Valle Verde

To: "Room for improvement" 1. Our residential unit has the microwave below the counter. I do not know that all units have this arrangement, but they are being upgraded and remodeled constantly. 2. The Grill's ambient noise has been fixed. Professional sound engineers agreed with the residents (and you) that the noise was too loud. Sound absorbent tiles have been installed on the ceiling, significantly improving the total environment. Come check it out! The food's great, too! 3. Valle Verde is a superb retirement community. I cannot recommend it highly enough!

I agree with Left Coaster on everything he/she wrote except for two gripes. The first is the cottages have the microwave above the stove, which is a VERY bad idea for elderly residents who are in danger of serious burns incurred when trying to remove hot materials from above waist-height. The second is the degree of ambient noise at the Grill. Any person with any degree of hearing loss (most elderly persons do have it, whether they admit it or not) cannot understand the speaker because of all the surrounding noise, much of it louder than conversational levels (60dB). Measures for noise mitigation would include sound-baffling on the walls and ceilings in the way of wall hangings and other sound-control materials. I don't think the architect or interior designer knew much about these issues with the elderly. Perhaps the powers that be can consult one of the occupational therapists on site about kitchen-safety measures, and the speech pathologist about noise mitigation in public areas.

My wife and I moved to Valle Verde last year. We'd looked at seven or eight communities from Santa Clara County to Ventura County. After all the research, we decided Valle Verde was the best fit for us. Though we had high expectations, the reality has been even better! Every unit is a garden cottage - either stand-alone or multi-unit (duplex, triplex) - all single story and with mature landscaping. The entire community has 65 acres, with mostly flat walking paths throughout. The facilities are superb - pool, exercise room, theater, multiple conference rooms, even "bed and breakfast" rooms for overnight guests! The best part is the other residents. They are uniformly friendly and welcoming, and are active, interesting, and enjoyable. The meals are open-seating, so it's easy to meet new friends. Most are from the Santa Barbara area, but a number have chosen to come here from out of state. University professors and medical doctors seem to be in the majority. One never lacks for activities at Valle Verde. There are movies several times a week on campus, guest lectures, interest clubs, plus transportation to the many cultural activities in Santa Barbara. The food is very good. It's very flexible - one gets "points" each month which are sufficient for three meals a day. If you don't use all your points, you can bring guests, have a private dinner party, or roll part of the points over to the next month. There are two dining venues, the main dining room and a Bistro Grill. Each has a choice of the regular menu (three buffet entree choices, salad bar, dessert) plus wine, or a "specials" menu cooked to order. This summer, the main dining room is being remodeled, so we are using some of the other meeting rooms, poolside, and patios to handle the dining space while we await the new dining room this fall. The staff is, in a word, outstanding. The ones you deal with on a daily basis (such as dining servers, maintenance people, etc.) have been selected with care - they are friendly, very capable, remember your name, and are a pleasure to deal with. The management staff is equally outstanding, knowledgeable and responsive. One indicator of it being a good place to work is the large number of the staff who have been here for many years. Care services are very good. Valle Verde has a reputation in Santa Barbara as a medical facility of choice - in fact, we have people in the medical facility who have come from other retirement communities. The costs cover everything. There is an "entrance fee" and a monthly fee. The amount depends on the number of people and the cottage you choose (based on square feet!). For this, you get all meals, all utilities (except phone, TV and internet), and all maintenance. No more worrying about roof repairs, termites, replacing light bulbs, gardeners, trash collection, repainting, appliance repairs or replacements, property tax, home insurance, gophers, or any of that. It's really liberating! If you use more intensive medical care (assisted living, memory care, skilled nursing), the monthly fees increase. One final comment - Valle Verde is very pet-friendly! If you take the time to look at Valle Verde, you'll find as we did that it really is an outstanding community!