Firm in Massachusetts to take over W. Lawrence retirement community

A West Lawrence retirement community that is home to more than 300 seniors is soon set to have a new owner.

A deal has been struck to sell the Brandon Woods at Alvamar campus to Five Star Quality Care, a Massachusetts-based firm that operates more than 200 retirement communities across the country.

The sale — scheduled to be finalized Oct. 1 — encompasses all aspects of Brandon Woods operations, including the apartments, the skilled nursing unit and the assisted living operations of the campus.

A spokeswoman for Brandon Woods said the new company would continue to employ about 250 people at the campus, 1501 Inverness Drive.

“Our residents and their families should expect that our associates will continue to deliver the same care and services that they have been receiving,” said Donna Bell, public relations director for Brandon Woods. “The same employees will be here. We expect the residents will experience little change.”

Brandon Woods has been owned by Iowa-based Life Care Services since 2001. The company said in a statement that its decision to sell the Brandon Woods facility was “bittersweet,” and that the decision was based on “business needs.”

Attempts to reach a spokesman with Five Star Quality Care were not immediately successful.

The company is publicly traded on the American Stock Exchange, and was founded in 2000, according to an online profile of the company.

Based in Newton, Mass., it has about 14,000 employees.

Brandon Woods opened in 1988 and has grown to include a skilled nursing unit with 140 beds, 82 independent living apartments, 76 townhomes that are owned by individuals, and 37 assisted living residences.