EW Howell to build Smithtown assisted-living project

(Plainview, N.Y. – February 16, 2017) – EW Howell Construction Group, one of the region’s leading cultural, education, government and healthcare builders, has been tapped by Waltham, MA-based Benchmark Senior Living, a leading provider of senior living services in the Northeast, to develop its first New York assisted living facility, Whisper Woods, in Smithtown, NY.

Celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2017, Benchmark Senior Living has 53 communities in seven states, and serves thousands of families by providing traditional assisted living at its best—secure, at ease, pleasant and supportive. From assistance with basic activities of daily living, such as bathing and dressing, to transportation and reminders to take medication, to providing more complex care, residents are given the help they need and the respect they deserve. Benchmark personalizes care to meet the needs of each resident.
The $25 million, three-story Whisper Woods community was designed by Moseley Architects and will include 101 units. Located at Route 25A and River Heights Drive, close to St. Catherine of Siena Medical Center and downtown Smithtown, Whisper Woods Assisted Living is expected to be open for residents in June 2018.

“Demographics are shifting, with the first wave of Baby Boomers entering an age where they are either making assisted-living decisions for their parents, or planning for their own long-term care throughout Long Island, the boroughs of NYC and the northern suburbs,” said Kevin McKenna, a vice president at EW Howell who is overseeing the project. “EW Howell has completed over a dozen assisted living facilities on Long Island, in Westchester and on Staten Island, and we are seeing an uptick in development interest throughout the region to meet the changing needs and expectations of this evolving market.”

According to the developers, the Smithtown area is in need of high quality residences that are able to care for all seniors, including those with higher-level needs and those that require memory care. Overall, the 55 and older segment on Long Island grew by more than 25 percent between 2000 and 2014, while the overall population growth rate was less than one percent.

“Long Island seniors deserve to have a quality, caring housing option when they need to leave their homes or when families can no longer care for them,” said Ken Littlefield of Benchmark Senior Living. “The new Whisper Woods community is designed to meet this growing demand for assisted-living services.”

EW Howell has completed assisted living projects for many of the region’s leading senior living providers including nearly a dozen communities on Long Island, Staten Island and in Westchester for Sunrise Senior Living, the Norwegian Christian Home in Brooklyn, NY, The Kensington assisted living and specialized memory support unit in White Plains, NY, and the Huntington Hills Assisted Living Center in Melville, NY.

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