Your important questions, answered.
Here are some of the questions we’ve been asked about the Mustard Seed Village
What is the Village?
The Mustard Seed Project’s senior living campus which includes innovative living arrangements for elders, gardens, walking paths, and a community gathering place.
Why did you build the Village?
A long time need in the community, there is currently NO senior housing on the Key Peninsula. Recent feasibility and market studies indicated a need and support for such a project. Seniors want to remain in the community they know and love, but too often are forced to leave the Key Peninsula when they can no longer live safely in their own homes.
What kind of senior housing is this?
Three assisted living homes (not a facility) will accommodate up to ten elders. Using The Green House Project model, these communal homes will offer the best in care and quality: a shared hearth and great room, private bedrooms with kitchenettes and bathrooms, and 24-hour care onsite.
Intensive staff training builds a culture of respect for each elder’s personal needs, catering to individual preferences and encouraging elders to pursue hobbies and interests. In the Green House model, each elder is truly known and valued as a creative, resourceful, and unique person.
Why are you using the Green House Project as your model?
Research at Green House homes has shown that care of this sort results in an improved quality of life and emotional well-being. In addition, Green House elders have an improved quality of health, including longer maintenance of self-care abilities and lower rates of depression. Featured in the book, Being Mortal by Atul Gawande, Green House homes also result in higher levels of satisfaction for families and for staff. (There is more information about the Green House Project at thegreenhouseproject.org.)
Who will live here?
Two homes accommodate seniors with daily support such as meals and housekeeping. The third home will serve residents in need of memory care. Approximately 30% of the beds will be set aside for people eligible for Medicaid.
What will it cost?
The goal is to provide housing at market rate. Thirty percent of the rooms will be set aside for people who will use Medicaid to pay for them.
What is included in the cost?
A month’s rent will include private room and bath, shared living areas, 3 meals a day, housekeeping, and laundry service. Increased levels of care are available on a fee-for-service basis.
Is there a buy-in fee?
Unlike many assisted living residences, there is no buy-in fee. The studio apartment-sized rooms are rented from month to month, with a just a security deposit.
What are the rooms like? Will I have a roommate?
Each person has their own private room, much like a small studio apartment with a kitchenette, a bath, and room for a bed and a desk or a small seating area. Residents will furnish their own rooms, likely with furniture from their previous home.
How are couples accommodated?
Our plans include providing a limited number of couples with the option of either choosing a larger studio apartment or modifying two smaller studios.
Can I bring my pet if I live here?
We believe that pets are an important part of home and family. We encourage prospective residents to talk with the Village’s Guide (director) about the possibility of bringing their pet to live with them.
Isn’t running an assisted living campus a big change for The Mustard Seed Project?
The Mustard Seed worked with both Concepts in Community Living (CCL) and the Green House Project in designing the Village. CCL is experienced in operating assisted living homes. While the Mustard Seed will be ultimately responsible for the homes, Concepts in Community Living is the operator.
How will the Mustard Seed Project keep the assisted living campus operating?
While our capital campaign provided needed funds to support the development and construction of the project, the assisted living campus is designed to be operationally self-sustaining.
All of the Village’s debt and operating costs will be entirely covered by monthly rent and service revenues. These revenues will come primarily from monthly resident payments, which may be supplemented for eligible residents by Medicaid, long-term care insurance, Veteran’s benefits and other third-party payers. Based on the project’s market and financial feasibility studies, as well as ongoing budget updates, the Village should not require financial support from the Mustard Seed Project and its donors in order to cover operating expenses after the initial start-up period.
Now that Mustard Seed is involved in this big project, what will happen to its programs?
The Mustard Seed Project’s core programs continue. We will continue to recruit, train and connect volunteers with elders, to provide information & referral, transportation, chore services, movement classes, and more.
Who benefits from this project?
- Key Peninsula elders, who do not want to leave the people and the area they love
- Local families, who will be able to have their elders living in this community, not in Gig Harbor, Tacoma, Bremerton or Puyallup
- The Key Peninsula itself, which will benefit by having more than 25 new jobs in the community that come with this project.
Do you have other questions?
Please contact Denise Mecartea at guide@mustardseedvillage.org or call us at 253-900-9936.
