they offer a supportive community, comfortable and stylish residences, endless social opportunities and a range of activities to rival any cruise ship activities director.

All the Comforts of Home
The active adult community market is thriving. Atlanta is a top market for active adults due to its transportation options, desirable climate, low cost of living and access to entertainment and cultural attractions. You’ll find retirement communities offering a range of housing and adult care options, all designed with the resident in mind. It’s not uncommon to find open floor plans tailored to the needs of an active adult, including enhanced wheelchair access, wider doorways, housekeeping services, dining room or room service options and one-level living.

In many Atlanta-area communities, the interiors are tailored down to the lever-door handles, rocker-style light switches and easy-to-clean finishes, that make life that much easier. Most communities cater to the empty nester, offering less square footage, giving residents more time for carefree living.

A Full Social Calendar
One of the biggest draws to any active adult community is its list of amenities. In fact, the social network of a retirement community is the No. 1 reason active adults choose a community as their home. This was the case for Godfrey—Parc at Duluth provides upscale apartments with an array of entertainment and amenities, including exercise classes and social activities. Godfrey particularly enjoys the trips to the Fox Theatre in Midtown.

“I’m probably doing a lot more activities now than when my wife was alive because there’s so much planned,” he says. “In fact, there’s so much planned that you can’t possibly do everything, which is a good thing.”

At Parc Communities, residents can be as social and active as they want to be. Each location—in Alpharetta, Buckhead, Duluth, Johns Creek and East Cobb—offers fitness and wellness programs designed specifically to residents’ levels of ability. Most communities, including Parc at Duluth, have at least one activities director on staff, responsible for creating an engaging list of clubs, socials, outings and various activities each month.

Parc at Duluth’s website gives you a taste of what residents can expect in social offerings, “Activities range form book club meetings to bridge and poker nights to ice cream socials to group trips. Cultural excursions to the High Museum, the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and the Fox Theatre are among residents’ favorites. Parc residents have also been treated to an assortment of festivities ranging from Oktoberfest polka dances to casino night events, complete with blackjack tables and a roulette wheel.”

Choosing to Be Active
The thought of moving to a retirement community is a difficult transition for many seniors and their families. Thankfully, many developers have designed communities that allow seniors to retire in style and enjoy an active lifestyle. For Godfrey, the choice to move to Parc at Duluth was easy, and now he’s surrounded by new friends. “Most of the people here have gone through the same thing I’ve gone through—they’ve lost their mate. So, we have a lot in common.”

Additional reporting by Antionette Rollins.