ABOVE: The third floor lounge area of Maplewood has been updated with new furniture and decorative pieces which give it a brighter, more modern look.

FAIRMONT– Maplewood in Fairmont has recently received a big face lift. The independent senior living complex is located on the Lakeview Methodist Health Care Center campus.

Ann Marie Fiala, the housing director at Maplewood, explained that the building was constructed in 1986 and that it was time to give it more of a modern, updated look, especially since Lakeview just did a major remodel and expansion of its skilled nursing facility.

“We wanted that modern look to flow throughout,” said Fiala.

Deb Barnes, administrator of Lakeview, said they started looking at remodeling Maplewood this past fall.

“Our concentration was solely on the nursing home for several years and when that project was completed, we started to look at the rest of the campus,” Barnes said.

She said that, prior to the remodel, board members were brought through Maplewood in order for them to see that updates were needed.

“One of our board members pointed at a chair in the corner and said, ‘oh my goodness, that chair was here when my grandma was here 15 years ago,'” Barnes said.

Work on Maplewood started around the first of the year. While nothing structurally was changed, many cosmetic changes have taken place. Upon entering the facility, guests and tenants will notice the updated entry way and new furnishings.

“There’s been new ceilings put in, new lighting fixtures, removal of wallpaper with fresh new paint and some new carpeting,” Fiala said.

These changes have been made throughout the dining room, lounges, hallways and other communal spaces. New appliances, furniture and other decorative items and artwork have also been added.

Deb Williamson of Inspiring Interiors was the interior designer on the project. Barnes said they gave little input but allowed Williamson to deploy her expertise in designing the new spaces. United Builders out of Blue Earth was also involved in the project and hired the contractors.

Maplewood has 39 rentable apartments and two guest apartments available for campus families to rent if they want to be close to their loved one.

While no updates have been made to the individual apartments yet, Barnes said they will plan that in the future. Next, updates are planned for Woodland Manor, the assisted living facility on Lakeview’s campus. Barnes said Williamson has looked at it and is working on plans for it, though changes won’t be as significant as that building was built in 2000.

When asked what the residents have thought of the updates at Maplewood, Barnes said, “change is hard, but we’ve had a lot of positive feedback from our families and visitors.”

Barnes explained that as senior housing, 80 percent of the tenants at Maplewood need to be 55 plus. She said 20 percent of their apartments can be filled with people of any age, though they’ve never really advertised that and thus haven’t had many applicants in a lower age range.

“Now as a lot of people are staying in their homes longer, we think we need to make that known, that people can be younger,” Barnes said.

The project is about 80 percent complete and just has a few more updates that need to take place. Both Fiala and Barnes are pleased with it so far.

“We’re excited to show it off,” Fiala said.