Greenville Business Magazine 2010 June issue : Page 28

BY MARY ANN HESTER | PHOTOGRAPH BY COMMERCIAL IMAGING Retirement should be an experience Ken Bolt, whose company Banyan Senior Living built the Cascades Verdae of Greenville, counts himself as one very blessed individual. Growing up in Greenwood, he had an idyllic childhood surrounded by parents and all four of his grandpar- ents. He had “special dispensation” from the Greenville News to deliver their papers in Greenwood when he was only 11 years old; he kept the same route for seven years and read the paper every day. Then he headed to Clemson, where he majored in Building Construction in the School of Architecture.He graduated on a Saturday in 1966 and went to work for Daniel Construction on Monday, where he stayed for 26 years. He says that, “Mr. Daniel possessed exceptional leadership skills and vision that you only find in one in a million people and I was lucky to be there during the time the company itself was being built into the finest business of its kind.” With the Fluor influence, the center of the company shifted to California and Ken Bolt is a dyed-in-the-wool South Carolinian. So in 1985, he started developing his own business that he named Banyan Senior Living.He built it on the premise “success in the develop- ment and management of the senior housing industry is built on three core fundamentals: experienced leadership, careful and meticulous attention to the planning process and a well-coordinated implementation effort.” The senior market was just evolving at the time and his entry into it was the start of a very successful career. He has built and/or managed four 28 GREENVILLEBUSINESSMAG.COM | JUNE 2010 retirement communities in South Caro- lina (Sumter, Columbia, and Florence) and one in Fayetteville,NC, in addition to managing other projects. But his crowning achievement is the Cascades at Verdae in Greenville. Bolt talked with John D. Hollingsworth for many years and then after Holling- sworth’s death he competed with 16 other retirement developers for the 40 pine-covered acres at Verdae on which to build. His vision for the property encom- passed more than the building. “Studies have shown that Boomers usually think of themselves as being 15 years younger than they actually are...[we] need to appeal to their desire to buy a lifestyle, 10 Ways Baby Boomers have redefined retirement Living longer. People 65 or older will rise to 89 million compared to 39 million today. No company pension. 40 percent received traditional pension in 1975 compared to 17 percent today. Managing investments. Retirees are deciding on their own how to manage their nest egg. Required Minimum Distributions. Heavily taxed 401(k) and minimum distribution requirements make accounts worth less. Part-Time Jobs. For income or iden- tity, more Americans are working after they retire. Staying Active. This stage of life has become an adventure rather than withdrawal. Sandwich Generation. Aging parents and college aged children require a balance of needs. Lower Social Security Benefits. As the age to collect benefits rises, the value drops. Retiring with debt. In 2007 63 percent of families with heads of 55 or over had mortgage, credit card or other debt. Diverse Locales. Boomers now want to be “where the action is.” Source: US News & World Report 2/16/10

Retirement should be an Experience

Mary Ann Hester

Ken Bolt, whose company Banyan Senior Living built the Cascades Verdae of Greenville, counts himself as one very blessed individual. Growing up in Greenwood, he had an idyllic childhood surrounded by parents and all four of his grandparents. He had “special dispensation” from the Greenville News to deliver their papers in Greenwood when he was only 11 years old; he kept the same route for seven years and read the paper every day. Then he headed to Clemson, where he majored in Building Construction in the School of Architecture. He graduated on a Saturday in 1966 and went to work for Daniel Construction on Monday, where he stayed for 26 years. He says that, “Mr. Daniel possessed exceptional leadership skills and vision that you only find in one in a million people and I was lucky to be there during the time the company itself was being built into the finest business of its kind.”

With the Fluor influence, the center of the company shifted to California and Ken Bolt is a dyed-in-the-wool South Carolinian. So in 1985, he started developing his own business that he named Banyan Senior Living. He built it on the premise “success in the development and management of the senior housing industry is built on three core fundamentals: experienced leadership, careful and meticulous attention to the planning process and a well-coordinated implementation effort.” The senior market was just evolving at the time and his entry into it was the start of a very successful career.

He has built and/or managed four retirement communities in South Carolina (Sumter, Columbia, and Florence) and one in Fayetteville, NC, in addition to managing other projects.

But his crowning achievement is the Cascades at Verdae in Greenville. Bolt talked with John D. Hollingsworth for many years and then after Hollingsworth’s death he competed with 16 other retirement developers for the 40 pine-covered acres at Verdae on which to build. His vision for the property encompassed more than the building. “Studies have shown that Boomers usually think of themselves as being 15 years younger than they actually are...[we] need to appeal to their desire to buy a lifestyle, rather than make future care decisions…and appeal to the residents’ sense of excitement at this new, more carefree stage of their lives.” Along with this, the continuing care retirement communities need to offer “the best of both possible worlds: a vibrant, active lifestyle now, paired with the security of knowing that all your future needs will be met.”

A comparison to an elegant cruise ship or five-star hotel is one way to look at the Cascades at Verdae. The “cabins” can be anything from a townhouse to cottage. For more personal care, residents can look to residential communities that can provide assisted living, memory and skilled nursing care.

The “cruise director” or Director of Member Services, offers a series of lecture and program services, social events and off-premise outings so the residents can keep challenging themselves mentally. The Clubhouse features a movie and dinner theater, library, art studio, business center, bank and card room. There are several dining options from formal to casual, a pub, bistro and flexible dining hours. The fitness center has a lap pool, aerobics studio, Pilates classes, personal trainers, beauty and barber salon, manicures and pedicures and spa treatments.

Baby Boomers are used to a lot of amenities and this senior living community will not disappoint.

Although he has recently sold the Cascades to a senior living developer in Charlotte, Bolt speaks of this place with a special pride and affection. “Seniors don’t want to be on Main Street but they do want to be in the mainstream,” he says.

So what does this senior community developer want to develop next? He is on the board of A Child’s Haven in Greenville and wants to take this concept of a place to help children and families and build it on land adjoining a senior living community. “This intergenerational model of people who need help and those who have time and expertise to deliver it can be a ‘win-win’ for both. Seniors want to give back to their community; there is a huge need for help and the more convenient you can make it, the easier it is to make is succeed.”

Ken Bolt put Greenville on the national senior community radar with the Cascades at Verdae, but it is not just the buildings that make it outstanding. It is his desire to “figure out the most humane way for seniors to live out the rest of their lives.” That should be a credo for all of us. GBM





Living longer. People 65 or older will rise to 89 million compared to 39 million today.

No company pension. 40 percent received traditional pension in 1975 compared to 17 percent today.

Managing investments. Retirees are deciding on their own how to manage their nest egg.

Required Minimum Distributions. Heavily taxed 401(k) and minimum distribution requirements make accounts worth less.

Part-Time Jobs. For income or identity, more Americans are working after they retire.

Staying Active. This stage of life has become an adventure rather than withdrawal.

Sandwich Generation. Aging parents and college aged children require a balance of needs.

Lower Social Security Benefits. As the age to collect benefits rises, the value drops.

Retiring with debt. In 2007 63 percent of families with heads of 55 or over had mortgage, credit card or other debt.

Diverse Locales. Boomers now want to be “where the action is.”