Beware of the "transition" from Independent to Assisted Living. My MIL made friends quickly and was quite happy for her first year or so at Charlestown. The facility has a swimming pool, movie theatre, beauty parlor, model railroad room, library, card room, ice cream parlor, several restaurants, bank, and medical suite... Her 1BR apartment was $2K/mo. (almost as much as our mortgage for a 3BR house), and had a washer/dryer, kitchen, and meal plan. BUT...once her health started to fail (at 93), their system fell apart and the cracks began to show. She had two rehab stays after falls (NOTE: Do not let a senior use a "walker" with 4 wheels!). In her first stay, the staff pushed HARD for Assisted Living, but she wanted her own apartment, and we prevailed. She did well for another 8 months, then fell and broke a hip. This time, she DID need Assisted Living--but there were no spots! Instead, we had a patchwork of aides at $25+/hour, with a 2-hour minimum. Like most seniors, she hated strangers in her space, became very lonely and depressed—and then refused to do anything but sit in her chair. Charlestown had no programs to help ease the loneliness of seniors who were no longer mobile enough to leave their solitary apartments, and left it up to the residents. Some of the aides were great! Others would sometimes clock in and then disappear, took some cash and small items, and were so ineffectual at getting her to bed that she ended up in the hospital because she would sleep sitting up in her chair. When she came home, she needed TWO aides per hour, doubling the cost and the hassles (my husband was getting multiple calls at work each day from aides trying to get him to ask her to "behave.") We moved her to Waterfalls in Catonsville, which took WONDERFUL care of her until she passed away this week. But, Charlestown charged THREE months rent AFTER she moved out (even though they likely re-rented her unit in a week or two), PLUS a $6,000 "updating" charge to replace $400 worth of carpet. Read the fine print.

Charlestown was a very nice place. The rooms and amenities were very nice, and I didn't see anything I didn't like about it. It was a very large community. The staff was very knowledgeable and answered all of the questions. We had lunch, and the food was good.

Charlestown is a very well-run assisted living for seniors, and it provides all levels of care. The facility we moved my mom into is very good and clean, and they've been taking good care of her, and we're happy about it. The staff is very helpful, kind, and caring to my mom, so that's very reassuring for us. The place itself is very clean and well-maintained. I never see anything that looks out of place, there are no odors or smells, and everyone looks clean. The facility though is getting a little old, and the paint colors were a little run-down, but I understand there are plans for them to build a new facility in the next few years.

It's all about money. Won't update my Aunt's apartment, she has been there 14 years and has 25 year old appliances, cabinets, etc. They WILL however offer NEW residents granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, etc. All they care about is money. Her estate has to pay $6500 for her apartment to be upgraded for the NEXT resident after she moves out (dies). Pure greed.

Charlestown was fabulous, and it was the one I was looking for. Everything was excellent. It was beautiful, spacious enough, and everything was so convenient. I liked the fact that if I stayed there, and I get older, I don't need to go anywhere. I can get care right in that community. It is nice to have friendly people close by that will look out for you, and they have what you need. You can stay home if you want to, and everything you need is right there. They had physical activities, different kinds of book clubs, and church services. They provide the transportation if you need to go to the store, and there are parking spaces assigned to residents.

I liked Charlestown very much. Everything was interconnected. They had their own doctor on staff there. They had 5 choices of dining room and several layouts of apartments. There was a gorgeous chapel.

Charlestown itself and its staff seemed really nice. They had a chapel and a salon. I tried the food, and it was fine. They had lots of activities and hundreds of clubs.

Charlestown only has apartments, and they've been very helpful in talking to us. They offered us different things to look at. They have a swimming pool, activity rooms, and all kinds of amenities.

My parents live at Charlestown in the assisted living facility. Overall the facility is acceptable. There have been many issues with their staff communication. Also, the activities department is not including my mother in any activities whatsoever. I have asked the staff hundreds of times to have my mother involved in daily activities, but they refuse.

This was a very nice looking facility. The first thing I noticed was the wonderful view, it was somewhat on a hill so you could see all the lights of the city, which I enjoyed. The units on the first floor had small patios which I thought was also nice. Once inside I saw that every unit had it's own little shelf outside the door which was great to for putting decorations on for the holidays, or setting pictures on, this made it look less like a hotel and more like homes. The unit I went into was nice, though the area where you would put your bed (there was no door, so it was not a bedroom) was somewhat small, but the bathroom was a beautiful and a decent size! I was looking at a map of the whole facility and noticed every residential building in the whole community was connected, which I thought was very useful, especially in the winter because most of the residents have motorized scooters. I was impressed with the size of this facility, and loved that there was a walking trail, baseball court, and a garden! I heard the price of the units was high, especially since you are buying them, but it seemed like a nice, clean place with a lot of activities individuals or visiting families could enjoy.

Overall this is a really nice facility. There are tons of amenities and options for the residents to take part in including swimming pools, tv rooms, library's, game rooms, and more. The facility has always been well maintained very well every time I have been there. In addition, there is a bus service offered which has a regular route that you can ride to go to different stores and get out of your apartment if you do not drive anymore. The staff has been nice and helpful for the most part. My grandmother was moved into the assisted living area and there have been a number of issues including the staff not providing medications when they were supposed to or at all, not monitoring her activities like they were supposed to, and not knowing where she was. In other instances when she has had health problems, the staff have been attentive and responsive - calling an ambulance, providing transportation to the hospital, and more.