The Blake at Tyler

Mississippi-based LifeCare properties will begin construction this spring on a new 100,000-square-foot assisted living and memory care community in Tyler.

The Blake at Tyler will be located in The Crossing, a mixed used residential, commercial and retail development near Three Lakes Middle School. It’s expected to open in winter 2023.

Brooks Holstein, who founded LifeCare, described The Blake at Tyler as a “resort-style community.”

“So it’s very different,” he said.

He said the management teams from Blake Management Group also make the communities different from others. The Jackson, Mississippi-based firm is a “tremendous operator” that “provides a superior level of service and care and empathy and passion for residents.

“That’s the biggest differentiator,” he said of the firm LifeCare works with to manage its properties.

The Blake at Tyler will have a total of 115 apartments, or 121 beds, with 72 assisted living apartments, or 78 beds, and 43 memory care apartments. Assisted living apartments will range in size from 400 to 500 square feet, to two-bedroom units that are about 1,200 square feet.

The two-story building will consist of a 25,000 square foot memory care unit, Holstein said, with “state of the art facilities” dedicated to caring for people with dementia and similar illnesses.

Blake Management Group offers a proprietary program in its memory care units called “Come Walk With Me,” with specific activities designed for people with memory loss, Holstein said.

“We offer restaurant-style high quality food” that people would be more than happy to bring their families to.

“We have people come to dinner,” Holstein said.

The facility also will offer a bistro/coffee shop with quick order items such as sandwiches and salads as well as a full service bar. A spa, activity rooms, a chapel and salon also will be part of The Blake at Tyler.

“Patented air ionization system breaks down Corona viruses and other air pollutants providing our residents with purified air and peace of mind,” information from the company said.

The Blake at Tyler will employ 60 to 80 people, including health care professionals, dining staff and leadership executives.

“We have 24-hour nurse staffing. There is a registered nurse in the facility 24-7, 365 days a year,” Holstein said. “That’s very unique in our industry.”

LifeCare was attracted to Tyler in part because it’s confident in the city’s business and political leadership.

“We want a forward-thinking community that has a passion for the school system and quality of life,” Holstein said. “That’s one of the reasons we were attracted to Tyler.”

LifeCare also saw a need in Tyler.

“We’re totally needs driven,” he said, describing how the company worked with a marketing feasibility company in Fort Worth.

Holstein said Jeremy Cole, one of four managing partners in LifeCare, was familiar with Tyler and encouraged the firm to consider building there. Cole previously was chief executive officer of Blake Management Group.

The Blake at Tyler will be LifeCare’s third Texas property, with locations in Waco and New Braunfels, and more than 20 other properties in its portfolio.

The company loves the Tyler market, Holstein said.

“It’s seen a lot of growth, and it has an expanded trade area because of the hospitals and commerce,” Holstein said. He flew into Tyler with Cole to evaluate the location.

“I totally agreed with him,” and the firm entered into a purchase agreement for the approximately 5 acres where The Blake at Tyler will be located.

He praised the amenities already offered in The Crossing, including walking trails and outdoor areas.

“We think it’s a very unique community, not only to Tyler, but to all of Northeast Texas,” Holstein said, praising the work of developer Mike Werner, president of Werner-Taylor Land & Development in Tyler.