On hearing that we have moved into a retirement community in Bangalore, a lot of our friends and acquaintances have shown interest in knowing more about what life in a retirement community is all about.Having already spent some time at Serene Urbana, I feel one is in a better position to give a first hand account of the nitty gritties of living in a retirement community. So here goes!!!
GENERAL:
Serene Urbana is a retirement community (for independent living) in Bangalore, built by the Ozone Group and currently managed by Columbia Pacific Communities (CPC), India's largest senior living community operator, managing close to 1600 residential units in 5 cities and 9 locations across South India. It is part of the Seattle based Columbia Pacific group, a leading player in the field of senior living communities and hospitals in the United States and South East Asia.
Serene Urbana is located within the 180 acre integrated township of Ozone Urbana which is about 8 kms. from the Bangalore International Airport, along the Hyderabad Highway NH7. It has 318 apartments which include 1 BHK (super area :635 sq.ft.), 2 BHK (super area : 938 sq. ft.), 2 BHK + study (super area : 1149 sq. ft.) and 3 BHK (super area:1458 sq. ft.), which were available for sale to senior citizens, with a minimum age of 50 yrs. The project is completed and become fully operational, with more than 80% occupancy. A few of the other projects (apartments) within the township, such as Ozone Aqua and Ozone Aura are also completed and occupied, including a branch of the National Public School (NPS) which became operational from the 2018-19 academic session. Although several other projects are still under construction, the township is beautifully landscaped, with well laid out roads and tree-lined pathways, giving residents ample space for undertaking long, peaceful walks, in a calm and clean environment.
Being part of a larger township offers residents the joy of watching and hearing children at play in the childrens' playground - an emotionally uplifting experience for seniors to deal with the "empty nest syndrome".
For those who need to make frequent trips to the city, the distance from the city centre could prove to be a problem. However, if the rush hour traffic is avoided, most of the city destinations are accessible within 45 mts. to an hour - which is quite manageable for the occasional trip into town.
Daily requirements of provisions, fruits and vegetables are available from a well-stocked retail outlet of Reliance, located within the township, just outside the gate of Serene Urbana. This can be supplemented by Big Basket and Amazon, which make regular deliveries in the area.The nearest major shopping districts, replete with shopping malls and several eateries are Yelahanka and Sahakar Nagar, which are a 30 mts. drive from Serene Urbana.
FACILITIES
a) Recreational:
The Clubhouse at Serene Urbana has a Gymnasium, Library cum Reading Room and facilities for various indoor games such as Table Tennis, Billiards, Carroms, and card games. Regular cultural events are organised in the form of dance and music performances, as also the celebration of various festivals. The weekly tambola sessions every Wedesday evening, are extremely popular, made more attractive by the availability of popular fried snacks such as vadas, bondas, pakkodas etc along with tea/coffee. Daily stretching classes are conducted by the in-house physio-therapist. Classes for Yoga and dancing are also organised at regular intervals.
b) Medical:
Routine medical services are available at the in-house Wellness Centre, where a doctor is available every morning. Emergency medical care can be accessed at Manipal Hospital, Hebbal or Bangalore Baptist Hospital, with which CPC has an MOU. With a standby ambulance and round the clock availability of wellness centre staff, (three resident nurses, a resident physiotherapist and ambulance driver), there exists a well laid out protocol for attending to any kind of medical emergency.
Since assisted living facilities are not available, those who require caregivers have to make their own arrangements for attendants/caregivers, for which they can avail of assistance from the Wellness Centre.
c) Dining:
There is a common mess serving vegetarian food. However, residents have the option to cook at home or to eat some/all the meals in the mess. The non-vegetarian mess offers non-vegetarian lunch twice a week. Vegetarian meals are priced at Rs. 70/- per plate, with an additional charge of Rs. 10/- for home delivery. Guests of residents can also avail of mess facilities with prior notice. The constants in the breakfast menu are-
Cut fruits/fruit juice
Idlis with sambar and chutney
Filter coffee/tea
The variable component can include masala dosai/chana bhature/pongal/vegetable upma /poori masala etc.
GENERAL:
Serene Urbana is a retirement community (for independent living) in Bangalore, built by the Ozone Group and currently managed by Columbia Pacific Communities (CPC), India's largest senior living community operator, managing close to 1600 residential units in 5 cities and 9 locations across South India. It is part of the Seattle based Columbia Pacific group, a leading player in the field of senior living communities and hospitals in the United States and South East Asia.
Serene Urbana is located within the 180 acre integrated township of Ozone Urbana which is about 8 kms. from the Bangalore International Airport, along the Hyderabad Highway NH7. It has 318 apartments which include 1 BHK (super area :635 sq.ft.), 2 BHK (super area : 938 sq. ft.), 2 BHK + study (super area : 1149 sq. ft.) and 3 BHK (super area:1458 sq. ft.), which were available for sale to senior citizens, with a minimum age of 50 yrs. The project is completed and become fully operational, with more than 80% occupancy. A few of the other projects (apartments) within the township, such as Ozone Aqua and Ozone Aura are also completed and occupied, including a branch of the National Public School (NPS) which became operational from the 2018-19 academic session. Although several other projects are still under construction, the township is beautifully landscaped, with well laid out roads and tree-lined pathways, giving residents ample space for undertaking long, peaceful walks, in a calm and clean environment.
Being part of a larger township offers residents the joy of watching and hearing children at play in the childrens' playground - an emotionally uplifting experience for seniors to deal with the "empty nest syndrome".
For those who need to make frequent trips to the city, the distance from the city centre could prove to be a problem. However, if the rush hour traffic is avoided, most of the city destinations are accessible within 45 mts. to an hour - which is quite manageable for the occasional trip into town.
Daily requirements of provisions, fruits and vegetables are available from a well-stocked retail outlet of Reliance, located within the township, just outside the gate of Serene Urbana. This can be supplemented by Big Basket and Amazon, which make regular deliveries in the area.The nearest major shopping districts, replete with shopping malls and several eateries are Yelahanka and Sahakar Nagar, which are a 30 mts. drive from Serene Urbana.
FACILITIES
a) Recreational:
The Clubhouse at Serene Urbana has a Gymnasium, Library cum Reading Room and facilities for various indoor games such as Table Tennis, Billiards, Carroms, and card games. Regular cultural events are organised in the form of dance and music performances, as also the celebration of various festivals. The weekly tambola sessions every Wedesday evening, are extremely popular, made more attractive by the availability of popular fried snacks such as vadas, bondas, pakkodas etc along with tea/coffee. Daily stretching classes are conducted by the in-house physio-therapist. Classes for Yoga and dancing are also organised at regular intervals.
b) Medical:
Routine medical services are available at the in-house Wellness Centre, where a doctor is available every morning. Emergency medical care can be accessed at Manipal Hospital, Hebbal or Bangalore Baptist Hospital, with which CPC has an MOU. With a standby ambulance and round the clock availability of wellness centre staff, (three resident nurses, a resident physiotherapist and ambulance driver), there exists a well laid out protocol for attending to any kind of medical emergency.
Since assisted living facilities are not available, those who require caregivers have to make their own arrangements for attendants/caregivers, for which they can avail of assistance from the Wellness Centre.
c) Dining:
There is a common mess serving vegetarian food. However, residents have the option to cook at home or to eat some/all the meals in the mess. The non-vegetarian mess offers non-vegetarian lunch twice a week. Vegetarian meals are priced at Rs. 70/- per plate, with an additional charge of Rs. 10/- for home delivery. Guests of residents can also avail of mess facilities with prior notice. The constants in the breakfast menu are-
Cut fruits/fruit juice
Idlis with sambar and chutney
Filter coffee/tea
The variable component can include masala dosai/chana bhature/pongal/vegetable upma /poori masala etc.
Lunch offers the option of a North Indian menu along with the South Indian menu.
The South Indian menu typically includes the following-
Rice (white and red), roti, sambar, rasam, dry vegetable, gravy vegetable, papad, pickle, buttermilk, curd and banana
The North Indian menu includes roti, dal, dry vegetable, gravy vegetable, rice, curd, papad, and banana.
Dinner includes soup, one tiffin item such as idli /masala dosa /upma (with sambar and chutney) /paratha with vegetable kurma, curd rice/khichdi, milk /buttermilk.
MAINTENANCE CHARGES:
The monthly maintenance charges payable to the service provider is approx. Rs. 8.5 per sq. ft. of super built-up area + GST. It covers-
Daily sweeping and mopping of flats (including cleaning of wash basins and bathroom floors)
Weekly cleaning of toilet bowls.
Rice (white and red), roti, sambar, rasam, dry vegetable, gravy vegetable, papad, pickle, buttermilk, curd and banana
The North Indian menu includes roti, dal, dry vegetable, gravy vegetable, rice, curd, papad, and banana.
Dinner includes soup, one tiffin item such as idli /masala dosa /upma (with sambar and chutney) /paratha with vegetable kurma, curd rice/khichdi, milk /buttermilk.
MAINTENANCE CHARGES:
The monthly maintenance charges payable to the service provider is approx. Rs. 8.5 per sq. ft. of super built-up area + GST. It covers-
Daily sweeping and mopping of flats (including cleaning of wash basins and bathroom floors)
Weekly cleaning of toilet bowls.
Monthly deep cleaning of flats
Upkeep of club house and equipment
24*7 security
Maintenance of lifts, common areas, garden, and power backup
Upkeep of club house and equipment
24*7 security
Maintenance of lifts, common areas, garden, and power backup
Sewage treatment plant
Water supply of borewell water through a Water Treatment Plant
Water supply of borewell water through a Water Treatment Plant
Additional personalised housekeeping services (such as washing utensils etc) are available at an extra charge of approx. Rs.110/- per hr.(plus GST)
THE COMMUNITY:
The defining characteristic of the community would be that it is a "Caring "community, with plenty of Good Samaritans, ever ready to lend a helping hand to those who need help. Members of the Residents' Committee have been providing invaluable services by smoothening out pending technical issues with the builder, facilitating bureaucratic processes and enabling streamlining of services by the service provider, thereby enhancing the quality of life for fellow residents.
The administrative and support staff is extremely polite and pleasant.
However, since most of the housekeeping staff is hired from the neighbouring villages, not knowing Kannada would leave you struggling with sign language to communicate with them!! So learning spoken Kannada has become THE priority task on my to-do list!
CONCLUDING REMARKS
As a critical appraisal, I have the following observation:
The food served in the mess could do with further improvements in terms of quality and variety. The somewhat repetitive nature of the menu could get rather tiresome and boring after some time.
THE COMMUNITY:
The defining characteristic of the community would be that it is a "Caring "community, with plenty of Good Samaritans, ever ready to lend a helping hand to those who need help. Members of the Residents' Committee have been providing invaluable services by smoothening out pending technical issues with the builder, facilitating bureaucratic processes and enabling streamlining of services by the service provider, thereby enhancing the quality of life for fellow residents.
The administrative and support staff is extremely polite and pleasant.
However, since most of the housekeeping staff is hired from the neighbouring villages, not knowing Kannada would leave you struggling with sign language to communicate with them!! So learning spoken Kannada has become THE priority task on my to-do list!
CONCLUDING REMARKS
As a critical appraisal, I have the following observation:
The food served in the mess could do with further improvements in terms of quality and variety. The somewhat repetitive nature of the menu could get rather tiresome and boring after some time.
Of late, a lot of improvements have been initiated on this front, with the pro-active engagement of the F&B sub-committee of the Residents'Committee, working together with the Mess Department.
NOTE:
In a few of the upcoming posts,I will briefly outline the salient features of some of the other major senior living projects in Bangalore as well as those in other major Indian cities.
NOTE:
In a few of the upcoming posts,I will briefly outline the salient features of some of the other major senior living projects in Bangalore as well as those in other major Indian cities.
